The Chevrolet SSR (Super Sport Roadster) is a retro-styled and retractable hardtop convertible pickup truck manufactured by

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...

between 2003 and 2006. During the 2003 and 2004 model years, the SSR used General Motors' 5.3 L '' Vortec 5300'' V8. Performance was 7.7 seconds for with a 15.9 second time at . For the 2005 model year, the SSR used the '' LS2'' V8 engine also used in the C6 Corvette, Trailblazer SS, and Pontiac GTO, now offering a

manual transmission A manual transmission (MT), also known as manual gearbox, standard transmission (in Canadian English, Canada, British English, the United Kingdom and American English, the United States), or stick shift (in the United States), is a multi-speed ...

option, the six-speed

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, for the first time. Performance improved dramatically with the LS2; the 6-speed manual version had an advertised 0– acceleration time of 5.29 seconds. In addition, GM badges were added to the vehicle. For 2006, output of the LS2 increased to .

Design

The SSR's styled design was inspired by Chevrolet's late-1940s Advance Design trucks, in particular the 1947–1955 pickups. The vehicle rode on a GMT368 platform specific to it, a version of the period's highly adaptable GMT360, and featured a steel body retractable hardtop designed by Karmann and built by ASC.> The body of the pickup, namely the front fenders, was made with deep draw stampings, a forming technique that had not been used in automotive stampings in decades, and required a "relearning" of the forming technique. The production model was based on the ''SuperSport Roadster''

concept car A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not ...

shown at the 2000 Detroit Auto Show. In contrast to the production vehicle, this concept car used the chassis from the Chevrolet S-10 pickup./> An early-production SSR was the pace car for the 2003 Indianapolis 500 auto race.

Sales

The SSR was introduced as a 2003 model on New Year's Eve 2002 (December 31). In spite of marketing efforts which included the SSR being used as the pace car for the 2003 Indianapolis 500, it sold below expectations with under 9,000 sales at US$42,000 each. Citing a 301-day supply of SSRs,

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

in December of that year announced five weeks of layoffs at Lansing Craft Center, the factory that made the SSR. On November 21, 2005, GM announced that it would close the Craft Center in mid-2006, implying the production ending for the SSR. The final SSR, a unique black-on-silver model (Highest VIN 1GCES14H06B126138), was built on March 17, 2006. Analysts estimate that 24,150 SSRs were produced in total. Of the total production, 24,112 were available for sale to the public.

Features

The Chevrolet SSR offered many luxury amenities as standard equipment. Standard equipment on all SSR's included power windows and door locks, keyless entry, luxury leather-trimmed bucket seats, front side SRS airbags, an AM/FM stereo radio with cassette and CD players and a four-speaker audio system, carpeted floor mats, 19-inch front and 20-inch rear tires and cast-aluminum wheels, a body-colored rear tonneau cover, a power-retractable hardtop convertible roof, carpeted flooring for the interior and rear cargo compartment area, a driver information center, dual-zone manual air conditioning, a power-adjustable driver's seat, dual front SRS airbags, a leather-wrapped, tilt-adjustable steering wheel, and a cruise control, among other features. Options were few, but included the

(GM)

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in-vehicle telematics system, polished cast-aluminum wheels, Teak decking and metal strakes for the rear cargo compartment area, rear onboard storage

saddle A saddle is a supportive structure for a rider of an animal, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is equestrian. However, specialized saddles have been created for oxen, camels and other animals. It is not know ...

bags, SSR-embroidered carpeted floor mats, dual power-adjustable bucket seats with driver's seat memory, an AM/FM stereo radio with a six-disc, in-dash CD changer, XM

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, and a Bose six-speaker premium audio system with an amplifier, steering wheel-mounted audio system and

controls, color-keyed interior accent trim, dual-zone automatic air conditioning, and an auxiliary center gauge package. Many of these options were part of the 1SB Equipment Package, which replaced the standard 1SA Equipment Package.

Motorsports

An attempt was made at a land speed record using a highly modified version of an SSR during the Bonneville Speed Week in August 2011. In spite of the team's efforts, the SSR in question was deemed ineligible to race in the class that they intended to compete in due to an air dam that did not conform to the class rules. They were permitted to race the pickup for "time only" but the pickup proved unstable at speeds approaching . The pickup never reached speeds anywhere near close enough to take the record. That same year, a 1996 GMC Sonoma put the class record even further out of reach by running nearly faster than the previous record.

References

External links