As we collectively hold our breath through this precarious downturn in the economy, GM is silently plotting a comeback. And it needs to. Six years of complacency in the domestic automobile marketplace has cost General Motors dearly--nearly seven percent of the U.S. car market, down from 32 percent in 1996 to just over 25 percent at the end of 2002.
What GM needs--and Chevrolet in particular--is a miracle. That miracle may in fact come in the form of what you see here, the Chevy SS. If all goes well, GM's silent battle plan may become reality, morphing into a rambunctious V8-powered family joyride.
The newly formed GM Performance Division, headed up by Mark Reuss, has been given the task of developing performance variants of virtually all GM cars and trucks. And while the only outward sign of movement so far has been concepts and drawings (as of this writing, the Chevy SS concept exists only on paper), much hope is being held out by GM faithful.
We have precious little to report about the Chevy SS. Beyond these concept drawings, we can only say for sure what the official GM media web site states:
"The 2003 Chevrolet SS concept is a modern interpretation of Chevy's Super Sport heritage. A contemporary four-door family sedan turned sports car, the SS packs rear-wheel drive with a small-block V8, high-performance suspension and brakes to match."
With an understanding that a magazine's lead time on a hot story like this is measured in calendar months while the Internet is measured in milliseconds, we shall attempt to dissect this synopsis in more specific terms based on an incomplete set of facts.
Framing this must necessarily be an understanding that GM's description of the Chevy SS is aimed toward the general public and not the enthusiast per se. You may recall that Chevrolet also described the 2003 Silverado SS as having "exhilarating off-line acceleration," a definition which if applied across GM's entire line must include by default such modest performers as the Buick Park Avenue and Cadillac DeVille.
Performance aside, the SS's style is retro in feel--'40s up front and '70s in the rear deck and valence panel. We like both ends but the rear is the winner here with its outright homage to the Chevelle. It's hard to tell with such obtuse views, but the front and rear seem well integrated, with Coke-bottle styling most reminiscent of the '68 Corvette. The front is derivative of the SSR, but perhaps more developed, and certainly more aggressive. Very cool. This is a car that conveys a sense of substance without appearing too heavy (i.e., the Cadillac CTS).
With concept vehicles, the interior is usually the least developed element, and for sure it's the most flexible in terms of production intent. For the SS, the interior fuses a mid-'50s IP with a traditional musclecar theme. We don't care for the paddle shifters mounted on the steering wheel. We'd much rather have a T- or H-handle shifter on the console. (Six-speed manual, anyone?) The bucket seats, retro IP and fold-down tray tables for the youngsters are a thumbs up too. Is this the perfect excuse to get the wife to dump the minivan or what?
One production scenario which is tantalizingly viable is to build the SS on the same architecture as the TrailBlazer. This is currently being done with the Chevy SSR in low volume and with no compromise to the SSR's original intent or style. To make things simple, even the SSR's all aluminum 5.3L V8 could be employed in the same form.
Although the Chevy SS appears to have a very low ride height in these highly stylized drawings (which simulate a really wide angle lens and a trip to a So-Cal chop shop), the forthcoming concept vehicle will probably be toned down some, bringing it, for the most part, into the realm of practicality. When that happens, we will have a better idea if basing the SS on a truck platform is realistic.
You may recall last year's Chevy Bel Air concept was based on the upcoming Colorado truck architecture. Its funky curb appeal aside, the Bel Air's interior--specifically its seating position and styling--were superb. If GM could get the ride height down, the SS could use the small truck platform with lessons learned from the Bel Air exercise. The best part is that the affordability and profitability would also be good.
In the likelihood GM decides to do a production SS soon, the truck platform scenario looks good. Nevertheless, there is a big effort underway to find a dedicated rearwheel drive passenger car platform. This seems far more feasible but will take a longer time, perhaps four or five years before a performance variant like the SS could be built. Possibilities include a modified Holden V platform, a high-volume variant of Sigma, or even a modified version of the FWD Delta platform. For those of us with gasoline for blood, it all boils down to power. With so many performance products on the schedule at Ford and DCX, we don't think GM will leave us out in the rain. We would love to see a pushrod V8 with 400 hp, but anything is possible, including bread and butter versions with relatively potent I5 and I6 powertrains.
Will the Chevy SS amount to anything but a concept? Concepts traditionally don't fare well, even when they do make it through the gauntlet of bean counters. But we can dream, can't we?
Illustrations courtesy of General Motors.
 The Chevy SS is remarkably...  The Chevy SS is remarkably close in concept to Dodge's Charger concept of three years ago. Four doors, heritage theme, coupe styling, a potent V8, musclecar looks and rearwheel drive are a sure hit with family oriented gearheads. GM, however, wisely left out propane fueling from the equation. The Chevelle rear valence panel is ripe for revisiting on a production car. |
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 In the SS interior, we see...  In the SS interior, we see many similarities to the interior styling of last year's Bel Air concept, a '50s era instrument panel and fold-down tray tables being the most obvious. The center console, however, is more like the Solstice. Is GM fine tuning a neo-retro styling regime for future models? |