To most buyers, Chevrolet's SSR, a valentine to hot rod trucks, was less retro-cool than "here comes grandpa, everybody hide." Performance was poorer than expected and sales were off dramatically from projections, leaving the company with more inventory than customers by the end of 2004. For 2005, however, Chevy employed the Corvette's LS2 motor like a Cialis cut with methamphetamine. The 390-hp V8 excised last year's eight-second zero-to-60 times like a cirrhotic liver and infused the new model with gumption enough for 72 holes of speed golf. Now, gramps looks to be in fine fettle and ready for more serious action. And the truck doesn't look too bad, either.
2005 Chevy SSR: Why wasn't it built like this in the first place? [Speed Channel]
Related:
Driving the More Powerful 2005 Chevrolet SSR [internal]