The auto industry has a history of producing really weird cars and more. And, in terms of weirdness, no one did it better than General Motors in the mid-2000s. If you look at the GM catalog from this era, you might be wondering what the brand had in mind, and you’re not alone. One model that stands out in particular, and that is the pickup truck. A vehicle that might be the worst truck ever.
Why did the Chevy SSR fail?
The SSR was a truly failed truck, managing to sell only about 24,000 units. Perhaps it was a flop due to its strange design and lack of usefulness. As a pickup, it’s based on Chevy trucks from the 40’s and 50’s. And while this sounds like a great idea, it ended up being a not-so-attractive car.
Not your typical truck. It has sinuous lines, can only tow about 2,500 pounds, and is a convertible. That’s right, in the early 2000s, GM was crazy enough to approve a truck whose roof could be stowed away.
According to , SSR initially had a 5.3-liter V8. So if you want a V8 truck, it ticks this box. But 300 horsepower was clearly not enough for Chevy, and the brand went one step further.
In 2005, the SSR truck was found in the Chevy Corvette. This engine makes 390 horsepower and is said to have had a 0-60 mph time of under 5.5 seconds. This makes this exotic truck a real performance truck.
Does the Chevy SSR have a manual transmission?
Even with the massive LS2 V8, you can get an SSR pickup with a six-speed manual transmission. Because of that, I would say this quirky GM product has some enthusiast cred. Although you can arrange your own gearing, most SSR models come with either the 4L60-E automatic transmission or the 4L65-E automatic box.
In terms of options, Chevy didn’t offer much. The SSRs came fairly well-equipped as standard, which makes sense. Another interesting fact about this Chevy truck is the fact that it served as the accelerator car for the 2003 Indianapolis 500. So, this pickup has some track experience.
But in the end, it all worked out. By 2006, General Motors announced that it would close the craft center where this car was built. And that’s a sad end to what might be the worst truck, even if it was an interesting one.
