The Chevrolet SSR is a retractable hardtop convertiblepickup truck manufactured by Chevrolet between 2003 and 2006. The 2003 and 2004 model years used General Motors' 5.3 L 300 hpVortec 5300V8. Performance was 7.7 seconds for with a 15.9 second quarter mile run at 86.4 mph. The 2005 SSR used the LS2 V8 also found in the C6 Corvette, Trailblazer SS, and Pontiac GTO, and also offered a manual transmission option, the six-speed Tremec, for the first time. For the 2006 model year, the LS2 engine featured minor modifications that boosted its output to and , respectively. Performance improved dramatically with the LS2, the 6-speed manual version had an advertised 0-60 mph time of 5.29 seconds. In addition, GM badges were added to the vehicle.
Design
The SSR's "retro" styled design was inspired by Chevrolet's late-1940s Advance Design trucks, in particular the 1947–1955 pickups. The vehicle rode on a GM368 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 truck, namely the front fenders, were 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 Roadsterconcept car shown at the 2000 Detroit Auto Show. An early-production SSR was the pace car for the 2003 Indianapolis 500auto race.
Sales
The SSR was introduced as a 2004 model on New Year's Eve 2003. 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 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, spelling the end for the SSR. The final SSR, a unique black-on-silver model, 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.
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 of 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 truck for "time only" but the truck proved unstable at speeds approaching 200mph. Unfortunately the truck 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 10mph faster than the previous record.
