These Great Cars Were Ruined By Their Transmissions

Usually when people talk about the shortcomings or disappointments when it comes to the Prowler, the first conversation piece is the engine, but I’m here to be controversial: the Prowler wasn’t an underpowered hotrod, it was a great sportscar that just looked like a hotrod.

2,900lbs, 250hp, RWD, near perfect 50/50 weight distribution, extensive use of aluminum and other lightweight materials, the transmission it used was even a transaxle, for its time it performed very well in handling tests and even in a straight line it wasn’t anything to underestimate. If I prattled that off in the context of something like a Nissan or Honda sports car, it would sound like a car I’m sure many enthusiasts would be drawn towards, but knowing it’s a Prowler would sour all those stats to most people.

If we can ignore that it looks like it should have a V8 sounding exhaust note, or that it’s designed to attract delusional old men, there’s really only one major shortcoming (ok, next to their MSRP): the transmission. Sure, they used a transaxle for weight distribution purposes, but the only transmission they offered in the thing was an absolute dog of a 4 speed slushbox. If they had of offered it with a 5 or 6 speed manual, I really think that on paper it would have been a dynamically excellent sports car, to the point where I could forgive the design and V6 under the hood, it just really seems like a lot of potential was left on the table with the Prowler because it was limited to that awful automatic.

You, my friend, are an enlightened individual. Would it have been cooler with a V8? Sure, but power was fine. What the Prowler really needed was a proper manual transmission to bring the whole thing together. Though, who really know if Chrysler had a manual that can be made into a transaxle and still hold that sort of power.