CLASS OF 2000—BRAND NAMES MAKE A FLASHY EXIT IN THE EARLY 21ST CENTURY

By
Jerry Admin
-
0
341

The car world lost some big names in the early 21st Century.

Plymouth, Pontiac, Mercury and Thunderbird all bit the dust before the first decade ended in the new century.

The end was quick, but these brand names made a flashy exit with some flashy cars on their farewell tour.

Jerry Sutherland

The legendary name Plymouth said goodbye in 2001. This brand was known for years as an affordable, reliable car until the debut of the muscular 1956 Fury.

The Plymouth Fury was followed by legends such as the GTX, Road Runner, and Superbird before making the waiver list at Chrysler in 2001. 

The last flashy Plymouth was the 2001 Prowler. The Prowler was based on a 1993 concept car that was pushed by Tom Gale—Chrysler’s design and international director at the time. He liked the ’32 Ford he had in his garage and took some serious styling cues from the legendary hot rod platform.

The Prowler was outstanding in a world full of minivans, but it was held back by the 24-valve, 3.5 Chrysler SOHC V6 engine, aluminum block, 253 hp under the hood. Hot rod guys wanted more than a 0-60 in 5.9 seconds with an electronically governed,127 mph top speed. Real hot-rodders wanted speeds that could take them into Warp 7. Unfortunately, the third-gen Hemi came a few years later.    

The Ford Thunderbird crashed and burned in 2005–50 years after it debuted. The last generation T-bird went back to the roots of the platform with a roadster version in 2001.

The last version had Jaguar’s 3.9 L AJ35 V8 engine that generated 280 hp. It did 0-60 in seven seconds and could hit (a governed) 130 miles per hour. Those are good, but not great numbers, plus the engine wasn’t a hit with Ford buyers or muscle car guys.

Style was another factor. The last T-bird looked like a cross between a ’53 Vette and the original ’55 T-bird, so Ford guys were lukewarm at best. That—plus the lack of power made the last T-bird less appealing, but it did leave an impression on the street that lasts to this day.

Mercury left the scene in January 2011 when the last car rolled off the assembly line. There wasn’t much the Mercurys didn’t do over the years–the legend began in 1949 with the lower and wider version of the Merc. This car became a default platform for hot rod guys because it had built-in cool factor.

Mercury took a big swing at performance in 2003 with the Marauder. Marauder was a storied Mercury name in the 60s and 70s so the idea of a muscle car based on the Panther platform seemed a little out there—except for the success of the mid-90s Impala SS sedan.

The Marauder came with a 32-valve aluminum-block V-8 produces 302 horsepower. It could do 0-60 in 7.5 seconds and topped out at a heavily governed 117 miles per hour. Ford was worried about driveshaft vibration past that speed. The Marauder didn’t make sense—that’s why it’s so cool to see one 20 years later.

Pontiac circled the drain in late 2010—but not before they produced the last GTO.

The last GTOs were built from 2004 to 2006. This was done at a point where Pontiac as an entity was on the endangered list at GM. Surprisingly, the last GTO was an Australian Holden with Pontiac badges, so they came with a Holden 5.7 LS1, 6-speed manual–or a 4-speed automatic.

Pontiac guys were lukewarm about the Aussie GTO because of where it was built and how it looked–but it definitely had GTO numbers. This 21st century Goat could do 160 miles per hour with a decent ¼ mile at 13.9 seconds. Very few 1st gen GTOs could do that–but at least the last GTO went down swinging.

There’s a lesson with these cars. If you’re going to make an exit, make it a grand exit.

Jerry Sutherland

By: Jerry Sutherland

Jerry Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer with a primary focus on the collector car hobby. His work has been published in many outlets and publications, including the National Post, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Regina Leader-Post,  Vancouver Sun and The Truth About Cars. He is also a regular contributor to Auto Roundup Publications.

SPONSORS

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR