1997 Plymouth Prowler

1997 Plymouth Prowler Convertible Some things are so uniquely American they become part of our culture fabric; blue jeans, cowboy boots, our love affair with the automobile.  Perhaps few cars embody this love affair better than the Hot Rod.  Built in garages and basements across the nation, they prowled the strips in search of that special challenge, to unleash their quickness and display their owner's creativity.  Plymouth Prowler captures those days, but takes it a step further by including technology unheard of in those days.  Plymouth Prowler, the essence of a future American classic.  From the concept brochure, printed December 1992.   For consignment, a 1997 Plymouth Prowler with a title verified 28,835 actual miles and some customizations that make this one unique.  We've had the pleasure of representing many Prowlers here at Classic Auto Mall, but this is our first first year model and one of just 457 built.  In that first year, you could have any color you wanted, as long as it was purple.   Exterior  The press color pervades this 1997 and was named appropriately Prowler Purple Metallic.  The narrow eyed Prowler has open front wheels, part of its exotic offering, with body keyed fenders that turn with the wheels and this one features custom front nerf bars.  Up front, the bumpers have been removed and side vents have been added to the front quarters.  The steeply raked windshield creates a low roof and a chopped hot rod vibe while the staggered size chrome 5 spoke wheels present a raked stance on a low riding skate with low profile tires and Prowler caliper covers in bright red bleed through the openings.  The wheels are a full 3-inches in difference with 20's out back and 17's in front, and the tires are of different width which becomes obvious when you follow this car and its super wide back end, underlined by a smoothed back end, bumpers removed, replaced with a custom rear panel and chromed frame and light components.  The canvas top, wheels, and paint are excellent on the car and the only imperfections we found were a couple of paint chips and an area of orange peel.   Interior The bad boy exterior gives way to a clean and practical interior with some custom touches starting with an image of the car we're sitting in painted on the door panel inserts, fronting a tropical moonscape.  Padded and stitched leather bucket seats reveal a bit more style with bar style tops and the Prowler, a big cat of some kind, embossed on the seat back and on the accessory headrests, and this time they're purple.  That cat shows up again on the steering wheel which is accented with purple rim pieces and shares the column with an AutoMeter tachometer.  The factory gauge cluster is housed in a custom painted skateboard shaped plastic housing in the center of the dash, old school hot rod style with purple flames and skulls ablaze.  Molded plastic makes up the remaining dash and has an AM/FM/Cassette radio with EQ and simple climate controls.  A little bit of flash is found on the base plate of the pistol grip shifter in the center console which is mirror like chrome, while a built-in cupholder nearby lets you know you're not in the 50's anymore.  Low pile charcoal carpet nicely covers the floor while Prowler branded mats protect the base carpet.  Under the rear hatch, gray flannel material protects what might be stored and a clear windscreen, also Prowler branded, keeps your hat from falling off.  Drivetrain Under the hood we find a clean 3.5 liter V6 rated at 214 horsepower and tied to an 4-speed automatic transmission with Autostick and true to hot rod greatness, keeps power at the rear axle with 3.89 gears.  Yes that's right, the transmission is in the back for a balance ratio of 50/50.  Power disc brakes also bring us into the 21st century and are found on all four wheels.   Undercarriage Very clean underneath as we take note of the polished tubular aluminum chassis along with a t