Latest news with #Prowler
NBC Sports
14-05-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Tony Boselli says Jaguars will wear their throwback uniforms as much as the NFL allows
Jaguars Executive V.P. of Football Operations says the team wants to wear its 'Prowler' throwback uniforms — the uniforms Boselli himself wore during his Jaguars career as a Hall of Fame offensive tackle — as often as permitted under NFL rules. Boselli was asked on 1010XL about fans clamoring for the throwback uniforms to return permanently, and Boselli said he wants to see the return of the uniform design named for jerseys with a prowling jaguar on the sleeve. 'I'm with the fans. You know where I lie. I would wear those dang things every game if we were allowed. I think this year we're allowed to wear them up to four. We will maximize. Any time we can wear the power of the old-school jerseys, they will be on,' Boselli said. Boselli said the NFL doesn't allow teams to make too many changes to its uniforms and that the Jaguars couldn't immediately return to the old uniform design, but he indicated that the Jaguars could be heading to a time when the Prowlers are the main uniform and the current main uniform is the alternate. 'There are league rules of how often you can change the jerseys,' Boselli said. 'We will abide by those rules. We can't change them immediately to be a full-time jersey. Stay tuned. We'll communicate that as we have the opportunity to at our next jersey change. But for this year, expect us to maximize. I believe it's four times that we can wear the Prowlers, and we're going to maximize and wear those Prowlers as much as we can.' The Jaguars wore the original Prowler uniforms when the team first played as an expansion franchise, then slightly modified them in 1998 before a significant uniform change in 2009.
Forbes
10-04-2025
- Automotive
- Forbes
Flashback: Test-Driving The 2000 Plymouth Prowler
Today marks my 25th year of testing and reviewing new cars, trucks and motorycles - April 10, 2000. Many people have asked 'What's your favorite car that you've tested?' Figuring it will be an exotic. But my 'favorite' - or one of them - is the 2000 Plymouth Prowler, seen below. It was ridiculous, it was impractical, it was expensive for the time and, with the top up, visibility sucked. It was also more fun that the proverbial barrel of monkeys. Here's what I had to say about it. 2000 Plymouth Prowler Courtesy of Many people move to NYC to do one of two things - to become famous or to be left alone. I've done the being left alone part. Now that I've driven the Prowler I feel I know what it must be like to be famous. During the test drive period of this fire-engine red (not shown) 2-seat exclamation point on wheels, I was barraged by camera-wielding tourists and locals alike, constantly beeped at, challenged to races, and surrounded every time I stopped somewhere. By the end of the test period I had learned to anticipate inquiries which I was obliged to answer again and again, and had a sound bite prepared for each one. I will now share them with you. The Prowler has a V6, 3.5 litre, 253 horsepower engine. It's a 4-speed automatic with clutchless manual capability. Its acceleration is excellent and the car handles superbly. It gets ok mileage - 17 MPG in the city and about 23 on the highway. 2000 Plymouth Prowler Courtesy of Their is no trunk space to speak of - it's not a car for long trips. The brakes are somewhat mushy for a car capable of this speed. The ride is rough, too. Passengers absorb the full brunt of NYC industrial-sized potholes, each of which was felt like an explosion but we never got a flat or messed up the fragile front suspension. I shared part of the test drive with pro racer Adrian Cenni, which was rather like driving inside a running blender. Adrian Cenni Courtesy of Instagram 'I liked the car," Cenni said at the end, as I staggered around thinking 'I need a cigarette, and I don't even smoke.' Cenni continued: 'It doesn't have an audible growl, but it had a pretty decent acceleration for a V6. Under hard braking, I felt the back wheels wanted to lock up, despite the presence of anti-lock brakes. However, the car didn't have a lot of body roll when I swerved from side to side and I liked that. A really nice feature is the driver's visibility of the front wheels and fenders as you drive.' 2000 Plymouth Prowler Courtesy of Though driving the Prowler is like negotiating a 4-wheeled, rocket-shaped disco ball, it's really a beautiful, well made machine and has drawn raves from consumers and trade magazines alike. 2000 is the last year they'll be made, so grab one now if you want to become an overnight star. (JM note: Chrysler would have something to say about that, in time.) 2000 Plymouth Prowler Courtesy of Put it this way - the Prowler was the only car I've ever tested where the guys driving Porsche Boxsters slowed down to check me out. New standard features include an electrochromatic rearview mirror, a mini-trip computer situated on the rearview mirror, speed sensitive automatic volume control, a steering wheel mounted mute switch and leather shift boot. There are no options listed, but the destination charge is is $700.00, which brings the final price to $43,400. They're still around, too! If you're interested in buying one, visit Ride safe! JM
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Where Did Dodge's Scat Pack Name Come From?
Over the course of its nearly a century of existence, Chrysler and its various associates — Dodge, Plymouth, Jeep, et al. — has produced some of the best named cars in the business. You can't argue with vehicles called the Challenger, the Daytona, the Prowler, the Magnum, the Dart, and the Wrangler. Along with its legendary cars, the company has also produced some of the best trim package names around, like Swinger, Hellcat, and Warlock. Honestly, when it comes to names that capture the imagination, Chrysler is one of the best to ever do it. Of all the names that Chrysler has used over the years, Scat Pack is one of the most famous. It's also possibly one of the most contentious names out there and has been fodder for passionate discussions among gearheads for half a century. Is it a model? Is it a trim package? Doesn't "scat" mean poop? Where did that name come from, anyway, and what does it mean? As is the case with a lot of the coolest things in the automotive world, the answer to all those questions lies in the Mad Men-era of advertising. Let's travel back to the heady days of the muscle car era and take a look at how the Scat Pack came to be, shall we? Read more: Dodge Will Pay You $10 Per Horsepower To Buy A New Charger, Challenger, Or Durango In 1961, Chrysler engineer and Ramchargers racer Dan Mancini stuffed a 361 B big block V8 into a '61 Valiant and took it to the drag strip. This feat of mechanical chicanery kicked off a near decade-long wave of shadetree mechanics and pro racers alike stuffing big, fire-breathing Chrysler V8s into lightweight Mopar A body cars. It wasn't until 1967, however, that the big brains at Chrysler decided to get in on the big mill/small car action themselves with the release of the 383-powered second-gen Dart GTS. In 1968, Dodge released the all-new Charger R/T and Coronet R/T, and with them came the Scat Pack name. Penned by the Ross Roy ad agency out of Detroit, MI, Scat Pack was, allegedly, a combination of the old-timey word "scat" meaning "get lost" or "get outta here" and a reference to the Sinatra-led Rat Pack. What made the Scat Pack unique was that it wasn't a specific brand or trim package, but a collective name for Dodge's three performance models — the aforementioned B-Body Charger and Challenger R/T and the previous year's big-bore Dart GTS. Relatively quickly, these three were joined by the Coronet-derived Super Bee. To set them apart from other, more pedestrian Chrysler products, the Scat Pack cars wore "Bumblebee Stripes," a pair of contrasting color racing stripes (typically black or white) that ran horizontally over the deck lid and down the side of each quarter panel. In addition to their trademark stripes, the Scat Pack cars got their own mascot — a grinning, biomechanical bumblebee wearing a white helmet and black visor equipped with Cragars, redline tires, and a big V8 on his back. There was even a combination owners' group/fan club called the Scat Pack Club that published a monthly newsletter containing all the Scat Pack news fit to print. While it was wildly successful, tastes and models changed and Dodge shelved the Scat Pack after the 1971 model year. The fastest bee in the west was absent from Dodge advertising, and from the cultural zeitgeist at large, for more than four decades. Then, in 2013, the Scat Pack name — complete with a more aggressive, facelifted racing bee logo — returned at that year's SEMA trade show and Mopar heads lost their collective minds. The new Scat Pack, like its predecessor, encompassed the Dart, Charger, and Challenger (history doesn't repeat, but it does rhyme). In 2014, the Scat Pack was much like it was in the old days, just a collective noun for a particular set of fast Mopars. In 2015, however, it became a full-fledged trim package. Eventually, after the neo-Dart's demise in 2016, the Scat Pack moniker was used to describe the 392-powered Chargers and Challengers slotted in between the R/T models and the fire-breathing Hellcats. With the death of the Hemi L-series in 2023, the Scat Pack name once again disappeared from Dodge's lineup, but only briefly. When Dodge unveiled the new Charger Daytona EV last year, it presented the muscle car in two different trim levels: R/T and Scat Pack. The electric Charger Daytona Scat Pack has a whopping 670 horsepower, way more than any Scat Pack before it, and it even comes with a redesigned bumblebee logo. While the version of the new Charger with a gas six-cylinder won't use the Scat Pack name, if the rumors are true and the Charger gains a V8 variant, maybe the bee will find its way onto that car's fenders as well. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
What could the new, sub-$30k Dodge sports car look like?
The idea of an affordable performance car from Dodge seems like one that's been long lost to the sands of time. Gone are the days of the turbocharged Neon SRT4, the Challenger R/T, and the glorious, 8.4-liter V10-powered Viper. Instead, we've been left with the Hornet–a crossover that shares its platform with the Alfa Romeo Tonale–an all-electric quasi-Charger, and the Dodge Durango, which is almost old enough to vote. But, according to Dodge's current CEO, Matt McAlear, our luck may turn around. According to our very own Elijah Nicholson-Messmer, Dodge's CEO has hinted at the possibility of an upcoming, sub-$30,000 sports car. If McAlear's statements are to come true, it could very well mean that we'll see a new roadster from the marque in the not-so-distant future. According to an interview with The Drive, McAlear said: "I think there's a market for people who just want to have that weekend car again, who would like a Viper, but don't have that $100 or $120K. Something that doesn't need all the safety features, doesn't need the heated seats. Just a car.' His idea of a sort of "baby Viper" reminds us of a few of Dodge's past concept vehicles that never quite came to 1997, Dodge showed the world the Copperhead Concept–a functioning, prototype roadster equipped with a 2.7-liter V6, which sent power to the rear wheels through a 5-speed manual transmission. It not only captured the hearts of car enthusiasts–it helped shape an entire generation of new enthusiasts. Featured as a drivable vehicle in the first two Gran Turismo franchise entries and as a pushable vehicle in the form of a Hot Wheels toy, the Dodge Copperhead Concept inspired automotive awe in children of all ages during the late-1990s and early-2000s. That very same year, Plymouth introduced the Prowler–a two-door, two-seater roadster with a unique, open-wheel design and a design that has aged like fine wine, in my own humble opinion. The Prowler packed a more muscular 3.5-liter V6, compared to the Copperhead's smaller 2.7, but in the many years since its debut, enthusiasts have managed to cram Hemi V8s and even supercharged Hellcat motors under their hoods–thus affording the Prowler true hot rod status. In subsequent years, Dodge would go on to produce two more concept cars that resembled traditional roadsters but were noticeably more compact than the grizzly Viper. In 2004, Dodge would show the world the Slingshot, a two-seater roadster that packed a turbocharged 3-cylinder engine under the hood. It, too, was equipped with a 5-speed manual transmission and rear-wheel drive. In 2007, Dodge showed off a revised roadster concept–the Dodge Demon Concept–which used a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, rear-wheel drive, and a 6-speed manual transmission. This was meant to chase after similar models being offered by rival manufacturers at the time, such as the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky. Obviously, the general idea is also very reminiscent of the legendary Mazda Dodge has never actually sent any of these wonderful concept vehicles to the production line. The closest thing we ever saw from Mopar, besides the Plymouth Prowler, was the Chrysler Crossfire–a two-door, two-seater coupe or roadster, which shared its platform and most of its parts with the R170-generation Mercedes-Benz SLK. Although it could be had in SRT6 guise with a supercharged, 3.2-liter V6, only the less-powerful, naturally-aspirated models were ever offered with a manual transmission. All models came equipped with rear-wheel drive, but the Crossfire was marketed as something of a "grand tourer", meaning more of them ended up living in retirement communities rather than living out glory on race tracks. Dodge is a brand that has found itself backed into a corner. With a lineup of just three models–all of which are either quite dated or not selling as well as they had hoped–Dodge desperately needs to do something fresh to win over the hearts of enthusiasts and buyers alike. A sub $30,000 roadster could bring some much-needed excitement to the brand without fantastically heavy research and development costs. Dodge could use a revised version of the Crossfire's Benz-based platform, which isn't entirely unreasonable considering the current Durango still uses a 1990s Mercedes-derived platform, as did the Charger and Challenger up until the end of 2023 when they were discontinued in favour of the new, electric Charger. Alternatively, a shrunken Alfa Romeo Giulia platform may also work, if that would somehow be more cost-effective. Regardless of the ins and outs of its development logistics, it's not an impossible task for Dodge to create an affordable, rear-drive generative text-to-image artificial intelligence, we take an imagined look at what a revived, true-to-its-heritage Dodge two-seat roadster could look like, incorporating recent Dodge styling cues and imagining what currently existing powertrains it could optimize. These images are for speculation purposes only and in no way depict any actual Stellantis products. To keep its base MSRP under the $30,000 mark, a likely powertrain candidate for Dodge's new sports car would be the turbocharged, 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine currently being used in the Dodge Hornet crossover. With a power figure of 286 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque, it would certainly pack a healthy punch–enough to provide the Mazda MX-5, Toyota GR86, and Subaru BRZ with a serious showdown. As Matt McAlear made clear, things on the inside should remain simple and driver-focused. An infotainment screen with smartphone integration is a must these days, but it doesn't have to be much more than that, and it certainly doesn't need to occupy the entire dash as it does with far too many contemporary vehicles. Another must-have feature is rear-wheel drive, but we're praying that a 6-speed manual transmission is made available as well. An optional ZF-sourced 8-speed automatic wouldn't be unwelcome either, and it would certainly help boost those pesky sales figures. Perhaps a cheeky V8-powered model could come along at some point, as well. There's just something about the idea of a factory Hellcat-powered two-seat roadster that should raise the hair on the back of every car enthusiast's neck. Considering the Dodge Hornet's pricing starts at $31,585, it's not so far-fetched to think that a small roadster with an identical powertrain could end up with a price tag just shy of $30,000, albeit in relatively stripped-down, base model guise. We'd love to see more affordable, enthusiast-oriented vehicles like this from as many manufacturers as possible, so it's comforting to see that a large manufacturer like Dodge recognizes a desire for these kinds of news of a potential sports car with a driver-oriented design focus in this day and age is both massively exciting and a bit of a relief. If you're a driving enthusiast these days, it's easy to feel like manufacturers can't seem to justify offering the exciting, charismatically engaging vehicles that many of them used to. Hearing Dodge's CEO speaking directly to that crowd is refreshing to see, and we hope that this sentiment continues to make its return into the mainstream automotive industry. For now, nothing is officially confirmed, so we'll just have to await the upcoming turbocharged inline-six-powered Charger, which should arrive sometime this year. We're looking forward to getting behind the wheel and seeing how it compares to its all-electric counterpart. Do the hairs on the back of your neck tingle at the thought of an affordable roadster from Dodge, and would you like to see one stuffed with a 6.2-liter, supercharged Hellcat V8? Would you like to see more brands hop back on the affordable sports car bandwagon, or do you think the segment is a lost cause entirely? Let us know what you think in the comments–we love to hear from you! Love reading Autoblog? Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get exclusive articles, insider insights, and the latest updates delivered right to your inbox. Click here to sign up now!
