Chevrolet SS to be the name of brand's performance sedan, NASCAR entry

It's back. Big, bad and with four doors, rear-wheel-drive performance will return to the Chevrolet sedan lineup in 2013, simply called the SS.

Chevrolet confirmed on Thursday that “SS” will be the name of its next sporty four-door, and it will be used by NASCAR Sprint Cup teams starting at the 2013 Daytona 500. The road-going car will go into production later that year and arrive as a 2014 model.

Chevy is being coy about specifics, but the sedan will get a small-block V8 and be sold in limited numbers as a halo sedan. Displacement and power have not been announced. We expect a manual transmission to be offered.

The SS will be based on General Motors' global rear-wheel-drive architecture. GM's Australian division, Holden, will assemble the sedan, and it will be exported to the United States. It will be most closely related to the future version of the Commodore, which will be on sale then in Australia.

That is different from the rear-drive sedan used by police forces, which is based on today's Commodore.

Chevrolet
The 1961 Impala was the first production car to wear the SS badge.

The return of the SS continues in Chevrolet's performance tradition, giving the brand its first rear-wheel sedan since the Impala SS in 1996, which emerged as a cult favorite of enthusiasts. The SS badge has been worn by a variety of Chevys over the years, though the Camaro is currently the only one now on the market.

NASCAR teams will have access to the Cup SS this summer for shakedowns, and Chevy says the road cars and race cars will resemble each other. Look for the production car to share Chevy's recent design cues, as evidenced on the Impala and the Malibu.

SS rumors have been swirling for months, with trademark documents circulating recently, and it's been known publicly for some time that Chevrolet was going to dump the Impala name for Cup competition.

SS stands for Super Sport, and it has a long history at Chevy. Notably, it was used in 1957 on a Corvette prototype race car built under the stewardship of Vette pioneer Zora Arkus-Duntov.

The first production SS arrived in 1961 on the Impala, and 453 versions were built that year with upgraded chassis and suspension parts.

Chevrolet
SS will be worn on a Chevy sedan in 2013.

In a statement, GM North America president Mark Reuss said, “As a passionate race fan and performance enthusiast, I am thrilled that Chevrolet will deliver a true rear-wheel-drive NASCAR race car in the SS that is very closely linked to the performance sedan that will be available for sale.

“The Chevrolet SS is a great example of how GM is able to leverage its global product portfolio to deliver a unique performance experience that extends beyond the track. I am personally looking forward to driving it.”

By Greg Migliore