Just how bored was Chrysler in the 90's?

Boredom leads to crazy. Crazy moves us forward. Crazy revolutionizes. Crazy is good. Lol
 
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2376ce8221b3_hd_1927-z-movie-car-the-munster-koach.jpg
 
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The “prangler” (yes it was unofficially referred to by that name) came about almost exactly the way the article in The Drive speculated.

I worked for Chrysler Engineering from 1985 to 2015 as a mechanic. During my time there I worked on the prowler “mules”, among many other vehicles and projects.

A Mule vehicle is how the industry refers to the very early pre prototypes of new model

I had nothing to do with the “prangler” construction itself.
I did however instrument the front suspension on a red one to measure load, displacement, strain, etc. I also drove my build at the Chelsea Michigan proving grounds in order to collect data.

I’m sure the mule we tested was also previously used for cooling tests based on the number of thermocouples that were installed on our vehicle.

If I remember correctly, the prototype bodies were all done in house. I’m sure a complete body was not quite ready at that stage of the project. We were able to collect relevant data without waiting for a body to be completed.

As the article speculated the chassis and driveline of the “prangler” was quite representative of production intent.

As the article also speculated, the production vehicle was an image builder for the company but was also a test bed for new manufacturing methods. The aluminum frame and the cast magnesium? exhaust manifolds come to mind. If a new method fails you have a lot fewer vehicles to correct on a Prowler platform than on an family sedan.

I have a very hard time believing that a prangler still exists today and only ever saw two at any one time.
That’s not surprising considering that I was pretty low on the org. chart.
The wheels might have fallen through the cracks......but I can only guess at how.

I do like the comparison of the prangler to the custom that @Sancho posted.

Believe it or not there are some very talented car guys that are working in engineering. The place isn’t all computer nerds. Many times the car guys ideas are over ruled by a number of things but that doesn’t stop them from trying.

The TJ Rubicon, the Dodge Viper, and Dodge Power Wagon are a few examples of enthusiast’s projects that were pushed into production vehicles.
 
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jgaz said:
The “prangler” (yes it was unofficially referred to by that name) came about almost exactly the way the article in The Drive speculated.

I worked for Chrysler Engineering from 1985 to 2015 as a mechanic. During my time there I worked on the prowler “mules”, among many other vehicles and projects.

A Mule vehicle is how the industry refers to the very early pre prototypes of new model

I had nothing to do with the “prangler” construction itself.
I did however instrument the front suspension on a red one to measure load, displacement, strain, etc. I also drove my build at the Chelsea Michigan proving grounds in order to collect data.

I’m sure the mule we tested was also previously used for cooling tests based on the number of thermocouples that were installed on our vehicle.

If I remember correctly, the prototype bodies were all done in house. I’m sure a complete body was not quite ready at that stage of the project. We were able to collect relevant data without waiting for a body to be completed.

As the article speculated the chassis and driveline of the “prangler” was quite representative of production intent.

As the article also speculated, the production vehicle was an image builder for the company but was also a test bed for new manufacturing methods. The aluminum frame and the cast magnesium? exhaust manifolds come to mind. If a new method fails you have a lot fewer vehicles to correct on a Prowler platform than on an family sedan.

I have a very hard time believing that a prangler still exists today and only ever saw two at any one time.
That’s not surprising considering that I was pretty low on the org. chart.
The wheels might have fallen through the cracks......but I can only guess at how.

I do like the comparison of the prangler to the custom that @Sancho posted.

Believe it or not there are some very talented car guys that are working in engineering. The place isn’t all computer nerds. Many times the car guys ideas are over ruled by a number of things but that doesn’t stop them from trying.

The TJ Rubicon, the Dodge Viper, and Dodge Power Wagon are a few examples of enthusiast’s projects that were pushed into production vehicles.
Click to expand...
Funny that's the name...In New Zealand if something have been in a crash we say its been in a 'Prang' And this looks like the Jeep crashed in the back of the Prowler. lol
 
I have no idea what mad scientist mechanic thought these up, but I gotta admit, while I don't like any of them...I'm still kinda glad they exist, haha!
 
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