AutoTrader Find of the Week: 2002 Monte Carlo SS Dale Earnhardt Edition is Perfectly Preserved

Kids today have no idea just how popular GM’s “W-Platform” was 20 years ago. 

No less than 16 different vehicles were underpinned by the platform, which lasted from 1988 all the way up to 2007. Cars like the Buick Regal, Pontiac Grand Prix, Oldsmobile Intrigue, and Chevrolet Monte Carlo were everywhere. Either your family had one, or your friend's family did. 

It’s not difficult to see why. At the time, W-body cars were a bargain compared to European sports sedans. They were cheap to buy, cheap to run, cheap to maintain, well-optioned, and offered robust performance. 

For context, a fully loaded supercharged Pontiac Grand Prix GTP with 240 horsepower retailed for about $32,000 in 2002. A BMW 3 Series with 168 horsepower began at $34,400.

Despite being front-wheel-drive vehicles powered by GM’s notoriously bulletproof 3800-series pushrod V6, many W-body vehicles are still often regarded as “muscle cars” — and by the standards of the day, they kind of were.

By the time I got my driver's license in 2006, late-model W-bodies were a shortcut to being a drag race street bully. Sure, kids today will scoff at the 200 or even the 240 horsepower offered by the supercharged models (if you had one of those back in the day, you were the absolute king of the streets) — but that level of power was more than enough to beat up on the meagre Volkswagen Jettas, Honda Civics, and second-hand Bimmers your peers were driving. 

And yet, these American icons of the ‘00s have almost completely disappeared from the streets. Perhaps because half the brands that supported the platform were axed by GM in 2008. Perhaps because the front-wheel-drive (FWD) sedan is an idea whose time has come and gone. Perhaps because these vehicles were so abundant, they became ludicrously cheap to buy second-hand and were almost entirely driven into the ground. 

You also had this little vehicle come out in 2006 called the Dodge Charger, which returned American sedans to being V8, RWD, grumble machines. FWD? V6? Never heard of them.

Still, I can’t help but feel a massive wave of nostalgia wash over me when I see this perfectly preserved 2002 Monte Carlo SS Dale Earnhardt Edition listed for sale on AutoTrader.

This one is located in Oakville, Ont., and is offered for sale through Car Lounge. And when we say, “perfectly preserved,” we mean it. With only 21 km on the odometer, it is the definition of showroom new. Call it “collectable condition” or “museum quality” if you like. 

Manufactured in the Oshawa Assembly plant, this car was originally purchased by a local Ontario dealer in 2002 and then kept in a private collection until purchased by Car Lounge last year.

The SS models would not receive the supercharged 3800 Series II V6 producing 240 horsepower until 2004. GM already had the engine, and it was available for vehicles on this platform, just not in the one positioned as the sporty model with the racing heritage and livery. GM makes no sense.

So, this ‘02 variant makes do with the aforementioned naturally aspirated 3.8-litre V6 producing 200 horsepower and 225 lb-ft of torque. Coupled to a four-speed automatic transmission, the performance isn’t exactly mindblowing by modern standards, with recorded times of 8.6 seconds to 60 miles per hour (just under 100 km/h). 

You did, however, get a sport suspension, performance tires, a rear spoiler, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel with the SS package. And the top trim Dale Earnhardt “Intimidator” package included Earnhardt-branded instrumentation, floor mats, RCR-branded door sills, and the two-tone body kit.

Weirdly, this minimum effort top trim offering makes me feel even more nostalgic.

A Monte Carlo SS like this one feels like a perfect encapsulation of the early ‘00s. Its plastic and discount leather interior is wonderfully hideous. Its parts bin head unit is identical to every GM product of the era, from the Corvette to the GMC Jimmy. Its two-one “ground effects” style body kit, overly busy head and taillights, and myriad Dale Earnhardt and Intimidator-branded stickers are all hilariously tacky, writing cheques the valiant 3.8-litre V6 couldn’t possibly hope to cash. It has all aged horribly, but that’s kind of the point. It is a perfect representation of the time. 

However, not all of the styling feels passé. The exterior bodylines have aged rather well, and this generation of Monte Carlo is muscular and sleek in all the right ways. With its obvious nods to NASCAR, you have to wonder why GM didn’t continue to push this design philosophy even after the W-Platform was finally pushed out to pasture.

The persistent theory of why nameplates like Monte Carlo and GTO were killed off was that GM didn’t want to cannibalize the Camaro. But Dodge made the Charger and Challenger work at the same time. You’re telling me a sedan version of the Camaro, on the W’s replacement alpha platform, with a nameplate like Monte Carlo or Chevelle wouldn’t have worked?

GM. Makes. No. Sense.

Still, you can’t evaluate a vehicle like this based on modern consumer standards. It is now over 20 years old (almost 25), which means it’s a classic. Its shape and nameplate have disappeared from our streets and collective consciousness. And yet, it was once so prominent in our daily lives that you can’t help but feel nostalgic to see one.

I was 12 years old when this generation of the Monte Carlo hit the streets. I was just starting to get interested in cars, so seeing anything outside of humdrum traffic was exciting. But “Monte Carlo SS” was a name I recognized. And it was a “muscle car” that at least looked the part. I remember wanting one desperately.

For most of my time in college, I drove a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GT (essentially mechanically  identical to this Monte Carlo SS) and in retrospect, it was probably the best car I ever owned. It was ridiculously reliable, extremely comfortable, and stupidly cheap to maintain. It ran on loose rocks and spit and told every 1.8-litre turbo exactly where it could stick it.

So W-body cars will always have a special place in my good books, and I hope somebody buys and continues to preserve this one. Because even though performance and muscle cars have moved on, nothing beats a good memory.