Here’s my new ride. It’s a 2017 Chevy SS. Really it’s just a re-badged Australian Holden Commodore, with the Chevy bowties slapped on and a few other minor changes.

It’s been (intentionally) sold in low numbers in the US, which many car reviewers seem not to understand. Never advertised, and not intended as anything more than a special-interest car, it filled a niche for those who don’t like driving testosterone apocalypses but still want performance and speed. And damn, does it have both of those.

The car looks black in many photos, but actually is it somewhat darker than British Racing Green. Here it is in less favorable light but where the color can be seen well.

It’s the last of its breed; no carmakers in the future will for a variety of reasons sell large (it doesn’t look it in these photos, but it’s quite a big car) sedans with huge V-8s in them ever again. 2017 was the last year for the SS and for any Holden.

But if I have to drive, I decided I’d rather do it in something I actually enjoy. Hence the new beast.

The SS handles and drives like a car half its weight and size. Notice the huge brakes? They’ll stop it from 60-0 in 108 feet — which is amazing for a car that tips the scales at nearly 4,000 pounds. By comparison, the braking distance of a 2016 Nissan Maxima is 123 feet. So when I brake, I have to be very careful as few cars on the road can stop as quickly as this one. And it does 0-60 in 4.5 seconds, which is just preposterous in the best of ways.

Here’s what Motor Trend had to say about this car’s demise.

I have the automatic because I drove stick for over 10 years and don’t want to do it anymore, but I agree with every word of that review. It’s the best car I’ve ever driven, including a few cars twice its price. It’s a joy to drive, and has none of the balkiness of similarly-powered cars and almost no quirks. It just does exactly what you want it to do, every time. And it’s completely reliable even for being so powerful — GM’s LS engines are among the most dependable in the world.

So it looks like a family sedan but handles and drives closer to a Corvette or a Maserati. And because I don’t believe in paying BMW badge prices, I got it for half the price that suckers pay for “badge” cars.

Now a few more photos.