If the marketing guys thought the 402 was something special then they would not have called the car the SS 396.
Actually, it’s quite the opposite—there was tremendous brand equity with the SS396 name. Why ruin it?
You’re still failing to realize the 402’s heyday is the low-compression era, even though it was introduced in 1970. Its reputation is no different than a 400 B engine, 400 Pontiac, or any other mid-level engine from the era.
