Future Camaro Speculation!
Well, GM officially announced that the Camaro would, at some point in the future, be switching to their new Alpha Chassis. The Alpha Chassis will allow for GM to build a lighter, more agile next-gen Camaro, and that's a good thing. Here's some more speculation concerning the future of the Camaro though! GM has announced that they have a new engine in the works for the next-gen Corvette, and apparently the C7 will be powered by a naturally aspirated, direct-injection 5.5L V8 putting out 440 Horsepower. While the displacement on this engine's smaller, the numbers are nice (and it supposedly vastly fuel efficient over its current C6 counterpart) , and I imagine we'll probably see this new Chevy Small-Block becoming the engine du jour of the next gen Camaro SS, in some fashion. To keep the Corvette price-tag in line, they'll probably tune it down some, but that still just means the engine's not far from unlocking all of those extra ponies. All in all, it seems like a nice step in the right direction of engine design by GM, regardless of the smaller displacement.
Camaro For the Queen! and Convertible Camaros!
GM just announced that we'll be sending some American love to the lands of our British friends some time this year by releasing the Camaro in the UK! This is pretty cool, and it will certainly sell well there, even though the price of petrol will cause some customers to shy away. GM has not yet announced price points on the Camaro in the UK, or an exact date for when it will go on sale, but has stated that they will provide an official view of the Right-Hand Drive Camaro at the Goodwood Moving Motor Show on July 1st. In all, this is good news for GM, as the current strength of the British Pound ensures that GM will make a decent profit on their sales in the UK, even after the importing cost. The same packages and engine arrangements will be offered in the UK as in the US.
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Some more spy images of the preproduction Camaro convertible have hit the web today. The vehicles, two of them in total, were spotted in Canada out in some nasty weather for test drives. Hopefully we'll be able to get some glimpses of them with their tops down soon, too! As it was though, the drop-tops were there as protection from the elements (which was much needed on the day in mention!). The drop-tops look fantastic up though, and show the commitment to the Camaro Convertible that GM currently has. Expect to see the Camaro Convertible hitting show rooms early next year!
Camaro to Function as Coke 400 Pace Car, Again
The Camaro's press onslaught continues as it is being given another nice nod to its quality and popularity, as it has been named as the Nascar Coke 400 Pace Car again. The 2SS Automatic Camaro done up in Red Jewel Tintcoat that will be taking the Pace Car duties this year is an absolutely gorgeous one too. I'd rather watch it turn left for 400 laps than the Nascar cars! Regardless, this should be more good press for the media darling Camaro, and should help spur continually impressive Camaro sales numbers as there exist few larger automotive stages than Daytona.
Click thumbs for full-size images:
Camaro Part Reference Guide
So, a forum member over at Camaro5 got this fantastic part reference guide posted online in a .PDF, and it is one of the most handy tools for a Camaro DIY'er that I've seen yet. If you're looking for Camaro parts or specific information on them for your work, use this tool. In fact, bookmark this page immediately, b/c this will undoubtedly be useful to you as a Camaro owner at some point:
Camaro HUD Info
A Camaro5 Member recently posted photos of his newly acquired Camaro's HUD, and the system looks pretty great. Visibility is high on the HUD, even in the daylight, and the numbers and letters are crystal clear. It apparently has a high number of display options as well, including:
* Vehicle speed
* Tachometer
* Compass
* Outside air temperature
* Manual Paddle Shift Gear Indicator (if equipped)
* OnStar Turn-by-Turn
* Audio functions
* Phone information
* Selected gear
* Turn signal indicators
* High-beam indicator signal
* Vehicle messages
Images below (Click thumbs for large images):
2011 Camaro News and Camaro Sales Numbers
We'll start with the bad news, guys. For the first time since May of last year, the Mustang has posted higher one-month sales numbers than the Camaro. We all expected this, with the release of the new model year Mustang, but it's still sad to see it happen. Mustang sales in May almost doubled their April numbers, while the Camaro took a very slight (3%) dip in that same time. Of course, this loss could actually be viewed as a solid win, as the Mustang released a newer, more updated and powerful model, yet could only muster a 1,000-unit victory, and this at a time when Camaro numbers are expectedly down since the new model year Camaros will also be hitting showrooms soon. Considering all of that, I expect these numbers to return to normal in a month or two, and for this May (and maybe June) to just be small speed-bumps on the beautiful highway of dominance the Camaro has traveled for some time now, and will continue to for some time to come.
The good news is that we now know the pricing on the next model year Camaro, and it holds up my bold ascertations from the last paragraph! The 2011 Camaro, which will be offered in Synergy Green, have a HP rating increase to 312HP, and come standard with the Heads-Up Display (HUD) on the 2LT and 2SS, will only see a rise in the 2LT and 2SS price by $350, and remain the same on all other base models. This is great, as most vehicles (especially those with the popularity of the Camaro) see price hikes in their second and third years, and this should also help guarantee further Camaro sales domination in the future.
