Video: The Camaro Convertible explained by Chevrolet Engineers
It's a short video, but a great one worth watching. So interesting to me, in fact, that I decided to give it its own blog entry today (instead of making it an afterthought to the Camaro in India news). The video gives a quick glimpse in to the durability testing and design that went in to the Camaro, and some discussion from the Camaro engineers themselves in relation to it. If you're a Camaro nut like I am, it will be a very worthwhile two minutes.
Maybe this Z28 Thing is Real this time…
Well, according to the usually reliable MotorTrend, when interviewing the GM VP of Global Engineering he recently divulged that the Camaro Z28 would be a real thing. It seems that Karl Stracke is filling in the shoes of the old Bob Lutz and giving up GM's secrets to the media. Stracke's a pretty interesting character himself, as he drives a Corvette Grand Sport as his daily driver and rides a Harley, and is by no means afraid to speak his mind. He recently spoke out against the Cobalt, calling it "horrible" and questioning how it ever passed multiple departments and was considered a good idea.
Well, Stracke also spoke his mind in a number of other ways recently. He claimed that the Camaro Z28, and Next-Gen Camaro as well, would be utilizing the new GM Alpha-Platform. Having his confirmation of the definitive nature of the Z28's future is definitely a good thing for all of us Camaro fans, as anything less than that up to now could reasonably be considered ridiculous postulating from less than informed sources (I've been very very skeptical of all the various Z28 reports up to now, as they tend to be various forum members from one website or another claiming they know a guy who knows a guy who saw a tester, or something similar). Going beyond this, Stracke also talked about how Cadillac is gunning directly for BMW, saying that they don't want to settle for being anything less than the top-dog. He said that in reaching for this, they're making moves across the entirety of GM to improve their interior style and design, and to take cues from the Audi line of vehicles in that department. Stracke also stated that engineers were currently discussing a potential Hybrid Diesel or Rotary for the next-generation Chevy Volt.
All in all, pretty interesting information from an interesting character, and a seemingly solid admission of proof to the future of the Camaro and the Z28.
2010 Camaro, World Car Design of the Year
I've been following the selection process leading up to this for awhile, and today it was made absolutely official, the 2010 Camaro is the World Car Design of the Year award recipient. One of the most prestigious awards in the automobile industry, the Camaro beat out a lot of tough competition to finally win the award, and I can not think of any vehicle more deserving. The award was decided upon by a panel of 5 automobile design experts from around the world, those professionals were: (following is taken from the wcoty.com website)
Masatsugu Arimoto: chairman of the Japan Auto Colour Award program, juror on Japan's governmental "Good Design Award" committee, and Car Styling's "Car Design Awards"; Silvia Baruffaldi: Managing Editor of Auto & Design magazine; Gernot Bracht: former designer at Renault, now teaches at Pforzheim design school in Germany; Sam Livingstone: an Associate Editor of Car Design News and since 2001 has lectured at the Royal College of Art where he is now Senior Tutor in Vehicle Design; and Tom Matano: currently the Executive Director, School of Industrial Design, at Academy of Art University, San Francisco. Previously,, Matano managed the Mazda Chief Designers group that created the entire Mazda car line designs.
The experts observed that, “The new Camaro leans on its heritage but does so in an artful, modern fashion, argue our design experts. “Although it borrows some of its styling cues from the first generation Camaro, they all contribute to a simple, pure and modern appearance. It is the most dynamic Camaro ever,” says Masatugu Arimoto. Sam Livingstone appreciates the “innately seductive exterior and interior. It’s well resolved and I’d argue evidence that General Motors strikes a better balance than Ford and Chrysler do in their pony cars.”
The fifty-nine (59) World Car Awards jurors then voted on the expert’s recommendations in February 2010 and their ballots were tabulated by the international accounting firm KPMG.
2010 Camaro now in Top 3 for World Car Design of the Year
Recently, I updated that the 5th Generation Camaro had been put on the short list for World Car Design of the Year. The award finale is coming up on April 1st, and the Camaro looks like a very strong contender for the win. The list of 4 had been:
Chevrolet Camaro
Citroën C3 Picasso
Kia Soul
Toyota Prius
World Car finalist Prius has been eliminated, which almost seems laughably obvious now based upon the recent news of runaway Priuses bombarding CNN, Fox, and every other news source around and inbetween. The Kia Soul is a nice little car, especially considering the price tag, but it is nowhere near the same class of car as the Chevrolet Camaro. The C3 Picasso is a little trickier to judge though, as I've never seen one in person here in America. Of course, the images I've seen of it, do not inspire much desire or awe:
In fact, it looks like a car Scion has been making for years now. Based upon the competition, I truly think it would be a travesty if the Camaro lost this prestigious award. Seriously, if you want fantastic design, just look at this:
That's a masterpiece right there, and a clearly deserving winner. Here we go Camaro, let's try and add this award to the shelf!