[Mustang1]

What GM needed about 5-10 years ago was a serious competitor in the sedan and compact classes. That's the bread n' butter market and its where the car companies earn their stripes with the consumer. While Toyota, Honda and later Nissan and Mazda where producing well-engineered, reliable vehicles with superior build qualities GM constantly went for volume based on deep discounts. It hurt them. And even though the current Malibu is a good car, the compact class stinks and no, the average consumer doesn't give a rat's ass about the Vette's 0-60 time. Anyone that thinks that matters in the greater scheme of things is a first rate neophyte.

The Camaro may be great new car, but its not the answer to GM's woes.

[SprCForr]

I agree it's not the answer. If it is as truly well engineered as the marketing hype claims then maybe it'll help them earn back some customers. It has the potential in a number of areas (but only time will tell) except price.

I think that the Camaro should have come in much cheaper on the base model than it did. IMHO the 29k neighbourhood is too pricey. Us old farts can afford it better, but the young person just starting out should have been the target.

[stemmer]

I've always been a fan of Camaros & Mustangs.... Dodge did it right with the new Challenger but missed the boat with the Charger turing it into a 4 door sedan..

[Mustang1]

SprCForr SprCForr:

I agree it's not the answer. If it is as truly well engineered as the marketing hype claims then maybe it'll help them earn back some customers. It has the potential in a number of areas (but only time will tell) except price.

I think that the Camaro should have come in much cheaper on the base model than it did. IMHO the 29k neighbourhood is too pricey. Us old farts can afford it better, but the young person just starting out should have been the target.

I think you're right - the Camaro should be virtually identical in price point to the Mustang. Ford figured it out that you can provide a well-made, affordable performance car and if people want go-go, opt for the GT or a Shelby.

Like the last iteration, they priced it far too high.

[stemmer]

I've only seen reviews of the V6 Camaro and it's performance and mileage figures were quite impressive... Anyone see the V8 Camaro review yet?

Too bad Mopar cancelled Plymouth and GM, Pontiac... I'd loved to see a Firebirb equivalent of the Camaro and a Cuda version of the Challenger...

[EyeBrock]

It ain't a Camry, that's for sure.

[stemmer]

EyeBrock EyeBrock:

It ain't a Camry, that's for sure.

Not sure what you mean by that??? The Malibu or Impala is Chevy's competitor to the Camry...

[EyeBrock]

stemmer stemmer:

EyeBrock EyeBrock:

It ain't a Camry, that's for sure.

Not sure what you mean by that??? The Malibu or Impala is Chevy's competitor to the Camry...

I meant that it's not selling like hot cakes (or likely to)or making loads of profit.
Camry's are driven in every continent. I would think a Camaro is rarely seen out of North America. That's the difference really.

[herbie]

The most psychotic marketing is courtesy of the Ford Thunderbird..
Look! It's a sports car.
Wait this year it's a coupe... no wait it's a goddam land yacht... let's try sports car again...

[stemmer]

herbie herbie:

The most psychotic marketing is courtesy of the Ford Thunderbird..
Look! It's a sports car.
Wait this year it's a coupe... no wait it's a goddam land yacht... let's try sports car again...

LOL...so true and one of the most honest yet funniest posting I've read online today... Thanks for the chuckle... I needed it especially after watching the Pens lose again to the Dead Things...

Cheers

[Lemmy]

herbie herbie:

The most psychotic marketing is courtesy of the Ford Thunderbird..
Look! It's a sports car.
Wait this year it's a coupe... no wait it's a goddam land yacht... let's try sports car again...

That's an excellent point and an excellent example of WHY the Big 3 are in the shitter. They've just done a terrible job of building what the consumer wants. Kind of like when Buick introduced its Super-charged Regal about 10 years ago or so. I was thinking "cool, they're re-introducing the Grand National (sort of)", but then they only produced the SC-Regal in a 4-door. Who in the hell wants a 4-door sportscar? Nothing like packing the wife and kids into the car to exercise a super-charged vehicle.

[stemmer]

...And BMW doesn't make 4 door, performance sedans?

[Lemmy]

stemmer stemmer:

...And BMW doesn't make 4 door, performance sedans?

Sure. How many of those SC-Regals did GM sell? Is the target market for a BMW and a Buick the same?

[QBall]

The Camaro may have good sales numbers for the short term beacuse it's new, however I don't see it as a long term success. I'm sure the new Transformers movie will help boost sales a bit (does anyone else feel the Transformers movies are nothing but a 2 hour long GM commercial?), however I don't know if it can regain it's iconic status considering how long it's been gone. That plus I would prefer to buy a Challenger (if I had the money to buy a mid-life-crisismobile), just because it's just looks meaner, like instead of burning gasoline it burns nails and rusty razors.

[stemmer]

The 2010 Mustang GT looks quite good as well...