MSN article: Camaro Returns to Chevrolet...
01-09-2006, 06:41 PM
#1
TECH Enthusiast
Thread Starter
iTrader: (5)
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Canal Winchester, OH
Posts: 583
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
MSN article: Camaro Returns to Chevrolet... http://autoshow.msn.com/as/article.a...w2006AutoMaker
It’s a Camaro love fest as Chevy unveils new-age Camaro in front of thousands of journalists in Detroit.
Chevrolet didn’t need the marching band to bring a crowd to the world unveiling of the Camaro concept coupe. Indeed, by the time the Marching Trojans band from Detroit arrived on the scene at the NAIAS, the area around the Chevy stage was overflowing with news media as well as current and former automaker officials. There even were eager Camaro enthusiasts who watched the unveiling live online.
Cameras clicked and lights flashed as Bob Lutz, vice chairman at Chevy’s parent company, General Motors Corp., drove the silver-colored, low-slung Camaro down “Chevrolet Main Street” at the auto show in Detroit. He was accompanied by model Leeann Tweeden, who rode in the passenger seat.
“The ride could have been a lot faster,” Lutz remarked after climbing out of the car onstage.
He declined to say whether the Camaro would return to showrooms as a production model. “Right now, it’s purely a concept [that] has to go in with our other [corporate] priorities,” Lutz said.
Still, he lauded the car’s “dynamic design that captures the spirit of the original Camaro” from the 1960s. “But it goes a lot further,” Lutz added.
For example, while the concept retains the Camaro’s long hood with hood bulge, short rear deck and narrow, snarling grille, the styling has a contemporary, somewhat chiseled look.
Inside, the deeply recessed instrument gauges and three-spoke steering wheel invoke the styling of the original Camaros. So does the lengthy center console.
The concept has large, 21- and 22-inch wheels and tires that fill the wheelwells to the brim, and the underlying platform is rear-wheel drive with fully independent suspension with McPherson struts up front and a rear multi-link configuration.
Power comes from a 400-horsepower 6.0-liter LS2 small-block V8 borrowed from the 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06. It’s mated to a 6-speed manual transmission in the Camaro concept. Because the engine has a system that automatically disables half the cylinders when they’re not needed, the Camaro concept could get as much as 30 mpg on the highway.
The new-age Camaro “will run with the best sports cars today,” Lutz said, very nearly slipping into verbage suggesting the Camaro will go into production. “We want to deliver astonishing value.”
But GM officials declined to confirm that any final decision on a new Camaro has been made. They said the concept will help them gauge public reaction about a Camaro revival.
The first Camaros were designed in the mid-1960s, and the 1969 model, which was the inspiration for the new concept, was considered the best of the first-generation cars. In the first three years, some 699,000 Camaros were sold.
Many were used for racing, and a few were at the NAIAS to herald the Camaro’s iconic past. For example, a blue ‘60s Camaro owned by race driver Roger Penske wowed the crowd with its throaty V8 and sleek body.
Penske, who was at the Camaro concept unveiling, said the car had many Trans Am wins and then shared that “I know that it was a lot less expensive to go racing in those days.” Today, Penske fields race teams at the Indianapolis 500 as well as in NASCAR.
Another classic Camaro at the NAIAS is a rare, 500-horsepower 1969 ZL1. Only 69 were built originally, and reports put the current number in existence at 40.
Among the executives who watched the Camaro unveiling from the media area were Jim Perkins, former Chevy general manager who has long since retired, Wayne Cherry, retired design chief for GM, and retired GM Chairman Roger Smith.
The Camaro concept retains the classic coupe profile with long hood and short rear deck.
Chevrolet had a standing-room-only crowd for the world premiere of its Camaro concept.
The Camaro concept interior has the feel of an old Camaro, right down to the three-spoke steering wheel and recessed gauges.
Model Leeann Tweeden joined Bob Lutz, vice chairman at General Motors Corp., for a ride onstage in the Camaro concept.
Another classic Camaro at the event was this 1969 SS that’s owned by former Chevy General Manager Jim Perkins.
Former race driver Roger Penske brought his classic Camaro race car to the event.
It’s a Camaro love fest as Chevy unveils new-age Camaro in front of thousands of journalists in Detroit.
Chevrolet didn’t need the marching band to bring a crowd to the world unveiling of the Camaro concept coupe. Indeed, by the time the Marching Trojans band from Detroit arrived on the scene at the NAIAS, the area around the Chevy stage was overflowing with news media as well as current and former automaker officials. There even were eager Camaro enthusiasts who watched the unveiling live online.
Cameras clicked and lights flashed as Bob Lutz, vice chairman at Chevy’s parent company, General Motors Corp., drove the silver-colored, low-slung Camaro down “Chevrolet Main Street” at the auto show in Detroit. He was accompanied by model Leeann Tweeden, who rode in the passenger seat.
“The ride could have been a lot faster,” Lutz remarked after climbing out of the car onstage.
He declined to say whether the Camaro would return to showrooms as a production model. “Right now, it’s purely a concept [that] has to go in with our other [corporate] priorities,” Lutz said.
Still, he lauded the car’s “dynamic design that captures the spirit of the original Camaro” from the 1960s. “But it goes a lot further,” Lutz added.
For example, while the concept retains the Camaro’s long hood with hood bulge, short rear deck and narrow, snarling grille, the styling has a contemporary, somewhat chiseled look.
Inside, the deeply recessed instrument gauges and three-spoke steering wheel invoke the styling of the original Camaros. So does the lengthy center console.
The concept has large, 21- and 22-inch wheels and tires that fill the wheelwells to the brim, and the underlying platform is rear-wheel drive with fully independent suspension with McPherson struts up front and a rear multi-link configuration.
Power comes from a 400-horsepower 6.0-liter LS2 small-block V8 borrowed from the 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06. It’s mated to a 6-speed manual transmission in the Camaro concept. Because the engine has a system that automatically disables half the cylinders when they’re not needed, the Camaro concept could get as much as 30 mpg on the highway.
The new-age Camaro “will run with the best sports cars today,” Lutz said, very nearly slipping into verbage suggesting the Camaro will go into production. “We want to deliver astonishing value.”
But GM officials declined to confirm that any final decision on a new Camaro has been made. They said the concept will help them gauge public reaction about a Camaro revival.
The first Camaros were designed in the mid-1960s, and the 1969 model, which was the inspiration for the new concept, was considered the best of the first-generation cars. In the first three years, some 699,000 Camaros were sold.
Many were used for racing, and a few were at the NAIAS to herald the Camaro’s iconic past. For example, a blue ‘60s Camaro owned by race driver Roger Penske wowed the crowd with its throaty V8 and sleek body.
Penske, who was at the Camaro concept unveiling, said the car had many Trans Am wins and then shared that “I know that it was a lot less expensive to go racing in those days.” Today, Penske fields race teams at the Indianapolis 500 as well as in NASCAR.
Another classic Camaro at the NAIAS is a rare, 500-horsepower 1969 ZL1. Only 69 were built originally, and reports put the current number in existence at 40.
Among the executives who watched the Camaro unveiling from the media area were Jim Perkins, former Chevy general manager who has long since retired, Wayne Cherry, retired design chief for GM, and retired GM Chairman Roger Smith.
The Camaro concept retains the classic coupe profile with long hood and short rear deck.
Chevrolet had a standing-room-only crowd for the world premiere of its Camaro concept.
The Camaro concept interior has the feel of an old Camaro, right down to the three-spoke steering wheel and recessed gauges.
Model Leeann Tweeden joined Bob Lutz, vice chairman at General Motors Corp., for a ride onstage in the Camaro concept.
Another classic Camaro at the event was this 1969 SS that’s owned by former Chevy General Manager Jim Perkins.
Former race driver Roger Penske brought his classic Camaro race car to the event.
01-09-2006, 06:47 PM
#2
Power comes from a 400-horsepower 6.0-liter LS2 small-block V8 borrowed from the 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06.
Note: The red 1969 SS/RS has one headlamp door open and the other one closed, now that is quality!
