Berlinetta Is the Raddest Camaro GM Ever Built
‘Starship Camaro’ moniker is a direct result of the fighter-jet-inspired cockpit design used in the Berlinetta Camaro.
The 1984 Berlinetta or “Starship” Camaro is perhaps the coolest pony car to ever make it off a GM showroom floor. This thing is so ’80s retro-future it’s not even funny. This is the stuff dreams are made of. Thank you for uncovering it Auto Europa Naples, we can all die happy now.
If you’ve never heard of this Camaro, that’s unfortunate. This puppy was rare, even in the ’80s. But man, oh man, was it cool. Host Bill Pahl takes us on a tour of this space-age fighter-jet-inspired mean machine currently on their sales lot.
History
Auto Europa explains that this 1984 Berlinetta Camaro, otherwise known as the “Starship Camaro” is truly one of a kind. Berlinetta is an Italian word that was predominantly ascribed to sporty vehicles in the 1950s. So Chevy said ‘Sounds cool. Ehh… why not?’
This particular Berlinetta came from the third generation F-body Camaro. Auto Europa shares that the Camaro arrived in this world in 1967 with a sole mission: killing Stangs. No joke. As Chevy once put it, the Camaro is “A small, vicious animal that eats Mustangs.”
It got redesigned in 1970 and then once again in ’82, giving birth to this masterpiece. In ’82 Auto Europa tells that the Camaro got lighter, narrower, and shorter. But, thankfully, it maintained its core DNA as a “driver’s car.”
“They kept the Camaro as a hillbilly hot rod with a front V8… rear-drive,” shares Pahl “They did make it what car guys essentially want.”
Auto Europa goes on to share that the Berlinetta was essentially Camaro’s luxury trim. Marketing often targeted affluent women, such as secretaries and what not. The Berlinetta cost about the same as the Z28, but was nowhere near as successful. Sales were eventually poor enough to warrant the trim getting axed in ’86.
Styling
Auto Europa starts off with the disclaimer That just because this is the luxury Camaro, don’t expect it to be high-quality. It’s still ’80s GM. What do you expect?
Chevy threw in a neat feature with the flip-down license plate to access the hatch, but loses the gas hole in favor of the keyhole. This model also has the two-tone blue paint scheme, which is always a nice look for these muscle machines. It also has the optional rear spoiler and another feature unique to the Berlinetta; three horizontal slots on the front gill. It’s unclear why they’re there. But, hey… looks cool.
Everything about this car is just in top shape. Auto Europa even points out how the original weatherstripping looks flawless. That’s just unheard of even for a decade-old vehicle, let alone an ’80s Camaro.
Berlinetta badges also grace the exterior of the vehicle everywhere from the C pillar to the alloy wheels. An odd move for GM, but definitely the right call. This is one seriously good looking car.
Interior
Once the rear hatch is opened you see just how well-maintained this Starship Camaro has been kept. The hatch carpeting is still immaculate. No sun-fade whatsoever. But, even better than the stylish carpeting is the hidden compartment.
“Because this is the 1980s… we have the Miami Vice pocket,” starts Pahl “This is a fantastic place to store your kilos of cocaine, your AK47s your MAC 10, hand grenades. Whatever it is your gonna need to take part in the international drug and weapons trade.” All joking aside, this is a pretty sweet hidden compartment.
Upfront you see loud and clear why this Camaro has been dubbed as the “Starship”. “They gave this thing a Knightrider dashboard,” says Pahl “Which is just absolutely awesome.”
Everything about the driver’s setup is just wicked cool. Digital speedo. Digital tach. The control pods (which are fully adjustable) on either side of the steering wheel. This thing really does feel like the cockpit of a fighter jet. They even found a way to make the gear selector look cool. And for some odd reason, it also has a pull-out flashlight. God, the ’80s were great.
With a mere 32,000 miles, everything is pristine. Even the rear seats are free of any evidence of nefarious happenings points out Auto Europa.
Performance
By today’s standards, the engine and trans might be the only area the Camaro doesn’t score any cool points. It was acceptable for the time but considerably dated by modern standards.
“Carbureted 305 Chevy V8. It’s about 160 horse or so, which was reasonable in 1984. It puts out a pretty good amount of torque,” states Pahl “Obviously, the horsepower is crap, but it’s good enough to move this thing down the road in a fashion that would be befitting a sporty secretary.”
To pad the luxury reputation a bit, Chevy used a softer suspension than the Z28 in the Berlinetta. Back in the ’80s, the Starship Camaro was considered to be a well-handling vehicle. But, as Auto Europa notes, that no longer holds true today.
Berlinetta Is One-of-a-kind
“I can’t describe to you how nice this car feels to drive,” exclaims Pahl “It’s obviously because of the mileage and how it was kept. This is as close to how I felt driving a new 1984… ’89 F-body since I worked at the dealership and they were coming in on trade with mileage like this. It’s Incredible!”
What a car! This thing looks cool, drives well, and is 100 percent period-appropriate.
Photos: Auto Europa