With the drastic rise in fuel prices in the last week, I've been concerned about this car. Today at the local Shell station, regular unleaded gas was priced at $1.379 a litre, which works out to $5.21 a gallon, assuming 1 gallon is 3.78 litres. This is in Whitehorse, Yukon, in Canada and the Canadian dollar is more or less at parity with the US dollar, so it is a disgusting amount to pay for fuel. My current Camaro (1997 V6 coupe) was factory rated at 17/27 and I average about that when I drive, with the tank costing $52 to fill when gas was at 1.179 a litre ($4.45/gal) For comparison with some other Canadian cities, gas in Toronto is as high as $1.239 a litre ($4.68/gal), and gas in Vancouver is as low as $1.179 a litre ($4.45/gal) and as high as $1.309 a litre ($4.94/gal)

I am probably one of the most faithful people out there, when it comes to this car and I have loved it and wanted it since I watched the live video feed from Detroit in 2006. I've had a great career opportunity which will allow me to purchase one of these cars in due time but circumstances will dictate whether this occurs or not. I would hate for Scott to hear about someone like myself having a crisis of faith, based on the cost of gas alone but if I said I wasn't concerned, I would be lying.

There is no doubt in my mind that GM is aware of the cost of fuel, and will be able to deliver best-in-class performance with best-in-class fuel economy. But to the ley person, what will they think when they hear about a powerful V8 engine? Gas guzzler? Regardless of having AFM as a feature, and powertrains like the LS7 which have 505hp and still can give 27mpg, my question is whether anything is being done to put the public at ease? The V6 will sell the car especially if it is marketed as a gas-sipper, guarenteed, but will all trim levels deliver the goods when it comes to fuel economy?

 

I too am concerned. I really want this car, but the fuel prices are scaring me. Not todays prices, but where they are heading. We need to realize that $10/gal could happen in the next 3-4 years. There was an article on this that stated that we could hit $200/barrel in the next two years. Some of you might say 'No way' but think about how it has climbed in the last year or so. I actually found myself on a car lot looking at Hybrids last week.

This car was always meant to be a Sunday driver for me. But I might need the finances to buy a hybrid to replace my daily driver. Even if I still decide to buy the Camaro, it will most likely be the last 'gas only' car I buy. Times are changing. Crazy....

 

A lot of the worrying about fuel costs are psychological.

I know people who drive WAY out of their way to save 5 cents on a gallon of gas, and then they blow $50 at the bar.

Write down all of your expenses and arrange them from highest to lowest. You'll see that gas is way below housing and food. Don't forget to figure in entertainment.

If you're still worried about it you can always buy a Camaro with the 6 or 4 cylinder engine. The V8 will probably have some kind of active fuel management or displacement-on-demand or whatever they call it.

And finding a girlfriend with a job might not be a bad idea...

 

The price of gas is a concern for this and many other cars. We have for so long enjoyed cheap engergy prices and are now feeling what the rest of the world had felt for years.

It is true that some do not care and willl pay what ever to drive the car they want. In Europe they still have large and powerful cars but they sell in smaller numbers. In most large cities the average driver is in a small sedan or wagon. Even smaller micro cars like the Smart have been very popular there.

The problem facing the Camaro is to offer acceptable perfromace while giving milage that is pleasing to the masses. The enthusiast is not the problem but the masses who can and would buy this car that would turn away in wake of high gas prices.

GM needs this car to sell to a lot of people and not just a select group. THis is why they are looking at all options like the Ecotech 4 cylinder.

The Camaro need to be more of a daily driver to all than just a weekend play toy for a few.

Balancing the mileage vs performance with this car is as challanging as pricing will be in a few months. How do you convince people who like the Camaro but could live with out it to still buy one and understand they can afford the fuel cost.

If high gas is hurting the ever poular truck market it can and will hurt the Perfromance car market.

I myself am a die in the wool performance fan with a good income but test drove an HHR SS yeasterday as a prospective daily driver.

There is little end in sight on gas prices untill the world future markets change. There is little sight of that happening.

The V6 and possibly the 4 cylinder if used will control the fate of the Camaro.

 

I have news for you - the v6 (and a 4 cylinder if it happens) were always going to control the fate of the Camaro. Those versions control the fate of the Mustang, and they will the Challenger as well. The lower end versions of those cars account for 75%-80% of the car's total sales. When I was on the Mustang program 5-6 years ago, the v6 was 76% of their sales - and that was the car that got all the consideration. I expect that percentage to climb these days with gas prices what they are, but keep in mind that GM isn't sitting around staring at the sky - they are developing new mileage technologies (like AFM) and they will get v8's into a more comfortable range.

My G5 is my daily driver and it is averaging about 27 miles per gallon. If the Camaro gets close to that, it will be very impressive. My '99 T/A WS6 got about 20-22 mpg with the same driving cycle, so I don't think seeing a v8 at 25mpg is much of a stretch. If it's not the first year of the new Camaro, don't be surprised if it happens by the fourth.

 

Rob, why do people still make posts about fuel costs dooming Camaro?? Camaro isn't about the biggest most powerful engine and gas drinking, it's about having a fun sporty car with alot of value and good fuel economy. Camaros 1st through 3rd generation represented that. The 4th gen, on the other hand was nothing more than a high powered Z28 with a a base V6 model almost seemingly slapped together as an afterthought.


V6 Camaros MUST be more than an afterthought this time around. Like it was in the 70s and most of the 80s, Camaro needs to also be a stylish car that's fun to drive and gets great fuel economy first, and then offer a percentage of models as a high performance version....not the other way around as it seems to be believed in many circles.

It is imperative that the 5th gen be offered in more than just a base model and a couple of V8 models. There needs a base model that offers alot of value for the price and is fun to drive. There needs at least one mid-level model that has is stylish, well equipted, and is quick enough to give a quick thrill without needing to have an LS-whatever engine and it's comparatively low fuel economy.

Sales of the V8 model of course are going to be lower than it would have been just a year ago. But that is by no means whatsoever a bad thing. The fewer V8s that sell, the less of a negative impact the Camaro line has on GM's CAFE average. Greater numbers of V6 Camaros might actually have a positive impact on the averages (if Camaro sales take off like they historically have done in hard economic times).

As for paying $5.21 per gallon of gas, isn't gas far more expensive out there in the Yukon than it would be in a more populated provinces, like say Ontario?

 

I don't mean to come off preaching doom and gloom for the car. Life does go on, regardless of how much a bag of flour or a litre of gas or a dozen beers costs. But the perception from the general public may not be that. I guess the point I want to get across, which everyone at GM knows, is that they need to make sure they absolutely FLAUNT the fuel economy of their most efficient trim level of car. Like I said, gas in Toronto is $1.239 a litre ($4.68/gal) according to one of the gasbuddy.com sites.

I guess I was just frustrated with the overnight jump of 17 cents a litre/65 cents a gallon that came yesterday, I apologize.

 

Shoot, I wouldn't apologize, man. You're just saying what's on your mind and probably the mind of a lot of people, plus you show how much you want the car to succeed, as do we all. I hope we can both afford one and the gas when it comes out!

 

hybrid.

 

die

 

That is not news to mae or most other and it was made very clear a long time ago by Scott.

The V6 now not only has to be a cheaper good selling engine it much get very good milage. The Mustang in the past was all about cost not mileage.

The Camaro has got to fight the stigma of being a perfromance car in many people minds and also get great milage as this has never been a selling point since it was never an important issue.

 

Oh....sorry....I'll only post when I have some earth-shattering new developments then......

 

A hybrid Camaro just won't work IMHO. As Guy said, the Camaro needs to be sporty. Folks around here are already concerned with how much this Camaro is going to weigh, can you imagine how heavy a hybrid version would be? If the DI V6 isn't miserly enough from an efficiency standpoint, a turbo ecotec would make far more sense than a hybrid.

 

why?

 

hybrid owners don't care. the other camaros would still be sporty.