Real income does not match the price of a certain asset. An economist would shake his head at you, because your metrics are wrong. Gas prices increased at a rate of over 300% from 2002 to 2008 and you are not comparing your income to that right? Catch my drift?

Bottom line is the camaro follows the avg 3-4% trend of inflation (meaning price is the same) that we in the US were so lucky to experience.

 

True, and there's no easy answer to that question.

It's a real problem -- we've got a car designed for the 2007 economy coming out right in a huge downturn. The entire car market is going to take a whack, and it might be especially bad for "image" cars like the Camaro.

However, I would still make the distinction between those who couldn't have afforded it to begin with versus those who can't afford it because of the credit market, job losses, loss in home value, and so on.

 

Someone needs to find out the average price of a new car in 2002 and compare it to now. That will convey how far the new Camaro has moved away from the average.

Average sticker price of a new car in 2002 is $21,249 in current dollars.
Average sticker price of a new car in 2006 is $22,651 in current dollars.

 

Those are good points.

But I think the problem is that a lot of people thought they could afford the car when GM was saying things like, "where the Mustang is, the Camaro will be" in terms of pricing. They thought the car was going to be at a particular price point, whatever that was. Now that GM has released the pricing (and it's higher than originally thought), these people are seeing that they can't afford the car. And not because of the reasons you list above, but simply because they just don't make enough money.

 

No, that's what we wanted to hear from the conversation. What was said was it would be priced competitively to it's competition and would be a premium over the Mustang due to content. When all is said and done, it fell in roughly 3500 more than the Mustang (top dog to top dog) and almost 6000 LESS than the comparable Challenger (again top dog to top dog). This is where I expected it to be (not where I hoped it would be) because I didn't ignore the Challenger end of the equation like most did.

 

I agree with you, but I would also have to contend that $4000 over sixty months is about $65/mo. more (plus interest...probably around $75 or so). If $75/mo. puts it out of reach it was out of reach to begin with. People don't leave any cushion in case something happens and that's part of why we're in the boat we're in.

 

I compare my income to gas prices every time I fill up. I think the majority of Americans and businesses would agree that the extreme rise in oil prices directly are out of proportion to their real income.

If the Camaro's price is along the lines of what it should be due to inflation, why does a Mustang cost less? Why can I go out and buy a full size car for under $20k?

Another example to drive the point home for you so you can catch my drift. Hyundai, a company that actually is doing rather well in the automotive department, illustrates my point.

A 2002 Hyundai Sonata Base MSRP was $15,499.
In 2008 the Sonata Base MSRP was $17,545.

This is an increase in price of 13.2% very close to the average rise in actual American incomes.

Further:
2002 Honda Civic MSRP $12,810
2008 Honda Civic MSRP $14,810
= Increase in price of 15.6%

None of these best selling cars have gone up 35% in price. Catch my drift?

 

It is not crazy to criticize the large price increase, especially when the increase is greater than the average.

Apples to apples, the Camaro V6 MSRP went from $18,415 to $22,995 from 2002 to now. Thus equaling a base price increase of 24%.

The Mustang Base model on the other hand went from $17,475 to $19,650 during the same years, resulting in an increase of 12.4%.

 

The problem is that you are saying apples to apples. How can you say a 2002 V6 Camaro is comparable to a 2010 V6 Camaro. How are they the same aside from the name, number of seats, number of wheels, and number of cylinders?

I just don't think you can make an apples to apples comparison of a 200HP car to a 300HP car.

 

Its really ashamed that a large percentage of people find more ways and reasons NOT to buy a new '10 instead of ways TO purchase one.

It's not rocket science, GM announced this what, two, three years ago that they were gonna bring it back. Hell, I've been saving PENNIES in a damn jar since then and I've managed to put away a little bit more than I expected.

I'm totally expecting to pay MSRP and I really don't care. If I get MSRP I'll be happy to be honest with you. When I went to buy a new '97 SS at Bay Chevrolet in VaBeach, they had "regional market increase" all over their invoices that raised the price almost $5000. And we all paid it.

It's amazing how we all bicker and bitch about our Camaro and when GM gives it to us, we cry about what it costs.

I'd just rather see a bunch of posts saying "Thanks GM" and people go on their way buying (or not buying) the Camaro of their Two Year Dream.

By the way, Chris and Jason, what are you ordering up and what kind of "back door buddy deal" are you guys seein!?

LMAO!!!

Happy ordering Men,
Ivan

 

I'm at $36,395 for a 2SS/RS. Only $1400 more than I had planned on. Not TOO bad at all.

 

It is not a comparison between a 2002 and a 2008. It is a comparison between the price rise of a base Mustang and base Camaro from 2002 till now. As you can see they started out at approximately the same price. However the Camaro has increased price at a higher rate than its competitor. It has also out paced all cars in overall price increase.

 

Of course the Camaro increased at a higher rate. It has 100HP more then it did in 2002. Why would it increase at the same rate?

Did the V6 mustang increase in horsepower 50% from 2002 to 2009? Nope. It's still a very simalar car to what it was in '02. Conversely, the V6 '10 Camaro is not all that similar to it's '02 counterpart.

 

Nevermind. You will never get it.

 

An '02 Camaro rode on a twenty-year old chassis with an econo-car quality interior and a lot of supporting hardware that was noticably inadequate to the task of handling the power of the Corvette drivetrain they shoe-horned in. Comparing the price increases of Car-A vs. Car-B without factoring in improvements in content & quality is meaningless. The 2010 model looks to have made far greater strides in these areas than the other cars it's being compared to.