It is a little crazy (then again so am i, plus i'm far from a marketing or finance major), but if people really wanted fuel mileage you could charge a premium for cars like the Aveo and Cobalt (although even both of those are getting fat. ). Last i heard those cars advertised though it was a "get one free with purchase of this SUV".

Maybe i'm just not seeing it, but MPG doesn't seem to be #1 on peoples car buy list. It may have moved up, but there's better items to focus on.

BTW: Building a car that people WANT to buy isn't crazy at all. Just cause someone and the government makes a rule doesn't mean it makes a damn bit of sense. It's happened before, and will happen again.

 

I want a big honking V8...................... Wait a min I have with big Honking V8s one wiht a tiny v8 & one iwht a 4 in it lol.

 

Assuming they turn a profit on all those millions of cars and that the fine isn't more than the profits (which last i heard i though it was fairly small), it will still all work itself out . More cars = more fines but also = more profits.

 

An engine alone does not sell cars. This I agree with.

However, not giving people what they want, or trying to tell them they want something else (like a V6 instead of a V8), isn't going to sell cars either.

Most people seem to prefer to drive a slow(er) car with a fast(er) reputation [V6 Mustang], than a fast(er) car with a slow(er) reputation [STR4 Neon].

Make sense? Promoting a car as slower than it could be isn't going to help IMO.

 

I think it makes EXCELLENT sense to market in this way. Every day, I get customers coming in who want to trade their current car in for something, ANYTHING that gets better mileage than what they have. In the last 2 days I've taken an '01 Yukon, an '04 Ram 1500 and a TrailBlazer in on Jeep Patriots. Everyone loved the fact that even with the new EPA ratings, you could still get a small 4x4 with over 20 MPG city, and about 25 highway. This is happening all over the country, every single day. GM needs its share, and advertising the new Camaro this way will help.

I've always thought it was funny how people assume my white and orange beast is lousy on gas. The WORST tank I ever had netted me almost 17 MPG...which is better than any demo SUV I've ever driven on a city/highway jaunt. That 17 MPG tank included some rather illicit speeds I will not incriminate myself with here, either Lets just say there were some Hondas that went home sad that night

My best tank? Slightly over 27 on one leg from here to BG. This year's trip to Indy? I wanna try to net 30 My fiancee (wifey by then ) isn't quite as into speed as my ex, so therefore maybe I'll try to make it a mileage run and leave the cruise on 70 for the ride down.

Then again, it is a V8 muscle car, so maybe I won't

 

It actually did move to #1 recently according to a recent AAA Survey.

However, I agree that while improving fuel economy is a necessary long term goal, it doesn't have to be the sole focus.

I'm not really worried. The people who want V8s are going to buy them anyway. People who are interested in Camaro for style over speed will hopefully do a little research and be surprised at the very competitive mileage of the V6 model.

 

My problem here is they seem to be pushing the "This V6 has as much hp as a V8 so it should be a good subistute for the base V8."

Maybe i'm not reading it correctly, but that is NOT the way to sell cars IMO. Give the people what they want, fines be damned (at least when the fines are small enough to be easily covered by the less than half of the profit of the car).

 

Any company that is willing to give up half of their profit is not going to be in business for long.

 

To me it doesn't mean squat what they want to market as long as the V8 is an option
it's ALL good!!!!

 

.5 profit > no profit

 

Riiiiight. So a 300hp V6 won't make a profit for GM. They will sell way more of those then the V8s.

 

I don't read it that way. I read it as "We have a V8 Camaro for you real enthusiasts that's one of the fastest Camaros ever made! For those of you who are interested in style and economy as well as performance, we have an outstanding V6 that will meet your needs." They are going to sell everyone that wants a V8 a V8. That will happen whether they push the 6 or not. People who want a V8 are going to order or wait for a V8 to hit the lots. That will happen whether they push the 6 or not. I don't think V8s will be expensive, or hard to get (after initial demand at least). They're just not being positioned as the top selling model. This will more than likely result in more Camaros sold. The high performance V8 models, even though more expensive and more profitable, are not enough by themselves to carry an entire car line. The 4th gen. is the perfect exemplar of this.

The V6 is a good substitute for the V8 for the people who don't know whether they want the V8 or not. For people who want the V8, there will be no substitute and that is what they will buy.

 

I've suggested here, and elsewhere, that a ~270 horse V6 Camaro with some suspension upgrades, a 6 speed manual, and some decals would be a good seller with the proper ad campaign.

I get ridiculed for it, but I notice that Toyota, Honda, and Nissan (and their various luxury brands) manage to sell mid $20k to mid $30k V6 coupes based on "It's sporty, but no Ferrari" advertising.

Let me give you an idea what I'm talking about- if a V6 Camaro is a ~$22,000 car, and you add $2000 in suspension bits, decals, and seat stitching, you have a car that costs about the same as a 4 cylinder Accord coupe.

It will get similar mileage to and be only slightly slower than a G37, 350Z, Altima 3.5 SE Coupe, or Accord Coupe and cost thousands of dollars less.

All you have to do is take the cachet of "american muscle" and link it to what buyers find desirable in the products they're already buying.

Sounds easy, right?