V6
RS/Base v8 = 5.3 ~300 hp
SS/Z28 = LS2 or current ~400 hp

I would prefer either the SS or the Z28, but not both since so many want to down grade the SS to a low grade status.

 

one question, why do alot of people like the idea of a 5.3L in it? i for one do not want one, cubic inch challanged. minimun 5.7L i think. or they should do something like when the first 67 came out. design a new motor for it, the 350 was born for these cars back then. they should do something like that now, make something unique and different then whats out now (LSx based but size and component wise)

 

A new motor makes no sense financially when you have multiple existing choices already available.

 

yea thats true, but i mean a unique displacement, like the origional small block chevy, there were many different sizes. i think one unique to the camaro would be neat, but prolly wont happen.

 

If a small displacement engine like a 5.3 V8 DOES make its way in, have that be the base engine with DOD. It'll get decent mileage like the Impalas and beat out all the higher end V6s hp wise.

 

I just don’t understand why everyone in here thinks the mid level Camaro has to outperform EVERYTHING....That shouldn’t be its main goal.

I will admit a 240 V6 wouldn’t be enough; 260 - 270 is probably more on the mark.

 

Agreed, a midlevel Camaro, is just that, MIDLEVEL. We dont need something with 400hp as midlevel, cuz honestly, thats ridiculous. There are LOTS of people who dont want/need a big V8, but still want A V8. This is the crowd that the SN-95 Mustang GT's catered to in large part...people who want a V8, but dont need the most powerful.

 

It does NEED to have 400hp to make sales. Just if it wants to stay competitive, if the whole R/T Challenger has any merit to it. I was thinking about this alot at work today, and I concluded that I think the engine lineup could resemble something like this alot.

Base v6: 4.0L v6 250+HP
Mid Level: 6.2L v8 Probably somewhere in the upper 300s range (Hopefully over 400, considering the LS2 which was 6 liters made 400 hp).
Top Level : Blown 6.2 v8 Probably somewhere in the upper 400s range.

That way both v8s would be designed to fit in the engine bay with very few modifications, and by the end of the decade both should been done development, and have found their ways into the Vette/whatever else will get them. The blown 6.2 could resemble the LS9, although we will likely get the GT500 treatment with the engine and get a cast iron block, and a lesser blower model. I realize these power levels are very high, but there has not been an epidemic of vehiclular GTO/SRT-8 slayings, and these cars pack a very high amount of power for their price range. What was the average age of the buyer of a brand new midlevel 4th gen? Probably in their 30s, right? I don't think the HP thing is going to be a problem with the buying public, as long as the car can make a transition from concept to production still looking good.

 

We obviously just don’t agree…..so instead of going round and round let’s just wait to see what’s produced.

 

Yeah, sounds like a good plan to me.

 

Guys you're not looking at the Mustang enough....

Chrysler will pull a 425hp Hemi Challenger out, yes, but its not going to be the bread and butter car.

What does mustang sell the hell out of? 300hp GT's. Yes that right, that's 1993 F-body power levels essentially (because we all know the LT1 in the F-body wasn't really restricted as much as they claimed).

I go back to my statement of scaring buyers off with too much power. What's a buyer to do that wants a V8 but doesn't want to die? Think about how many LO3 TBI Rally Sports were sold from 1997-1992....a whole bunch of them to women.

A 5.3L V8 of around 350 hp is an excellent competitor against Mustang GTs and leaves room for Mustangs to get a power bump and Camaro to still be on top.

If the ONLY V8 option the car has is a big displacement 400hp motor then I think you can put the nails in the coffin now. Big 6.2L on the side of the car is going to scare buyers away unless you give them a more modest choice.

Mustang has proven that year in and year out by dilluting the GT and then bringing out special editions to feed the HP nuts.

IMO the car has to have 3 engine choices.

250-ish HP V6
350-ish HP 5.3L V8
400-425hp big boy SRT/GT500 fighter

This is why SS has to be the "mid level" V8 model and Z28 the top car. I think due to the way the "SS" name is being marketed at Chevy right now we can stand to see the Camaro SS diluted into a Ford GT equivalent. The purists among us, myself included, I don't think would stand to see Z28 watered down that much. In this fashion Z28 doesn't have to be a Camaro equivalent of the Z06, high sticker included.

If the LS3 (expected car version of the 6.2: L92 truck motor) becomes the standard LS2 replacement, I think you're looking at 425hp and even possible 450hp territory at a mass-produced price tag.

 

why does everyone want a 5.3L mid level?! if you want a watered down car, why noy put an LS1 in it at 325-340hp, its not like it doesnt exist!. why would anyone want to take a loss on displacement, stroke and torque, and powerband for no reason. IMO a 5.3L is a motor that belongs in a bottom of the barrel 1500 truck that nobody cares about not a camaro, this isnt the base 60's cars era anymore. i may seem extreme on my view but its important to me that we dont go the route of smaller cid compromise like the mustang. only reason why i dont own one is the fact that i love a OHV motors and those SOHC, DOHC small displacement, no bore, long stroke ratio stuff turns me right off of them. the camaro has had 350 cubes since the beginning of time in even their mid level setups. i refuse to see a downstep, and im sure alot of enthusiusts feel the same as me.

 

The LS1 has been phased out....you're not going to see any more new cars with LS1s.

Plus the 5.3L we're talking about would have as much hp as any LS1 did. Better heads and a little more cam.....

Actually since 1998 it only had 346 cubes. LS1 doesn't = 350ci.

 

i know it wasnt 350 cid but its close enough i just dont like the thought of a smaller displacement motor, hp is one thing but powerband and torque cant be made as easy. and if this car is gonna have any heft to it, like its led on to. its gonna need alot of low end torque to get her movin

 

Hmm, I think I'll let Chris help me with this...
OK, who here remembers an SS 325, SS 346, or SS 364? Anybody?

Each of these has been in SS named vehicles. The 325 was in the early SSR. The 346 was in the Camaro SS. And the 364 has been in the Silverado SS, the SSR, and the Trailblazer SS. Not to mention the Corvette, CTS-V, and GTO.

Apparently this guy agrees with me.
The Gen3/4 engines have a very wide range of interchangable parts inside them. My ideas just swap those parts around. GM already has the crankshafts and blocks in production.

I mean, who here wouldn't love driving a modern Camaro with 388cid (LS7 block 4.125" + LS2 crank 3.625" = 387.6cid = 6.4L) Wait, didn't one of the GTO or Colorado concept trucks have a 6.4L engine in it? I wonder how they came up with that size... Oh yes, the 2004 GTO Ram Air 6 Concept that was at the Woodward Dream Cruise.

They said it had a 389cid motor. OK, maybe they honed the block another five thousandths of an inch and got 388.5cid.

And you can't tell me that you'd be pissed if the Camaro was offered with a massive 415cid engine!