View Poll Results: What concerns YOU more on the Camaro?
Voters: 179. You may not vote on this poll
What concerns you more? Cost or weight?
Registered User
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 5,308
From: Oshawa - Home of the 5th-gen
Maybe I've been mis-informed, but I've been under the impression, for a long time, that the new Hemi's aren't the most fuel efficient engines on the block? 
We KNOW that the LSx engines are a very efficient design. With the addition of AFM/DOD, they can only be that much better. AND, the opportunity is still there to go direct-injection one day.
IMO, Dodge is nowhere near GM for fuel economy, but maybe someone has real data to prove me wrong?
We KNOW that the LSx engines are a very efficient design. With the addition of AFM/DOD, they can only be that much better. AND, the opportunity is still there to go direct-injection one day.
IMO, Dodge is nowhere near GM for fuel economy, but maybe someone has real data to prove me wrong?
Registered User
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 9,705
From: Oakland, California
Registered User
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 329
From: Hemlock, Mich.
Maybe I've been mis-informed, but I've been under the impression, for a long time, that the new Hemi's aren't the most fuel efficient engines on the block?
We KNOW that the LSx engines are a very efficient design. With the addition of AFM/DOD, they can only be that much better. AND, the opportunity is still there to go direct-injection one day.
IMO, Dodge is nowhere near GM for fuel economy, but maybe someone has real data to prove me wrong?
We KNOW that the LSx engines are a very efficient design. With the addition of AFM/DOD, they can only be that much better. AND, the opportunity is still there to go direct-injection one day.
IMO, Dodge is nowhere near GM for fuel economy, but maybe someone has real data to prove me wrong?
I can't comment on the SRT but I do have a 07 Charger R/T with the 5.7 I have gotten 19-22.5 city driving (mostly country roads), it depends of the temperature and my right foot. And with 3 people and a full load of luggage I get 24.5-25mpg on the highway at 75-78mph.
This is the first non GM car I have ever purchased and I will say it is a very nice car with tons of room. The Challenger R/T would be high on my list if I didnt need the four door for getting a baby seat in and out. All I can say is I hope the Camaro really offers somthing special to make up for all of the weight, because the Challenger is Truly a car that a family can use and has an excuse for the weight by having a huge trunk and back seat.
Registered User
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 3,132
From: Santa Clara, CA
He mentioned weight specifically for both the Camaro and Challenger. A couple of hundred pounds? Well, losing it sure wouldn't hurt, but I agree, it wouldn't be an end all. Far more than that would be required.
I'm really beginning to fear for this car. As mentioned above, versions like the Z/28, (and SRT-8) probably won't be snubbed by consumers. Those car will be snapped up by well-to-do collectors who will never turn a steering wheel in anger.
It's the SS and R/T which might take the biggest hit. The V-6 cars will be oh, so critical for Camaro. Hopefully those will deliver the sort of fuel economy which consumers are looking for.
I'll tell you what my reality check is...
Yesterday was my Camaro Club's annual cruise to the Volo Auto Museum. It's really breathtaking to see about 40 Camaros on a picturesque road, on a beautiful day. There is also a very large Mustang/SVT show which a local dealer sponsors on the same day. We always change our route slightly so we can do a 'drive by' and show the Camaro colors.
These guys and gals in our club, are Camaro crazy. Many own, 2, 3, 4 or more Camaros.
A year ago, most were planning on a 5th gen purchase. Yesterday, no one I spoke to was actively planning to buy one. Scary.
I'm really beginning to fear for this car. As mentioned above, versions like the Z/28, (and SRT-8) probably won't be snubbed by consumers. Those car will be snapped up by well-to-do collectors who will never turn a steering wheel in anger.
It's the SS and R/T which might take the biggest hit. The V-6 cars will be oh, so critical for Camaro. Hopefully those will deliver the sort of fuel economy which consumers are looking for.
I'll tell you what my reality check is...
Yesterday was my Camaro Club's annual cruise to the Volo Auto Museum. It's really breathtaking to see about 40 Camaros on a picturesque road, on a beautiful day. There is also a very large Mustang/SVT show which a local dealer sponsors on the same day. We always change our route slightly so we can do a 'drive by' and show the Camaro colors.
These guys and gals in our club, are Camaro crazy. Many own, 2, 3, 4 or more Camaros.
A year ago, most were planning on a 5th gen purchase. Yesterday, no one I spoke to was actively planning to buy one. Scary.
Have you been talking to them about the car using the same sort of language and arguments you use on this board?
Frankly, anything with a V8 is in trouble right now. But things can change pretty quickly. If gasoline prices stay at $4.50 for a year, people will start to get used to it and realize that the difference in cost between a 20 and 30mpg car is $1000 versus $500 when gasoline was 1/2 the price. That's a significant number, but less than the depreciation of a new car.
Btw, while I think this makes a good argument for an Alpha Camaro in the future, it also makes a good case for minimizing the package and not protecting for a V8.
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,176
From: Chicagoland IL
Charlie, if all goes well, you'll hopefully get your wish of a light-weight 6th-gen 
. But in the meantime, why not give the 5th-gen a shot, and who knows, maybe you'll be pleasantly surprised by it?! 
And if you buy one, and convince those in your Camaro club to buy one, it'll only help strengthen the business case for a future re-design of the Camaro 
.
What do you say??
. But in the meantime, why not give the 5th-gen a shot, and who knows, maybe you'll be pleasantly surprised by it?! And if you buy one, and convince those in your Camaro club to buy one, it'll only help strengthen the business case for a future re-design of the Camaro .What do you say??
But here is a sort of straw poll of why people in the club have had second thoughts about buying a 5th gen...
1) Gas prices.
2) Excess weight.
3) Overexposure.
4) Downturn in personal finances.
Registered User
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 9,705
From: Oakland, California
Registered User
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 9,705
From: Oakland, California
I'd be surprised if it was that bad. Modern superchargers don't have that significant of an impact on fuel mileage. I think 15/25 is a more reasonable guess, seeing that the LSx series has always gotten decent highway mileage.
Registered User
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 1,011
I'd be very surprised to see the z28 post numbers that high. I am expecting maybe 15/20. Weight and the performance numbers of the LSA ,556 hp, 551 lb-ft in the CTS-V, as well the final drive ration in the CTS-V (3.73) almost certainly mean lower gas mileage than the G8 GT or the GTO. The Shelby GT 500 for the record is 14/20 according to the sticker.
