looking at the concept sketches for the stang and was like cool car..now photoshop or not..but in "life" the stang looks terrible..
now Im huge on the "retro" 5th gen..if done like my Fave..the Hot Wheels Muscle Tone Camaro..or like the Overbored 454 "chevelle" those are done great and could see them on the road..but Im nottoo sure of other sketches..it might look good on paper but in life they look like crap..maybee..so possible to do a clean sheet design?? from the 4th gen as an influence..say in the tail lights or fender arches??

 

Maybe I'm biased, but IMHO if there is ever a future f-body it should have substantial late 2nd gen and 3rd gen influence; roughly 77-84 era, as well as 1st gen to a lesser extent. The late 2nd gen is as definitive as we've ever had. The early 3rd gen is still highly modern 20 years later, and hardly "retro". Those are some of the best selling most beautiful and timeless years ever, regardless of their EPA-choked motors. A low-mile 78 Z28 I was looking at recently was probably the most amazing Z28 I have ever seen. What ever happened to the idea of matching color scheme wheels? I'd love to see that again. And not just white. 25th T/A and 30th T/A are good examples of that possibility, as are late 2nd gen Skybird/Redbird/Yellowbird and numerous regular editions. In fact the 78 Z28 I looked at had original body-color steel wheels. Improvements ont he 4th gen: Keep the lines simple and distinctive, keep the steroid side plastics away, make the back end LOW and proportional, not high and huge like 4th gen with no rear-view usefulness, use plenty of full-height glass all around to maximize visibility and avoid the "you can't make fun of me, I'm sheltered in my own little safety bubble" feeling of 4th gen. My opinions are basically, if you're gonna go retro at all, go with the successful timeless designs, not the failures stuck in a mis-directed era. A clean sheet design might be the best way to go, as long as it doesn't stray too far off what we used to know and love.

 

Just say NO! to retro!

 

Retro is such a cop-out!

 

I agree with kizz to an extent. IMO Third Gen and 1st Gen cues the most. (Third Gens are to me the best looking Camaros and cars ever made) Some 1st Gen Z28 Z28/RS mixed with early Third Gen Z28's and IROC-Z's. Then blend that with some new designs and maybe some really subtle cues from the other Gens. A stock cowl hood, or a louvered hood that would be functional would be a must if I was doing the work on the car.

 

.....the more I see of "retro" designs, the more obvious it is that this is a dead end road......what's Ford gonna' do in five years when they've already used the "retro card"?

I think it really paints you into a corner.

The re-styled PT Cruiser, as I've seen in a few places, makes a successful step forward, but the PT has NO heritage and can do what it damned well pleases..........the Mustang spy photos show a styling that I find attractive, BUT very limiting as to upgrades in the future...

I think we could debate for years what our personal favorite Camaro vintage is.....and it will always boil down to personal preferences.....

I love the 1969......and the 70 1/2 to 73's.........the late 70 early 80's are nice. I don't really get too excited by the 3rd gens (remember this is just my $0.02, don't get all PO'd)...I find them too flat paneled and squared off...I've owned a few, but moved on....the 4th gens IMHO didn't really look good except in SS trim...I HATE a flat hood....GM really has neutered the styling of the Z/28 lately........

I truly believe the 2002 Camaros were the absolute BEST Camaros ever, in nearly every catagory (of course there were minor exceptions)......but still had way too many strikes against it........

Having said all that, I want the next gen (IF we EVER get one) to be instantly recognizable as a Camaro and use some "heritage" styling ques, but I think it's a kiss of death to do a retro design. A new Camaro should still have a nearly vertical B pillar, grill below the headlight line, long hood, short rear deck, 2+2 design, tasteful spoilers, a great hood and be lean and mean looking...(as opposed to the Mustang's stubby look).

I say that based on a belief that due to the facts that, one.. it died in the first place.......and it will be at least 2007 before we might see another on......the 5th gen car will have to be a real, huge step forward in both design, quality, horsepower, technology and user friendlyness (?).

To do any less will doom the car.......

 

IMO I think the 91-92 Z28's were the BEST looking Camaro's ever. If you look at the lines car makers are taking today with angled curves on the cars I feel that the 3rd gens had those all the way back to 82. I would love to see the 5th gen carry some 2nd and thirdgen styling que's without going retro.

 

I agree, infact I made my 86 look like a 92 by changing the spoiler, hood blisters and ground effects(pic in sig)... and I also find the 4 gen SS's to be the other best... I had mine looking like an LT1 SS, but now Im switching the front end so its going to look like a LS1 SS.

 

Why would you do that when you already have the better looking front bumper??

 

Retro has become, well....so retro (and stale).

I don't mind some heritage cues for a new Camaro (if we get a Camaro), but my suggestion to the design staff is to put on your creative thinking cap and whip out your pencils...and draw something fresh, something forward leaning, something beautiful.

Just like the original guys did, that all of this retro is based on.

 

Hey it wouldve been left alone, but it was stolen and wrecked in the front end when it was recovered by the police... so instead of fixing it how it was, I thought I try something else.

 

Doh.

I agree Z284. Let it have cues, but make it have a little new also.

 

Each generation F-fody has had a relatively modern appearance, compared to the competition. A retro 5th gen just doesn't make sense. By the time the 5th gen arrives, the retro fad will be over. GM will certainly not invest in a stale design concept, when they will need to sell that style for 3-5 years before an update.

I would like to see a more futuristic styled 5th gen. What that is, I don't know. It should look fast standing still, and turn heads. Probably a smooth aerodynamic shape, combined with sharp detail lines that appear functional, not superfluous. The 4th gen had a good combination, with the integrated rear spoiler, hood vents, and integrated mirrors. I still receive compliments on my '94, most people think it's a brand new car.

Also, GM needs to put a bit more effort into interior styling. Your first impression is the exterior styling, the second is the interior. If you can impress the public with those two items, they will go the next step and actually test drive the car. Otherwise, they usually move on. If you look at a Toyata, for example, the interior styling is very appealing. However, the ergonomices are usually lousy. GM ergonomics are great, if they could just make the interiors look good also.
I'm not suggesting GM make their interiors like Toyata, but they can certainly do much better, and I believe the money spent would translate into higher sales.

 

No more body intergration!! Its terrible. Thankfully cars seem to be getting more and more away from that stuff making cars look like cars again and not some crazy ****. No more intergrated spoiler, GFX, mirrors, and plain designs. They need fender/wheel flares on the next Gen and distinct lines blended with fluid looks. Every Gen had these but the 4th and it just didn't look right IMO, like a regular car or something.

I definetly agree with the interior quality comments made. These cars need better interiors to succeed. And they need to be cool looking and not so plain next time. Who wants their Camaro to have an int. like every other GM car?? It seems throughout the mid-later 90's too many GM/Chevrolet cars had a too similar look inside. And lets bring back being able to see your hood again and a windshield that is not so angled.

 

I personally think the integrated spoiler, and later the SS spoiler, were two of the coolest enhancements of the 4th Gen, along with the mirrors. Sorry but the tall spoilers from the late 3rd Gen Z28's were just plain ridiculous looking. Eh, whatever. Feel free to flame me.