We all want the camaro back, but when it comes how can GM make sure it stays around?

I can only think of 2 things of the top of my head. Marketing and Options. The marketing thing is obvious. But the options would be great to completely customise your car.

 

1. Buy one.
2. Buy more than one.

 

I would also like to see individual options to come back the way they were in the 60's.

It's entirely possible to have ordered a one of a kind car from that era.

On the flip side - I'll bet there are 1000 other people on this site with cars exactly like mine.

 

Unfortunately those days are over , you will probably never see anything like again because of the complexity in the electronics in cars nowadays . Take for an example , usually to get heated leather seats , your required to get a whole host of other things in a package . That package wasnt created because the engineers thought they might like all those options together , it created with manufacturing efficiency in mind . Its easier to and ALOT more effcient to run cars down an assembly line with 3 main wiring harnesses as opposed to 15-20 . While I agree with you , it would nice to able to pic and choose , it would make for some very ineffcient manufacturing nowadays .

How keep the Camaro around ?

Continual updates , give people a reason to want to want a new one within a few years a buying new .

A wide spectrum of colors and interior trim levels

Like Ford didnt faulter from what a mustang was , build a Camaro . A budget priced sports car for the masses . From all I can see , GM knows that one , or else we'd have a Monaro based Camaro already .

A wide selection of engines . The Absolute best selling 3rd gen were the 170 hp TBI 305's . The LS1 powered F-bodies proves hp alone doesnt sell to the masses , and in fact , the Z28's stock 305-310 hp rating lost it more than few sales from non-enthusist who wanted a v8 , but not that much power .

Make the interior a useful happy place to be

 

As was noted earlier, there is only one answer. Buy one.

 

I agree that offering three different engines would help sales but I'm not sure how practical it is in a business sense (R&D testing with diff combinations). I would like to see alot more factory appearance options.

 

There are already several LS based V8 powerplants to choose from that are/will be certified for RWD . And all LS family engines share the same dimensions and motor mounts , and the front accessory bosses allow for different belt routing .

 

Follow the CTS's path. Add good sized upgrades and changes every single model year.

 

All good points, options, int., but first it must look absolutely stunning. When the masses see this thing its gotta make them want one. Without this it will be a struggle, and unlike the 4th gen they will need to tell ppl about em', many ppl said when they heard I had a Camaro, Oh I though they stopped making those. And that was way before they actually made the announcement! Way before we knew anything about the hiatus of the f- body.

 

They need to continously update the styling. I think every three years for a complete reskin(the chassis, engine, suspension, etc. can stay the same for 6 years). That is one of the reasons the 4th gen didn't sell very well in the final years, the shape had been around forever.

 

IMO, it can stay around more than 3yrs., but not with styling that the masses don't like! Gotta Have styling yes, but you gotta admit, yeah we like them (4th gens, some of us anyway), but many ppl were turned off by the on the ground styling. And alot of other things too! 3rd gens were very similar, but the 1 big dif. was the marketing of these cars. There were everywhere just like the later 2nd gens, and low and behold they also sold quit well! A solid effort must be made to market the car. They won't steal as many mustang sales, if all they do is simply put it into production. Oh, they'll do pretty good if they nail it with the Car. But they'll do really good if they actually put some thought into it, like they did on these previously mentioned models. I think back to the 1st gens, which to me was changed muct too quick. I don't think I'm alone in this thinking, as the prices on these cars has reached the stratosphere. And in 69 they couldn't make enough so they had an extra long production run! I also like the early 2nd gens very much Obviously, but they aren't nearly as popular, or as valuable as 1st gens. Even though performance was way down in the later 2nd gens, IMHO probably why they advertised the hell out of them, which resulted in high sales #'s, despite the low power#'s. Beyond the product itself, marketing is the key to 5th gen Camaro production bliss! Again the wait is for the birds!

 

How about this:

Make it on an assembly line that produces a higher volume car!

The sports coupe market is fickled. The Ste Therese plant was set up for the volume of F-bodies that were sold in the 80s, but became a white elephant when coupe sales (especially F-body sales) tanked in the 90s. Mustang was lucky in that it's sales actually met projections, and remained very high, so it's sole model plant was profitable and runing where it should have been or higher.

Other points (ie: more practicality, more options, etc...) have been hammered into the ground over the years, so I wanted to try a different idea.


BTW, FWIW: car makers generally have their designs and proportions set 3 years before, and have most everything finalized 1 1/2 to 2 years before vehicles go into production. We saw this in action when GM held off a final decision on the big Zeta cars that were due early 2007 as 2008 cars.