Why bring back the Camaro?

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01-22-2003, 08:31 AM

#16

jrp4uc

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Quote:

Originally posted by WERM
Most other manufacturers would kill for a nameplate with as many fans and as much heritage as Camaro.

Most other manufacturers would also kill a nameplate that sold 40k units when the target was 100k year after year.

I think it's naive to overlook poor sales as part of the f-body's demise. You still see cars on lots today. Of course, there are a myriad of reasons for those poor sales.

Last edited by jrp4uc; 01-22-2003 at 08:35 AM.

01-22-2003, 08:38 AM

#17

Darth Xed

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Without even getting into anything else... I can think of 35,000+ reason from this site alone to bring back Camaro.

This site has over 35,000 members registered for it's message board... and countless lurkers.

That, in itself, is pretty darn impressive.

01-22-2003, 08:52 AM

#18

IZ28

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Yeah and the countless other F-Body sites. A car with so many enthusiants and people interested, if done right, can be a high volume car again and this is just 1 reason that proves there's a market for a Camaro as if they didn't know.

01-22-2003, 09:07 AM

#19

Darth Xed

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Quote:

Originally posted by IZ28
Yeah and the countless other F-Body sites. A car with so many enthusiants and people interested, if done right, can be a high volume car again and this is just 1 reason that proves there's a market for a Camaro as if they didn't know.

Exactly.

Plus factor in:

1) Many use Camaro as a stepping stone to Corvette.
2) Many Camaro owners buy that Impala or Malibu or Silverado, BECAUSE they own a Camaro.
3) Many people buy that Cavalier BECAUSE they want a Camaro, and it is the closest they can get at the time.
4) Camaro is one of the best known nameplates ever.

5) through 10,0000) A whole bunch more stuff

01-22-2003, 09:40 AM

#20

95 Z/28 LT1

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6) Camaro gets buyers into the showroom.

01-22-2003, 09:45 AM

#21

quick

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Re: Re-read the 1st paragraph......

Quote:

Originally posted by Doug Harden
.......Ron Zarella's group tried to kill the car division at Chevy...trucks are where the $$ is, they thought.......they succeeded in killing just the f-body.

Things are 180 deg different today at GM.....

With the brewing SUV backlash, any passenger vehicle company that builds nothing but trucks and SUVs is asking for trouble, and I think GM knows this. GM needs a big selling mid-size car badly. No F-Body will be built again until GM thinks it will make money on it--more money than they can make using their resources in other areas. That's just business. If GM can piggyback the F car onto an existing platform (maybe the Monaro--why not?), which was one of the great cost shortcomings of the F-Body, then it has a much better chance of re-surfacing. Also, the Camaro's image is not great outside of the young, rebellious white male demographic, which is also a shortcoming. The Mustang, sad to say, has a much broader appeal.

01-22-2003, 02:28 PM

#22

guionM

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Location: The Golden State

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Quote:

Originally posted by IZ28
The F-Body couldn't be saved because of the people that were in there while they were bring produced. Now B.L. is running things and not even he could do it in time. Things don't happen that fast. He is trying to get things going good again in GM but it will take a while. The Camaro means alot to many in GM and it'll be back when its "allowed" to be. Do you think we'd even see a GTO, S/Ced Impala SS, S/Ced MC SS, and the want to return V8 and RWD to most cars again if the previous people were running the company?? In a few years there won't be a need to take cars from other countries that are V8/RWD because they'll be made here again, including the GTO. What we have now is all he has to work with and is trying to make improvements on what he can, then in a few years the good stuff should start happening when things are made "right." Do I agree with everything he does and says, no, but he wants to do good for the people, unlike the others.

I'm sure GuionM will be glad to hear me say all this. I've been paying attention.

I think you picked up just about every hint that's been thrown out.

Summed up quite nicely too.

(Sunset, it's just my guess, but I'd say there's likely half a dozen or more people on this site that know most everything about Camaro's demise and why GM can't talk about it.)

01-22-2003, 05:35 PM

#23

WERM

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Location: South Jersey

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Quote:

Originally posted by jrp4uc
Most other manufacturers would also kill a nameplate that sold 40k units when the target was 100k year after year.

I think it's naive to overlook poor sales as part of the f-body's demise. You still see cars on lots today. Of course, there are a myriad of reasons for those poor sales.

"Poor Sales" is relative. Camaro was one of the BEST SELLING coupes on the market. An overstated business case? Yes. But it did manage to sell 40K per year (Plus 30 for Firebird) with no advertising, significant updates, and with a 10 year old design.

Sure, there were issues, but this is the second or third best known nameplate on the planet.

01-22-2003, 07:48 PM

#24

305fan

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Location: Calgary

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poor sales? Depends how you look at it--75-80K for F-bodies are allright----but not when they were
set up for and expecting sales of 150,000 a year.

I think their expectations were too high