Quote:
Originally Posted by SilverTurtle
there are some hindrances to releasing the Camaro early:
1. the Impala and the G8 are both cars that are more important to GM's automobile lineup than the Camaro is... I know we all hate to hear that, but its the truth... not everyone can go down and get a Camaro and it fit into their family's lifestyle... and the G8 and Impala are the cars those folks go down and buy.
2. the G8 and Impala are going to be rebadged Commodores... its easy to keep the exact same underpinnings and the exact same body structure in a 4dr car and just change the four corners, front grille and back side... but the Camaro is an all new car... the Concept's styling isn't like any Holden already on the market... which leads to:
3. when designing a car, you have to meet or exceed every single safety aspect of every single market the car is to be sold in... and anticipate the changes to rules and regs that will come in future years... so the Concept's design has to be adapted to meet all of these demands... something that was not a part of the equation when building a 1 off concept car... a concept car that, btw, doesn't have an e-brake in the passenger compartment and, at least on the silver coupe, doesnt have a hood release in there, either.
I would love to see the 5th gen Camaro introduced early... but there are just too many factors holding that back... and I'd rather wait a while and have GM have a perfect hit on their hands than have them have the same problems they had with the GTO when they simply rebadged a Monaro and shipped it to the USA.
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The Camaro may actually be much more important to GM right now than the G8 and Impala. Currently, this company has absolutely nothing exciting to offer customers who are willing to pay $20-$30,000. There current product lineup is bland and unless you've got the big bucks to get a Corvette or Cadillac, there is nothing in their lineup to give the company a pulse. Remember that this is a company that is not in the best of shape and they need an exciting flagship car that's affordable to lots of people to get people to the showrooms to draw attention to other cars, like the Impala and G8. There success also depends on the image of the company, and a car like the Camaro gives an image of excitement and innovation.
Also the stumbling blocks of changing regulations and standards fully apply to the G8 and Impala as much as they do to the Camaro. Those two cars are also based on the same platform and are being brought to the marketplace fairly quickly. Only the body panels are different. If they want, they can get it out the door sooner as a quality car. They've learned there lessons from the GTO. That's why they have top notch people like Tom Peters and Ed Welburn on this car to make sure it doesn't turn out like the GTO.