Shed light on these issues please

[liquidsmoke]

ok, this isnt a rant, just curious and even though i have my own ideas as to why these things are the way they are, i love exchanging ideas with others.

These may seem like minor things and mostly they are, but they annoy me just a little more than i like esp the first one.

1. Why oh why do car manufactures insist on bundleing more and more functions into the stock head unit and try so hard to stop people from replacing it. What do they gain by doing this other than pissing people off and makeing them spend more money than they need to replace it ($300 kits)?

Either do it right, or dont get upset if i want to replace it. Sounds like my ex.

2. Why the big ass bowtie chevy? i dont see any on the vettes. I think the camaro is more than deserving to not have a bowtie. I understand the camaro is prob the most beautifuly designed car to ever come from chevy (exterior wise) and you want the world to know its a chevy. But i think everyone allready knows that. Tone it down kay? This was one of the first things i noticed on the new steering wheel everyone hates, is the big ass chevy logo instead of Camaro or ZL1.
what is the meaning of the bowtie anyway?


3. Ok, i understand some things that are in concept form must be changed before they go into production. Perfect example, the concept side mirrors. Super cool, but visibility has to close to zero and a safety issue. But lets take a look at the zl1 and compare it to the jaylenno camaro/ TF3 camaro. Whats up with the ugly drl lights. Why cant u just make it exactly like they are on the TF3 car? They clearly look better. It cant possibly add that much to the price of the car.

4. Trim levels. I for one will be glad if they were to go away. Let me pick what options i want in my car, period. If it takes longer for me to get it, thats fine, just let me have it the way i want it. Im sure there is some reason or another why its like this, and that reason was probably more valid 50 years ago.
I want to order my cars just like i order my pizzas.


so anyone care to shed some light or there ideas as to why these things are the way they are.

[stray bullitt]

WOW!! I'd hate to see what you were like if you were ranting.

As for trim levels, I think the choice is OK with Camaro. The alternative is, I suppose to go the way of, say our Teutonic friends, and buy a car with a relatively basic interior, that can be spec'd up to the buyers requirements, at a cost that can amount to as much as half the price of the car again.
P.S. I'm with you on the bowtie.

[Gene Culley]

I have to agree with the bowtie issue. I mean honestly, could they have made it any larger? That's why mine is on the way out for me.

[BlueSteele]

I've always liked the camaro emblem from the 4th gen camaros. I think that would be more fitting instead of the huge bowtie.

[daveagogo1]

Even though the bow tie is big it can easily be replaced with a grill insert and on 2011's no holes in the trunk so can just be taken off. As for trim levels. Tons of people do not order their cars. They choose from what's on the lot. Mine was bought off the lot with the EXACT options, colors, model i wanted. I got it in a few hrs as opposed to many weeks of waiting. It's also a bunch cheaper for GM and others to do it this way. The wait time would be far far longer for your car if everyone ordered theirs special and a PIA to schedule production loads as well.

[liquidsmoke]

did a little searching about the bowite and found this

http://home.earthlink.net/~scrippsbo...iehistory.html

so basicly, from what this is saying, it originated from either a pattern on some wall paper in a french hotel or it was lifted from another company called Coalettes. Either way, both are pretty lame and i was actually hopeing it had some kind of real meaning behind it other than someone likeing the shape.

Even though i dont like the bowtie, i have to say its a lot better than some other car logos.
Fords blue oval is crap and reminds me of the GE logo for some reason.
audi's logo seems silly since its exactly like the olympics logo, not sure how they are getting away with this.
Hyundai is a pretty crappy one also.
I absolutely hate the cadillac logo with all my heart and soul! If i ever bought a caddy, they would have to remove the logo before i took it off the lot.

[1BADLS3]

Originally Posted by liquidsmoke

1. Why oh why do car manufactures insist on bundleing more and more functions into the stock head unit and try so hard to stop people from replacing it. What do they gain by doing this other than pissing people off and makeing them spend more money than they need to replace it ($300 kits)?

Because shared systems and components create savings over individual components. The automakers can use fewer parts and less labor, and still offer the same amount of features.

Originally Posted by liquidsmoke

2. Why the big ass bowtie chevy? i dont see any on the vettes. I think the camaro is more than deserving to not have a bowtie. I understand the camaro is prob the most beautifuly designed car to ever come from chevy (exterior wise) and you want the world to know its a chevy. But i think everyone allready knows that. Tone it down kay? This was one of the first things i noticed on the new steering wheel everyone hates, is the big ass chevy logo instead of Camaro or ZL1.
what is the meaning of the bowtie anyway?

They want to create a brand identity. Everything gets a gigantic Bowtie now so that you know it's a Chevrolet. If you made such an awesome car, wouldn't you want to let everyone know what company it came from?

It's too bad they dropped the Red/White/Blue Camaro emblem, but it didn't readily identify it as a Chevrolet.

Originally Posted by liquidsmoke

3. Ok, i understand some things that are in concept form must be changed before they go into production. Perfect example, the concept side mirrors. Super cool, but visibility has to close to zero and a safety issue. But lets take a look at the zl1 and compare it to the jaylenno camaro/ TF3 camaro. Whats up with the ugly drl lights. Why cant u just make it exactly like they are on the TF3 car? They clearly look better. It cant possibly add that much to the price of the car.

It might be a DOT issue or safety regulation that is requiring them to change the design.

Originally Posted by liquidsmoke

4. Trim levels. I for one will be glad if they were to go away. Let me pick what options i want in my car, period. If it takes longer for me to get it, thats fine, just let me have it the way i want it. Im sure there is some reason or another why its like this, and that reason was probably more valid 50 years ago.
I want to order my cars just like i order my pizzas.

Bundled options are also better at producing profits for automakers. It sucks for us, but in a way it keeps costs down. Inventory is easier to build when a lot of the same pieces are going into a lot of cars versus each and every one being special-ordered.

[liquidsmoke]

Originally Posted by 1BADLS3

They want to create a brand identity. Everything gets a gigantic Bowtie now so that you know it's a Chevrolet. If you made such an awesome car, wouldn't you want to let everyone know what company it came from?

It's too bad they dropped the Red/White/Blue Camaro emblem, but it didn't readily identify it as a Chevrolet.

I understand the branding reason. I guess what I'm trying to say is "Camaro" is the brand. Just like corvette is the brand. They are so special that they rise above the parent brand, and create a name for there self. Because at this point everyone knows it's a chevy. No one questions who makes a vette. Just like the parent GM brand should take a backseat, chevy should take a backseat to it's camaro brand and let this baby fly on it's own. The car will seem even more special.
I remember seeing a camaro emblem that said " Camaro by Chevrolet ", and "by Chevrolet " was in a smaller font and under the name camaro. It seemed like at this point in time chevy got it that camaro was more special than Chevrolet. Today, not so much.

[Alex]

I really like the bowtie, its one of my favorite little details on the car. I hated the heritage grill at first without it, but now I love the ones that have them. Also based on the "stupid things people say" thread, people still mistake the camaro for the mustang.

One more thing liquidsmoke, that picture of your car is fantastic everytime I see it, it reminds me I'm going to make the right choice, Silver Ice rocks.

[Number 3]

Originally Posted by liquidsmoke

ok, this isnt a rant, just curious and even though i have my own ideas as to why these things are the way they are, i love exchanging ideas with others.

These may seem like minor things and mostly they are, but they annoy me just a little more than i like esp the first one.

1. Why oh why do car manufactures insist on bundleing more and more functions into the stock head unit and try so hard to stop people from replacing it. What do they gain by doing this other than pissing people off and makeing them spend more money than they need to replace it ($300 kits)?

Either do it right, or dont get upset if i want to replace it. Sounds like my ex.

This is a rare concern. GM and not many other OEMs for that matter design a car with less features to enable you to go aftermarket. The radio and it's display are now integrated into the design and functionality of the car. So I'm not sure what you are really suggeting. I think you want better audio but are upset that so much goes into the head unit that you would have to give up features. Well if you get a vehicle with NAV and even more integration (something a lot of people here do want) you have an even bigger problem.

It's simply this: GM isn't designing or styling the car to make it easy to replace. They are designing and styling to provide optimal performance for most customers.

2. Why the big ass bowtie chevy? i dont see any on the vettes. I think the camaro is more than deserving to not have a bowtie. I understand the camaro is prob the most beautifuly designed car to ever come from chevy (exterior wise) and you want the world to know its a chevy. But i think everyone allready knows that. Tone it down kay? This was one of the first things i noticed on the new steering wheel everyone hates, is the big ass chevy logo instead of Camaro or ZL1.
what is the meaning of the bowtie anyway?

So you are really wanting to know why GM wants the Chevy Brand visible on one of it's prodcuts? Really? It isn't that big by the way, it is quite small in my opinion. And don't use the Corvette as "AN" example. Corvette has always been a little different in the Chevrolet and GM world. It kind of stands on it's own just a bit more than other products.

3. Ok, i understand some things that are in concept form must be changed before they go into production. Perfect example, the concept side mirrors. Super cool, but visibility has to close to zero and a safety issue. But lets take a look at the zl1 and compare it to the jaylenno camaro/ TF3 camaro. Whats up with the ugly drl lights. Why cant u just make it exactly like they are on the TF3 car? They clearly look better. It cant possibly add that much to the price of the car.

How about cost? perforamance? And trust me if every little detail that you and 100 people wanted that "couldn't cost that much more" add up to a lot of $$$$$. I agree, I would have liked the LED lights myself. But I also can't tell you if they perform nearly as well.

But we simply don't know how the LEDs perform as fog lights. I suspect with the 2 lamps, most of the complainers here will be getting DRL AND Fog lamps, a major complaint from many on the RS package.

And saying that somehow the movie car is exactly how it should be is just one opinion on the styling. There are also people that don't like the..........................oh wait you said TF3, which we've only seen a few clips of and have no real idea how it performs. And remember, Ugly is in the eye of the beholder. As I said, I would have preferred LEDs, but I don't find the lighting on the LZ1 even close to ugly.

4. Trim levels. I for one will be glad if they were to go away. Let me pick what options i want in my car, period. If it takes longer for me to get it, thats fine, just let me have it the way i want it. Im sure there is some reason or another why its like this, and that reason was probably more valid 50 years ago.
I want to order my cars just like i order my pizzas.

This is just simple reduction of build combinations. At one point, there were litteraly MILLIONS of build combinations is an assembly plant. This is just too many opportunities to build it wrong. The Japanese taught us this many years ago. It is more efficient and enable higher quality to build fewer variations in the plant.

Yes, you may want this with that, but not that in your order. But GM can no longer afford to be a "custom" builder and also provide the quality and cost that keeps the car great. And it wasn't 50 years ago, it's really been the lessons learned of efficient manufacturing. And it holds true now more than ever in todays super competitive market place.

Sorry to say, but your Camaro isn't a Pizza. The difficulties of building hundreds of cars per day and getting the thousands (not cheese and pepperoni) of parts to the line is a farrrrr more complex proposition.

so anyone care to shed some light or there ideas as to why these things are the way they are.

Notes above. Hope that helps a little bit.

[Tom]

I like the bowtie

[Tigg]

I never understood the tiny almost hidden SS badges on the Camaro... christ you can find Trail lazers whit Giant SS badges or a Cobalt for that matter. Even the new ZL1 has distinct makings on it ..Waht..was Chevy embarrassed to badge up the SS Camaro? I don't get it.

[Tom]

Originally Posted by Tigg

I never understood the tiny almost hidden SS badges on the Camaro... christ you can find Trail lazers whit Giant SS badges or a Cobalt for that matter. Even the new ZL1 has distinct makings on it ..Waht..was Chevy embarrassed to badge up the SS Camaro? I don't get it.

That's why I added my own SS badge under the CAMARO on the front fenders. They should have done that from the factory.

[MikeSVX]

To answer the last question, because very few people want to have to think about the options they want, and they don't want to wait for the car. They want to walk onto a dealer lot and go home with their new car same day (I had a boss that referred to this as the microwave society. I want it and I want it now). It probably makes the assembly line move faster too, becaue of less variation.