45th Anniversary Edition 2012 Camaro and New 3.6L LFX V6 Engine

[djsnoflake]

The LS7 wheels! Son of a bitch!

[stikSS]

Im gonna say the pictures do this car NO justice.... and haven't since its inception. I think this is a awesome looking car, with the cosmetics and the small changes.... it is definitely apart from the standard models.

I give Scott and the whole group a pat on the back and appreciate everything they do for the customers, and their passions. While everyone may not agree with the changes, and new possibilities for the Camaro, everyone needs to take a step back and realize we have a Camaro to drive.... remember it went away in 2002 and many like myself didn't have a passion anymore.... until 2006, and finally in 2008...... so I'm more than appreciative to the Camaro Team, deciples and whoever else had a hand in bring this Icon back.

Let em do their work, and be thankful we have a manufacturer willing to listen and bring all these options to the table..... we could all still be wondering if the Camaro would come back again!

Thanks Scott!

Sent from my EVO 4G

[rjcamaro]

Originally Posted by mike25

Anyone want to take a stab at pricing?

My guess for the 45th option, $2,000.

[lurker]

I looked at the Camaro a couple times before buying the Mustang, but it just didn't 'do it' for me. Still haven't really warmed up to the overall design, but the spoiler helps... and the interior in these pics looks better than I recall. I may have to go look closer at a new one. Did they leave the exhaust system 'uncovered' or do something with the lower valance to help hide it a little better?

[Number 3]

Originally Posted by fbodfather

]


*takes a deep breath*





I don't want this to sound like I'm flaming you........

BUT-- every one of the disciples is known in their community. Webmasters, moderators, web owners, club presidents, and all of them are on the internet constantly. They represent all 4 generations of camaro - plus Firebird, and Corvette. 8 men, 7 women - from all over the U.S. and Canada. And they are constantly talking with fellow enthusiasts.....and many of them are talking to competitor owners........NONE of them are 'bashful' Show me another automotive manufacturer that has done this.......

ON TOP OF THAT......

Extreme number of Focus Groups as well as "Garage Visits'


I've had gatherings of Camaro/Firebird people at dozens of autoshows - allowing people to ask questions and give us feedback........

The Camaro Team is on this and many other sites - most of them are invisible...... Me invisible? Not so much.

If you think that we're going to learn tons more by talking to every owner.....I think you're mistaken in the larger sense. Yes, we'll get 'ones and twos' of issues - but at some point you reach the law of diminishing returns.

As I type this, I'm in Chandler awaiting a whole buncha Camaro people to arrive - and there are 5 more of the Camaro Team on their way......we'll spend the weekend talking with enthusiasts - as we do thru-out the year.........

Soooooooooooo - for the love of all that's good and great - tell me how we are not LISTENING to the Customer.....I'm begging you to help me understand this...........

If you show me another company that approaches what we do.......I'll send you my first-born...........

Sorry to sound a bit 'terse' -- but I spend nearly EVERY day of the year talking to our customers..........

Fbodfather, you missed his point completely.................you didn't talk to HIM. LOL And no one could possibly represent him but him.

Originally Posted by liquidsmoke

well see in my eyes, this is the problem. You are only talking to and getting feedback from car enthusiast. Its like your wife asking, hey do i look fat in these jeans. Not that feedback from enthusiasts is bad, its prob most important but shouldnt be the only source. From what i see this is the only source chevy cares to listen to.

I specifically remember someone saying the reason we didnt have a nav screen in the camaro was from feedback from the disciples (correct me if im wrong). But if GM would of asked the general public im pretty certain they would have gotten a different response.

All of the people who have bought the new camaro, are not all camaro enthusiasts, but these are the people who are responsible for the huge sales of this car. Those people need a voice and using onstar is way to give them one. They arent going to car shows or signing up at car websites. But they love there new camaro just the same. They wanted power passenger seats just the same as we did.

now im not trying to downplay anything that you do on a daily basis, i personally think its great and maybe some day ill have a chance to chat it up with you at a car meet. But i think chevy also needs to listen to the other segment of people who buy there cars, not just those who already love them. Not just those who owned every previous camaro etc. Sure at some point you reach diminishing returns, but we havnt reached that point yet. And having more customer feedback data is never a bad idea.

And what im talking about here is in fact "data" not just talking to people and getting a idea what people are thinking about. There is a difference in saying 30% of our customers in this region dont like this feature than saying most of the people i talk to dont like this, no matter how many people you talk to. Having access to a larger pot of data will give you broader perspective and see things previously unseen.

First of all GM has wayyyyyy more methods of communicating with customers than reading posts on Camaro5. And we have a huge number of people that communicate what they like and don't like through 3rd parties like Consumer Reports and JD Power to name but a few. GM has many, many methods of hearing from the customer and many of those you simply will never know about...................unless you think they don't until they call you then you'll believe it.

One of my very few complaints about coming to Camaro5 is everyone thinks that every single Camaro owner immediately takes their car home and recalibrates the PCM. LOL.

Your idea of OnStar is not far fetched. There are plenty of things in the works with OnStar that will make all GM products better in the future.

And as for NAV? Even if they did tell GM not to put it in the Camaro, there was far more voices that would indicate a low take rate. So could GM put NAV in every car? Yes. Could they at least make it in option in every car? Yes. But when you look at the investment and complexity to give a small number of customers NAV and what it would have done to the car, oh and if it were your business, you would have come to the same conclusion. It wasn't the 12, it was the 12 million car buyers. It's just not a high penetration option. I see soooo many people with Garmin/Tom Tom/Smart Phones in their cars now that it really reinforces that spending the money isn't always a good buy when you can buy something that works in your car AND simply walking down the street.

No matter what you do, you will please some and anger others. Everything you do to add cost or luxury angers the guys that want simple light weight. Even adding HP to the new V6 for 2012 has some upset that they bought 2011s and somehow GM did something to them. Not many, but there are a few. So listening to ALL of your customers still gives you decisions to make. It's not always an obvious answer.

[SteveRS]

how can i become an honored Disciple?? lol i want to be remembered for somethin great in my life!! besides joining the army haha

[CAMAR0]

Originally Posted by Travis64

hmmm just got my v6 3 days ago =(

Ya but you cant say that you weren't warned..

[snkeyes069]

Interesting changes to say the least. My take is:

Cons:

• Not a fan of the steering wheel. Unlike the journalists, I love the deep-dish wheel.
• Not sold on the leather dash. I like the simple interior on the 2010-2011s.
• I do feel a bit slighted that RS options are becoming standard.
• Not really a fan of the LS7 wheels
• Engine changes could hurt aftermarket support of the LLT motor

Pros:

• Backup camera
• Height-adjustable passenger seat
• Body-color antenna
• Engine changes do show the V6 is an evolving motor, getting better over time
• Carbon Flash Metallic. Nice intermediate between Cyber Gray and Black.
• Bezels in dark silver. I like that the color matches the wheels. Just need graphics and a gas door in dark silver to complete the look!
• FE4 suspension options. Are these universal bolt-ons (unlike the convertible's strut-tower brace which only fits later 2011s having newer strut towers)?

Interesting but not interested

• 45th anniversary badges and stripes. They just feel like afterthoughts to me.
• Interior stitching. Nicely done, but just not my thing.

My wants:

• Retrofit kit to add height adjustment to the 2010-2011 power passenger seat.
• Backup mirror kit that's compatible with 2010-2011 backup sensor cars. Just plug and play would be nice, although I'd drill a small hole for the camera.
• In-dash "infotainment" system that can be tethered to a cell phone via bluetooth, secure wi-fi or USB to get data. Basically, I want Google Maps and Navigation on the same touchscreen as the radio. Yes, there are kits today that do much of this, but I'd love a factory option.

Pfff...while I'm asking for things, I'd like an electric version with the equivalent of 700HP, 1000 torque, infinite range, and powered either by sunlight or the laughter of happy children (this would make it a hybrid, right?).

[justmeron]

awesome!! Can't wait.

[fbodfather]

Go back and read what I wrote --

There's a section in there that talks about Focus Groups and 'Garage Visits" - invariably these are people with:

V6 Mustang
V8 Mustang
Eclipse
Intenders who want a Sport coupe
328i
etc.......

The point is that we talk to all walks of life -- ESPECIALLY because we wanted this car to appeal to a wider audience.

The Nav. is a perfect example: a lot of the 'intenders' and other sport coupe owners felt that OnStar was a safer alternative. I won't get into an argument over that other than to say the last thing we need is people looking DOWN instead of watching the road.........

Something else to chew on: What makes you think we're 'done'? Perhaps we have lots of other tricks up our sleeve.

TRUST ME - this car has more research than any car I can think of - and that includes all other manufacturers.......

Originally Posted by liquidsmoke

well see in my eyes, this is the problem. You are only talking to and getting feedback from car enthusiast. Its like your wife asking, hey do i look fat in these jeans. Not that feedback from enthusiasts is bad, its prob most important but shouldnt be the only source. From what i see this is the only source chevy cares to listen to.

I specifically remember someone saying the reason we didnt have a nav screen in the camaro was from feedback from the disciples (correct me if im wrong). But if GM would of asked the general public im pretty certain they would have gotten a different response.

All of the people who have bought the new camaro, are not all camaro enthusiasts, but these are the people who are responsible for the huge sales of this car. Those people need a voice and using onstar is way to give them one. They arent going to car shows or signing up at car websites. But they love there new camaro just the same. They wanted power passenger seats just the same as we did.

now im not trying to downplay anything that you do on a daily basis, i personally think its great and maybe some day ill have a chance to chat it up with you at a car meet. But i think chevy also needs to listen to the other segment of people who buy there cars, not just those who already love them. Not just those who owned every previous camaro etc. Sure at some point you reach diminishing returns, but we havnt reached that point yet. And having more customer feedback data is never a bad idea.

And what im talking about here is in fact "data" not just talking to people and getting a idea what people are thinking about. There is a difference in saying 30% of our customers in this region dont like this feature than saying most of the people i talk to dont like this, no matter how many people you talk to. Having access to a larger pot of data will give you broader perspective and see things previously unseen.

[SZOTSTA24]

Looks really nice. I wanna see the SS version

[69307]

Originally Posted by Lumix

I can't believe how many of you are so willing to sell your cars for a few simple changes...many of which are a step in the wrong direction. You're going to take a bath on your trade in, and still have about the same car. After all...11 horsepower really ain't no big whoop.
I went by my local dealer today (Classic Chevrolet) to look at the new camaros. They had 76 of them on the lot...more on the used lot...and probably more in the back. There were 7 convertibles and 4 red jewel tint coupes. By far, the most rare camaro was the 1LT...which they had exactly 1.
These cars are common now, so don't expect too much for a trade in.

Let me clarify... Do I wish my 2010 had some of the 'upgrades' that will be available on the 2012? Sure, there are some nice features e.g. backup camera, height-adjustable passenger seat.

Do I wish I would have waited for the 2012? Hell no! I've been having way too much fun with my 2010!!!

[shl4Z28]

I am realitively new here so please forgive me if I am out of line, but I think some of us are taking ourselves way too seriously. No one can make everyone happy all of the time. I think the Camaro folks are doing a great job AND we have already heard that there are going to be new announcements every six months so hopefully there will be a Camaro for just about everybody.

I'm not trying to kiss anyone's a$$ either, but I have met Scott and he seems like a stand up guy. He asked me my opinion and genuinely seemed to care. I have purchased 50K+ cars from BMW and Audi and have NEVER felt like they gave a rats a$$ what I thought.

Everyone has an opinion, just like an ... Anyway, I appreciate the opinions of everyone here but let's give these guys a break, OK?!

As far as the 45th goes....

If you don't like it, don't buy it!

[fbodfather]

Originally Posted by Libertyforall1776

Oh, and what about that WHITE-topped convertible?!

.

Two things:


(but let me first say that white would be my first choice of convertible top on most colors.....)



1. -- guess how many white tops we sold btw 2000 and 2002?

(no peeking below!)



2. -- Show me another manufacturer today that offers a white convertible top.........





The answers:


1. -- 73 of them in 2000 -- 74 of them in 2001, and 208 of them in 2002....
Not what I'd call a high 'take rate'


2. -- Rolls Royce and Bentley.........those are the only ones I've been able to find........