Why no climate control?

[fbodfather]

Originally Posted by Glen e

The simple fact is all of these "do dads" that you want - start stop, climate control etc require open heart surgery to do. They need to be in from a ground up build, not a change you can make year to year. The recent facelift was very minor and in no way cracked the dash for stuff you guys want. It takes a new generation of car and you will get it all in the next camaro as it will be cost effective as it's designed in the car. The new vette dash will be the base for the new features....

Look at the Impala SS above - the stuff was designed into the car. It's that simple. Scott can't say it, but all the stuff you guys want will be in the C6...

I would agree with part of what you're saying - however, "all the stuff you guys want" will not necessarily be in the next generation Camaro. Go back and read my post - there is simply no way to incorporate all the stuff that everyone wants - because there's no way to get everyone to agree on anything.......

I don't say this to belittle you - but I don't want people thinking: COOL! I'll have heated and cooled cup holders and the jacuzzi in the trunk!

[oldfriend]

Originally Posted by fbodfather

I would agree with part of what you're saying - however, "all the stuff you guys want" will not necessarily be in the next generation Camaro. Go back and read my post - there is simply no way to incorporate all the stuff that everyone wants - because there's no way to get everyone to agree on anything.......

I don't say this to belittle you - but I don't want people thinking: COOL! I'll have heated and cooled cup holders and the jacuzzi in the trunk!

Will the Jacuzzi have a cooler compartment to keep the champagne ice cold ?

[TPAJETSKI]

I got the 1SS because it was the closest thing to a stripped Formula I could get. The third gen and early fourth gen formulas with few options were awesome. (Back then at least. Now a third gen formula would get dusted by a Hyundai sonata) But the idea of a car that was all about performance and less about frills appealed to me. I guess public sentiment changed over time since toward the end of the fourth gen run, a fourth gen formula came pretty much loaded.

[dkp2LT]

Originally Posted by fbodfather

I'm hoping you are joking - -because anyone who thinks that we don't do EVERYTHING (within cost reasons) to reduce weight isn't thinking the issue thru. We as all auto manufacturers must hit CAFE numbers. One of the main enemies of fuel economy is weight.

You want comfortable seats for long rides? You want solid steel body panels that don't 'oil can'? You want a 5 star crash rating all around? You want an independent rear suspension? (....I can go on with this list for hours...)

As you think about all of this - -keep a couple of things in mind:

1. - the team drives Camaros -- 2. We all didn't fall off the turnip truck last evening........ 3. we have some pretty smart people working on this car (me excepted!) and they sweat blood over every decision.

Frankly, I shake my head at times when people think we haven't a clue......

Now - on to the Automatic Temp control.

One of the reasons we created the Camaro Enthusiast Advisory Board (The Camaro Disciples) is to discuss issues just like this.

Now - reading thru this thread (and I quit before I got to the end ...) you'll see that you can't get everyone to agree 100 percent on anything........

Yes - some want Auto Temp control (...me included..) but price is also an issue.

We can give you anything you want - BUT -- at what price?

Making things even more complex: Some say "I want heated seats" - and others say "forget heated seats! I want hideaway headlights!" - while still others say "I don't want either of those - I want crank windows...."

See where I"m going with this?

We can't offer a gazillion build combinations - I don't care WHAT we did in 1968 - believe me - I can bury you in facts.........there's a reason why NO manufacturer builds tons of build combinations - one of the biggest reasons is quality - another is COST - we try to make these magnificent machines as affordable as possible....yes, including the Mighty ZL1..........

Frankly, we weren't sure that heated seats would be well-received - but the disciples for the most part -- felt that they were. (I want to say that 70 percent said 'yes' -- ) ......turns out that they were correct........

As we look at future generations, these issues (such as automatic climate control) come back into the conversation...........

Oh, come on - Homer did it! (j/king!) Doesn't matter how much you preach, some people will be like my grandpa - argue just for the sake of arguing. And like him I bet some also drink a lot while doing it.

[GroundPilot]

Fbodfather...one thing I am curious on is AC seats. Not for all the cars, but for the 'vert. I drove a G37 'vert with AC seats and all I can say is it made a world of difference in the GA heat.

Any thoughts on that?

[Norm Peterson]

Originally Posted by Eich

You want bare bones muscle, go Z28. Or offer a low tech package for other trims. Auto climate control should be in an option package in 2013. I'd pay a premium for a tech package that had it. I honestly hate constantly adjusting the temperature and fan speed as the interior cools or heats.

This ↑↑↑ .

For this particular thread, keep in mind that auto climate control typically robs you of the ability to select a forced fresh air mode when neither A/C nor heat is particularly desired, and the wind noise from wide-open side glass is actively unwanted.


Your other list of features (AC, power windows, power mirrors, auto dim mirrors, onstar, dual power seats, heated seats, HUD, MYLink with satellite and NAV, remote start, ambient lighting) that have gradually become common over time - one of the problems with "feature creep" is that it is not self-limiting. Too many people want ever more luxury and too much done for them in a flashier or fancier way than necessary. How did we get so spoiled?

A few features do have recognizable safety benefits - A/C for windshield defogging, power windows because it is unreasonable (or in some cases flat-out physically impossible) for the driver to reach a passenger side window crank being two easy examples.

But the rest are largely irrelevant to the tasks of driving, which can be a rewarding experience in its own right if you choose to let it. So bottom line yes, you could very reasonably pack auto climate along with the rest of the irrelevants into a Berlinetta (or whatever) package.


A Z/28 would absolutely be an option for some, maybe even me if I felt financially irresponsible enough to raid my retirement fund to get it and risk all of the downstream consequences of doing so. But all things considered, that would make a 1LE stripped to nearly the same hardcore level the top Camaro option overall, at least for people like me.


Flip side dep't:
I really have to wonder what the "must have all the features/performance mostly secondary" crowd would feel if for some unknown reason it became impossible to buy a Camaro or other muscle car/ponycar without having them equipped with 1LE or higher levels of performance - and that that equipment and performance was all built into the base price of the car with no way to opt out. If that makes anybody squirm a little, maybe I've made my point.


Norm

[JR 1]

Originally Posted by GroundPilot

Fbodfather...one thing I am curious on is AC seats. Not for all the cars, but for the 'vert. I drove a G37 'vert with AC seats and all I can say is it made a world of difference in the GA heat.

Any thoughts on that?

On the couple of cars I've driven with them I wasn't too impressed. I could barely tell they were doing anything, but neither was on a convertible. There are probably better versions out there.

They do sell aftermarket kits you can add as long as you have perforated leather seats. I have only seen perforated in Camaros, but some claim not to have them. I think someone should install an aftermarket kit and let the rest of us know how it works out.

[All Star]

Originally Posted by RA1987

Climate control for what? It's like asking heated seats on a jeep wrangler lol

I wouldn't order a Wrangler without heated seats...it's a winter vehicle.

[JCunningham]

Im going to be adding cooled seats to my coupe. black leather gets hot and keeps the heat after i sit for a wile. kind of thought it wad werd that a summer car would have heated seats but it does get cold befor we put them up for the winter. Im hoping they can hook it up to the heated switch and ill just remove the heat.

[JR 1]

Originally Posted by JCunningham

Im going to be adding cooled seats to my coupe. black leather gets hot and keeps the heat after i sit for a wile. kind of thought it wad werd that a summer car would have heated seats but it does get cold befor we put them up for the winter. Im hoping they can hook it up to the heated switch and ill just remove the heat.

You may have to remove the heating element anyway. It would probably block the air flow. If so that would be a deal breaker for me. In Michigan I would use the heat a lot more than the cool.

[Angrybird 12]

Originally Posted by JCunningham

Im going to be adding cooled seats to my coupe. black leather gets hot and keeps the heat after i sit for a wile. kind of thought it wad werd that a summer car would have heated seats but it does get cold befor we put them up for the winter. Im hoping they can hook it up to the heated switch and ill just remove the heat.

You choose it to be a summer car, it wasn't designed just to be a summer only car. I dont think anything in the owners manual says you cannot drive these cars year around or not to ever drive them below a specific temperature..There is a difference.

[JCunningham]

These cars were designed to be capable of being driven in the winter but the majority of these cars will never see snow by their 1st owner. These are primarily summer cars.

[Angrybird 12]

Originally Posted by JCunningham

These cars were designed to be capable of being driven in the winter but the majority of these cars will never see snow by their 1st owner. These are primarily summer cars.

I don't think you can generalize and say a majority of these cars, maybe a majority of them on C5 but that is a small percentage of Camaros actually sold. I think most people drive them year around, but during periods of bad weather most don't drive them.

[fbodfather]

Originally Posted by GroundPilot

Fbodfather...one thing I am curious on is AC seats. Not for all the cars, but for the 'vert. I drove a G37 'vert with AC seats and all I can say is it made a world of difference in the GA heat.

Any thoughts on that?

I love 'em!

In fact, I love 'em more than heated seats. Yet I know of several people with back problems and they use the heated seats even in the evenings in early and late summer.........it provides relief,I'm told.

I also had a couple of Cadillac company cars with the heated steering wheel - thought it was frivilous until I used it once on a colllllldddddd Michigan morning...these old hands sure loved the feature.........

But should we put a heated steering wheel in a Camaro?

Keep in mind - we cannot throw tons of free-flow options out there for a myriad of reasons..........