Sat in Camaro today, some disappointment

[ChevyBoiSS]

backseats are my only gripe.. but i can live with it.. theres not gonna be much going on back there that will concern me anyway.

[ArcAngel]

actually in the end the base car and the 1ls are fine with the interior and even possibly the 2lt but when your spending 38000 I'm sure a little aluminum trim and soft touch ip could have been squeezed in.

[2KZ28_For_Now]

I still think the exterior design, PLUS the value of the superior engineering of the platform and the powertrain will make this vehicle stand apart from the competition.

Main word is VALUE.

The Camaro stands alone within its competitors for this reason.

I think interior is and should be an afterthought to the overall value, quality, and driving experience.

With that said, the interior is pretty dang good. Some may disagree.

[off soapbox]

[bobby35ny]

Good to see the thread is calming down now. I was just giving my thoughts after finally sitting in one today.

=bobby

[ArcAngel]

yea I agree with you bobby just because we dislike things about the car doesnt mean we wish it ill. Sometimes these guys forget that , no offense

[bobby35ny]

Originally Posted by ArcAngel

yea I agree with you bobby just because we dislike things about the car doesnt mean we wish it ill. Sometimes these guys forget that , no offense

Ya, thats why I mentioned a few times, there are a ton of things they did right.

=bobby

[Shurenuff]

Originally Posted by fbodfather

perhaps--

Let me ask you this-- what would you rather have-- an independent rear suspension and more standard features -- or a 'soft touch' I.P.?

(keeping in mind that the base car must be affordable.....)

fbodfather,

I ask you why it has to be one or the other? I understand the need to offer the base car at an affordable price, and not being able to offer certain interior materials to keep costs down, but how much more could a soft touch I.P. add to the total cost? The Malibu is not priced as a high end luxury car and that interior offers a soft touch IP which goes a long way in perceived quality IMO.

Sure, you may not mind all the hard plastics when you're paying $24k for a fantastic bargain of a car (with independent suspension, very nice engine, etc.), but when you plan to buy a fully loaded SS2\RS for close to $40k that opinion will likely change. At the very least, it would be nice to offer upgraded trim piece materials on the higher end models to further differentiate the perception of quality between the two interiors.

BTW, I'm not bashing or attacking you in any form, I'm just voicing my honest opinion and concern as a future Camaro customer.

[Supermans]

Originally Posted by Blownhotrodder

The vettes interior is plasticy and cheap, you didnt think the camaro was gonna be any better did you? Best interior goes hands down to the mustang, period.

Originally Posted by ArcAngel

actually in the end the base car and the 1ls are fine with the interior and even possibly the 2lt but when your spending 38000 I'm sure a little aluminum trim and soft touch ip could have been squeezed in.

Having sat in both this year, I have to agree with this one. The Ford Mustang did step up to the plate and delivered a very much improved interior while the Camaro has under delivered in comparison, especially with the ambient lighting gone from the dash which would have set it apart and perhaps evened the field in many peoples eyes. However the exterior is superb and the interior quality can be upgraded for a price to get the look you want down the road. I do agree the cheap looking painted silver should be chromed perhaps, and the vanity mirrors should have lights on them in the upper trim levels. I do agree that it was impossible for GM to make the Camaro's interior better than the Corvettes. However if they had made it look more like the concepts and not a mix between the concept and a cheap plasticy interior, then it would have been amazing. I do understand Fbodfathers comments in that they wanted to keep the price low, since he works with Cadillac now, he knows what an excellent interior looks and feels like.. If GM had asked me to help design the interior, I would have been able to give some really good input and constructive criticism.

With all that said, I am still buying a Camaro and am looking forward to it tremendously like a kid at Christmas..

Originally Posted by ArcAngel

actually in the end the base car and the 1ls are fine with the interior and even possibly the 2lt but when your spending 38000 I'm sure a little aluminum trim and soft touch ip could have been squeezed in.

I do agree with you that the 2LT and 2SS Camaro's should have differentiated themselves from the rest (price of package upgrade) in making the interior upgrades more robust in enhancing the quality and feel in comparison to the lower models...

[ArcAngel]

it seems the longer this thread gets the more people start agreeing with the interior is on the cheap side and here I though I was alone

[2KZ28_For_Now]

Originally Posted by Shurenuff

fbodfather,

I ask you why it has to be one or the other? I understand the need to offer the base car at an affordable price, and not being able to offer certain interior materials to keep costs down, but how much more could a soft touch I.P. add to the total cost? The Malibu is not priced as a high end luxury car and that interior offers a soft touch IP which goes a long way in perceived quality IMO.

Sure, you may not mind all the hard plastics when you're paying $24k for a fantastic bargain of a car (with independent suspension, very nice engine, etc.), but when you plan to buy a fully loaded SS2\RS for close to $40k that opinion will likely change. At the very least, it would be nice to offer upgraded trim piece materials on the higher end models to further differentiate the perception of quality between the two interiors.

BTW, I'm not bashing or attacking you in any form, I'm just voicing my honest opinion and concern as a future Camaro customer.

Good point, but as I remember - there were many "heated debates" over this car with those that really cared about its evolution over the "bean counters."

Thus we get the dreaded word of "compromise."

Remember, there was a hard-core group that fought for this car every step of the way. The corporate folks had a say in the matter, for better or worse.

COMPROMISE.

Sometimes it sucks. But, it's reality.

That doesn't mean we all have to be drinking KoolAid. But I think we have to step back and appreciate the final product for what it is.....a great value and compromise....given unforeseen and unprecedented circumstances within the industry that almost led to this car never seeing the light of day to begin with.

Aww geez, I'm getting on my soapbox again.

Time to go to bed.

[HTWLSS]

Originally Posted by OUR72GTO

PS I am so picky it pisses me off when people spell CAMARO with only a capital C

You must really be pissed off about the 1st Gen cars then.

[Supermans]

Originally Posted by ArcAngel

it seems the longer this thread gets the more people start agreeing with the interior is on the cheap side and here I though I was alone

Most of us agree that the Corvette's interior is also on the cheap side as well and that costs even more money.. However most of us won't care about how the interior looks in comparison to how it handles and rides. And most would agree the interior's evolution over previous Camaro's has been a good one up to this point. I do like this interior much better than the 3rd and 4th gens..

[UCF w00t]

I like the interior over my current vehicle... next time I'm at my parent's house I'll take note of my mom's '08 Accord v6 interior and see how it stacks up. She's got all the fancy nav crap (which really is garbage) and the top level interior. The center console is horrid and the controls are impossible to use. But from what I recall the Camaro was a bit more spartan but pretty much as high perceived quality in my opinion.

[OUR72GTO]

I don't want chrome in my eyes with the sun bouncing through the glass.

It is that 2 extra cylinders that pump the price up to 38.

This car will be looked at by many more buyers of imports than Mustang or Dodge fans. That is who will decide. Not us.