FbodFather: Question regarding the origins of the Concept Camaro

[Omega94]

Scott, I was wondering when the 5th Gen began taking shape. When did the 5th Gen begin to get developed? I know that the Concept came out at NAIAS on Jan. 9, 2006. So its development would have had to be started a while ago. I'm just curious as to when it began.


Oh...and I heard that you might be putting a book together...if that's true...how's that coming along??? And when might we see it in Barnes & Noble or on Amazon.com???

[LS9CamaroSS]

Originally Posted by Omega94

Scott, I was wondering when the 5th Gen began taking shape. When did the 5th Gen begin to get developed? I know that the Concept came out at NAIAS on Jan. 9, 2006. So its development would have had to be started a while ago. I'm just curious as to when it began.


Oh...and I heard that you might be putting a book together...if that's true...how's that coming along??? And when might we see it in Barnes & Noble or on Amazon.com???

i know i've seen pics around since as early as 2004 maybe earlier... but they weren't of the actual concept we got... i wouldn't doubt if they started developing this design in 1998 or 2000. am i close Scott?

[AirGoya]

Originally Posted by LS9CamaroSS

i know i've seen pics around since as early as 2004 maybe earlier... but they weren't of the actual concept we got... i wouldn't doubt if they started developing this design in 1998 or 2000. am i close Scott?

So you're saying that they made this design before they even knew the 4th gen would die? IMO it was drawn up maybe 2003-2004ish. The styling of the car suggests that it was designed with the mind-set that they're making a comeback.

[Kyle2k]

As for the book, you should publish the forums and usernames of people that were a part of the Camaro's fan base up to the release ahem Camaro5.com!

[stovt001]

Originally Posted by AirGoya

So you're saying that they made this design before they even knew the 4th gen would die? IMO it was drawn up maybe 2003-2004ish. The styling of the car suggests that it was designed with the mind-set that they're making a comeback.

If I recall correctly Scott or someone in a similar position did say they were planning for a comeback when the 4th gen was canceled. The 4th gen was actually canceled in 98, and Scott and others were able to keep it alive on borrowed time until 2002. Pretty impressive when you think about it.

Its a similar story to the subs at Disneyland. When they closed (around the time the Camaro was canceled actually) Imagineer Tony Baxter and crew (think DL's version of Scott) were already planning for their comeback, because it was one of Tony's favorite attractions, one he had a long personal history with. At one point they had a promising idea for an Atlantis-themed replacement, but when that movie flopped it was back to the drawing boards. Finding Nemo eventually became the ideal concept to build on, and so the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage was approved. When it opened last summer lines hit 4-5 hours that day (It was so crowded they even had cubicle-dwellers like myself working in the park to maintain guest service levels) and since then the line rarely drops below 1 hour. There are a surprising number of parallels between the DL Subs and the Camaro, and with the way the former turned out, there are some good signs for the latter.

[DGthe3]

When did scott first say 'keep the faith'? they were already considering a 5th gen at that point. Think about it, I'm sure that they did a market analysis and the like regarding an all new camaro for 2003. Things didn't work out.

However, I'm sure that those cars are not even close to what we will be seeing soon. I'm thinking that car started about a year before the concept was shown.

[TAG UR IT]

I think the development for the 5th Gen only started in 2005. I'm pretty sure it was a quick sort of deal. Someone said "let's see a sketch of your interpretation of the 5th Gen Camaro" and two teams were set in motion. Once the sketches were drawn up, the two that were selected were molded into a single clay car....which is why you see two different front ends.

I mean, I'm pretty sure that plans for a 5th Gen were always there, but it was more of a....getting GM in gear and set up to take on the challenge of building the best Camaro ever.

[Mr. Wyndham]

Originally Posted by TAG UR IT

I mean, I'm pretty sure that plans for a 5th Gen were always there, but it was more of a....getting GM in gear and set up to take on the challenge of building the best Camaro ever.

Wasn't there some contract interfering with development, too?

[TAG UR IT]

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

Wasn't there some contract interfering with development, too?

DAH!!! That's right!! What a memory you have.

The contract you speak of was the St. Therese contract. They had it through 2007 if I remember corectly. All Camaros were to be built at that plant. But, the plant not only closed down, but was demolished as well. There was NO WAY to build them there even if the Camaro was given a green light. Still, the contract was good for that plant.

Sound about right, Scott? A lil' close, maybe?

[LadiesMan217]

Originally Posted by stovt001

If I recall correctly Scott or someone in a similar position did say they were planning for a comeback when the 4th gen was canceled. The 4th gen was actually canceled in 98, and Scott and others were able to keep it alive on borrowed time until 2002. Pretty impressive when you think about it.

Its a similar story to the subs at Disneyland. When they closed (around the time the Camaro was canceled actually) Imagineer Tony Baxter and crew (think DL's version of Scott) were already planning for their comeback, because it was one of Tony's favorite attractions, one he had a long personal history with. At one point they had a promising idea for an Atlantis-themed replacement, but when that movie flopped it was back to the drawing boards. Finding Nemo eventually became the ideal concept to build on, and so the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage was approved. When it opened last summer lines hit 4-5 hours that day (It was so crowded they even had cubicle-dwellers like myself working in the park to maintain guest service levels) and since then the line rarely drops below 1 hour. There are a surprising number of parallels between the DL Subs and the Camaro, and with the way the former turned out, there are some good signs for the latter.

(Hehe, and a much better version than what got tossed into Epcot)

[35th02ss]

It was before 2005........

[TAG UR IT]

Originally Posted by 35th02ss

It was before 2005........

Not just the actual idea, but when did things really start rolling?

[Omega94]

Originally Posted by TAG UR IT

Not just the actual idea, but when did things really start rolling?

See...this is why I'd like Scott to chime in

...plus I really want to know about the book he's working on...if that's actually the truth and not something that I made up myself

[radz28]

If I remember reading correctly, that was a contract from when the car came out in '66. GM couldn't build the car in another plant or something because it had exclusive rights to build only there, so it was almost like GM intentionally killed the car, to get out of the contract, to build somewhere else. It was in Hot Rod or something like that some time ago. I'll see if I can dig that article up and scan it. It was pretty interesting though, even though it was still speculation; like everything up to this point...