GM unleashes new, smaller Chevrolet Camaro
DETROIT -- General Motors introduced the new, sixth generation of its Chevrolet Camaro classic performance coupe Saturday that shrinks a bit in size but offers more performance and fuel economy.
Steering clear of the auto shows, GM was unveiling one of its most important models to press and a friendly crowd of Camaro enthusiasts at an island park. The new model will hit the market later this year, ahead of its 50th birthday.
The new Camaro shifts to what General Motors calls its "Alpha" platform, the chassis that underpins both the Cadillac ATS and CTS. It will mark the first time that both Camaro and its arch-rival, the Ford Mustang, are produced in Michigan.
The new car is slightly smaller than the one it replaces. The spec sheets show the 2016 model's overall length is 2.3 inches shorter, the wheelbase is 1.6 inches shorter, while the body is 0.8 inches narrower and its overall height is 1.1 inches shorter.
There is more aluminum, replacing steel, mostly in the chassis and suspension. There is also more lighter-weight high-strength steel. The new structure allows the new Camaro to weigh 200 pounds less than the 2015 model, says Aaron Link, lead development engineer who has been working on this car for the last three years.
Less weight means better fuel economy, but Camaro lovers are looking for better performance.
"It's the whole shootin' match," said Link. "It will go faster, stop shorter and turn quicker. It has lower inertia everywhere."
Buyers can choose among three engines. The 275-horsepower 2-liter turbocharged engine will be first four-cylinder Camaro since the 1980s. It is expected to be rated at at least 30 miles per gallon on the highway yet go from zero to 60 miles per hour in less than six seconds, GM says.
There is also a 355-horsepower 3.6-liter V-6 and for big performance, a 455-horsepower 6.2-liter V-8. Each comes with the choice of a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission.
Inside, an instrument cluster features an optional 8-inch diagonal high-definition screen that drivers can configure for navigation, performance and entertainment. A second 8-inch screen in the center of the instrument panel provides to a more capable version of Chevy's MyLink control system.
Another option provides up to 24 ambient LED lighting colors in the dash, door panels and center console.
In addition to the 6.2-liter small block V8, the Camaro SS will include for the first time, the Magnetic Ride Control active suspension that interprets road conditions and driver behavior, adjusting to both instantaneously.
The fifth generation Camaro was launched in the fall of 2009, just as GM was getting back on its feet after bankruptcy. So the timing for generation six is considerably better.
While today's market is much stronger, Link said the fifth generation Camaro "reinvigorated a lot of people who had lost touch with Camaro."
About 63% of those who have bought one since 2010 had not owned a Camaro before.
The timing of the new model is crucial. Sales of the new Mustang are running 60% ahead of last year through the first four months of 2015. While Dodge doesn't break out sales of its 707-horsepower Challenger Hellcat, all Challenger sales are up 41% in the same period.
Despite the rising media chatter about self-driving cars, hands-on muscle cars are hot.
Karl Brauer of Kelley Blue Book, who got a sneak peak of the new Camaro earlier this year, says "the new one looks more like a '69 Camaro than the current one," Brauer said. "You may have to look at it a few times to see the differences, but that very wide C-pillar on the current model has been scaled back."
Camaro will be made at GM's Lansing Grand River assembly plant. The 2-liter engine come from GM's Tonawanda, N.Y., plant, while workers in Canada assemble the 6.2-liter V-8.
Gardner reported from Detroit and Woodyard from Los Angeles