Wednesday 22nd March 2023

Camaro to sign off with Collector's Edition pack

Chevrolet confirms sixth-generation Camaro will end next year but promises that this 'is not the end of the story'

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Two final editions in two days – that’s almost a pandemic, and we’ve had enough of those in recent years. Yesterday’s curtain call was the Mini Clubman Final Edition, which, judging by the reaction, is a car that PHers have a certain fondness for.

I'm assuming news that the current Chevrolet Camaro is also on its Collector’s Edition tour will also raise a smattering of respectful applause. It’s not going to invoke as many personal experiences as the Mini on this side of the pond, but the Camaro name is part of automotive folklore, nevertheless.

The outgoing sixth-generation Camaro was also the most advanced yet, and even set a time around the Nürburgring to prove its abilities to the Old World. And before you snigger, it managed a good time, too. The Camaro ZL1 1LE went round in 7:16:04, which if you look at the leader board puts it four-hundredths of a second slower than a Porsche 718 GT4 RS and nearly a second faster than a BMW M4 CSL.

Admittedly, the 1LE was the ultimate example, with a reworked aero courtesy of a different front bumper and larger rear wing, along with stickier Goodyear F1 tyres and a marginal weight saving, but it had no more power than a standard ZL1. I mean, the ZL1 already has 659hp and 650lb ft of torque, so it’s not exactly struggling to begin with, but you know...

So how much power has the Collector's Edition got? We don't know. Aside from shadowy preview pics, we've been told hardly anything about it, actually, other than the new package will be available for 2024 model year RS, SS, and a limited number of ZL1 cars and ‘pays homage to Camaro, resurfacing ties that date back to the development of the first generation Camaro in the 1960s, most notably the program’s initial code name: Panther.’ 

“As we prepare to say goodbye to the current generation Camaro, it is difficult to overstate our gratitude to every Camaro customer, Camaro assembly line employee and race fan,” said Scott Bell, vice president, Global Chevrolet. “While we are not announcing an immediate successor today, rest assured, this is not the end of Camaro’s story.” We're promised further details are coming 'closer to the start of orders this summer', so watch this space. 

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[aestivator]

It's probably coming back as an electric SUV....

[yme402]

Will be something electric, with loads of “Tech” aimed at millennials.
Whoopeee.

[FlukePlay]

We're rapidly coming to the end of the ICE road...sad times. American V8s are known for their V8s, there'll be nothing left. No noise, no rumble, no emotion. Just silence and a fat iPad to keep you entertained.

[nismo48]

FlukePlay said:

We're rapidly coming to the end of the ICE road...sad times. American V8s are known for their V8s, there'll be nothing left. No noise, no rumble, no emotion. Just silence and a fat iPad to keep you entertained.

Sad but true

[J4CKO]

Isnt this turning into a Pity Party

Keep positive, loads of ICE stuff still about and will be for decades, will see us all out by and large.

[Julian Scott]

J4CKO said:

Isnt this turning into a Pity Party

Keep positive, loads of ICE stuff still about and will be for decades, will see us all out by and large.

Absolutely, and by the time they are finally consigned to the history books, drivers of that era won't, by large, give a st. Meanwhile, we'll get decades of mournful wailing and gnashing of teeth from a bunch of 'driving gods' who have never actually bought anything more exciting than a 10yr old BMW 5-series or a diesel Volvo and instead just resort to the same tired analogies about 'white goods'/'school runs'/'Waitrose car marks'/'inability to drive 1,000 miles non-stop'/etc....

[Lovey1]

I'm sure that this is will be a great way to sign off the current Gen of Camaro. however this is how I'll always think of them https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-gASiVNgD0

[Kiwi G]

I have a 996 Turbo S and a 2006 Fiat Grande Punto 1.4 Sporting. My wife keeps trying to convince me to replace the Punto, but it is just such an interesting drive - not because of the engine noise (compared to the 911 that has a delicious sounding Tubi), but because it is light, has fantastic brakes that you have to severely abuse to get any fade, lets me heel and toe and has the most non-intrusive traction control. I can push the car enjoyably and still mostly stay at legal speeds. I'm pretty sure that once EV's arrive in numbers in the small hatch segment I will eventually replace the Punto with something electron powered that will be just as much fun but with no engine noise rather than a boring engine noise. The Porsche is fantastic but simply can't be driven hard on the road (apart from maybe one toll road in Germany that is quite good) and you don't drive to listen to the engine noise. But I guess dinosaurs will be dinosaurs until they unexpectedly encounter a meteorite.

[wildoliver]

It's a shame, was always on the cards even without the electric push, GM for some reason just completely mismanaged the model after the 5th gen, never put it out there properly and didn't capitalise on what a great car it could be in ss upwards trim. It came over here and didn't get pushed hard enough just dipped it's toes in the water, so suffered being LHD but more importantly didn't get in to enough hands to be realised as a lovely thing to drive, including on Twisties and never featured on most car buyers radars as "it looks good but won't handle" so it always seemed to play second fiddle to Dodge but especially the Mustang who Ford as usual got marketing bob on and really stood behind it as a world car.

Hopefully if it does come back it's as an ICE coupe and not a hideous electric SUV. I guess dying in your prime has some advantages over becoming a bloated caricature of your former self.

RIP.

[DodgyGeezer]

given that GM is keeping going with the SBC it would appear that what's done for the Camaro isn't so much the advent of EV's (as I understand it the US is looking, along with most countries, to make these mandatory in 2035) as the fact that the Camaro just isn't selling in the numbers they'd like to see. It's being outsold by the Mustang (even though it's, arguably, the better car) and the Challenger (and it's very much the 'better' car, and a lot newer).

I'll be said to see it go and, as mentioned earlier, I suspect I'll be even sadder to see it return as some sort of EV-SUV...

[Julian Scott]

Kiwi G said:

I have a 996 Turbo S and a 2006 Fiat Grande Punto 1.4 Sporting. My wife keeps trying to convince me to replace the Punto, but it is just such an interesting drive - not because of the engine noise (compared to the 911 that has a delicious sounding Tubi), but because it is light, has fantastic brakes that you have to severely abuse to get any fade, lets me heel and toe and has the most non-intrusive traction control. I can push the car enjoyably and still mostly stay at legal speeds. I'm pretty sure that once EV's arrive in numbers in the small hatch segment I will eventually replace the Punto with something electron powered that will be just as much fun but with no engine noise rather than a boring engine noise. The Porsche is fantastic but simply can't be driven hard on the road (apart from maybe one toll road in Germany that is quite good) and you don't drive to listen to the engine noise. But I guess dinosaurs will be dinosaurs until they unexpectedly encounter a meteorite.

I agree, one of the most fun cars I have ever driven was a lowly 1.0 Citroen AX courtesy car I used to get from a Lake District Subaru garage I used to service my car in 1999.

But, the days of fun light cars is already deep into history, way before EV power. Ironically, my friend's Fiat 500E is possibly the closest to an anodyne but fun little hatch I've driven in the last few years.

[gruppeb86]

Amazing. I've been waiting for this for a while.
Can go on the top shelf within my industrial sized glass display cabinet in my huge study.

[LuS1fer]

I owned a 3rd gen and 4th gen Z28and loved them both but that was a window of cheap American V8s that has now closed.

They're more of an expensive proposition now.

I imagine that GM have watched the Mustang Mach-E with some envy because it really shouldn't have worked at all but shows heritage nameplates count for something ( not to Ford Europe though).

I am sure the Camaro was the big seller in the US but the Firebird always seemed to have a far greater worldwide profile.

The question is what can you put the Camaro nameplate on without killing it and which will sell.

[Undercover McNoName]

Kiwi G said:

I have a 996 Turbo S and a 2006 Fiat Grande Punto 1.4 Sporting. My wife keeps trying to convince me to replace the Punto, but it is just such an interesting drive - not because of the engine noise (compared to the 911 that has a delicious sounding Tubi), but because it is light, has fantastic brakes that you have to severely abuse to get any fade, lets me heel and toe and has the most non-intrusive traction control. I can push the car enjoyably and still mostly stay at legal speeds. I'm pretty sure that once EV's arrive in numbers in the small hatch segment I will eventually replace the Punto with something electron powered that will be just as much fun but with no engine noise rather than a boring engine noise. The Porsche is fantastic but simply can't be driven hard on the road (apart from maybe one toll road in Germany that is quite good) and you don't drive to listen to the engine noise. But I guess dinosaurs will be dinosaurs until they unexpectedly encounter a meteorite.

Fiat 500E, Honda e, BMW i3 are all fun to drive compared to regular ICE shopping cars, even a Renault Zoe at a strech is quite fun if not exactly well set up in the handling department.

[HorneyMX5]

The Camaro gets a great send off being run in the Aussie V8 Supercars series.

https://youtu.be/Z4YJczMNGkU

[Panamax]

LuS1fer said:

I am sure the Camaro was the big seller in the US but the Firebird always seemed to have a far greater worldwide profile.

Yes indeed, bigger hats and bigger moustaches. Think Burt Reynolds in Smoky And The Bandit.

There's a Camaro racing in the Le Mans 24 Hours this year. It's a Gen 7 NASCAR, modified with the addition of headlamps etc for night running.
https://www.autoblog.com/2023/02/21/nascar-cup-car...

[dzernski]

I will miss my Camaro. It is however being replaced by a C8 vette, so I'm keeping the V8 faith whilst I can.

[Shifter1]

DodgyGeezer said:

given that GM is keeping going with the SBC it would appear that what's done for the Camaro isn't so much the advent of EV's (as I understand it the US is looking, along with most countries, to make these mandatory in 2035) as the fact that the Camaro just isn't selling in the numbers they'd like to see. It's being outsold by the Mustang (even though it's, arguably, the better car) and the Challenger (and it's very much the 'better' car, and a lot newer).

I'll be said to see it go and, as mentioned earlier, I suspect I'll be even sadder to see it return as some sort of EV-SUV...

I think the Challenger sells solely based on some Macho BS mantra. Does it still ride on that outdated handle me down E-Class platform from 1978? The Camaro is indeed a much better car, and not just by a small margin. So is the Mustang or a 15 years old Corvette C6 for that matter. A car like the Challenger could only exist as it does in America. If it was European it would have been either killed or have a properly new model years ago.

[MrGeoff]

J4CKO said:

Isnt this turning into a Pity Party

Keep positive, loads of ICE stuff still about and will be for decades, will see us all out by and large.

Yep this is true. I'd argue, for the pistonhead generation, everything you'll ever lust after has already been made.

[Sixsixtysix]

I have one of the very last official UK Camaros and will never sell it.