A Muscle Car to the Rescue for GM

Please let me know when the convertible model gets released . . .

NYT:

“Believe it or not, General Motors has a hit car on its hands.

Amid the gloom of bankruptcy and a miserable market for new vehicles, G.M.’s new Chevrolet Camaro muscle car is winning over consumers looking for a little excitement in a bland landscape of look-alike sedans and watered-down sport utilities.

G.M. sold 9,300 Camaros during the month of June — more than either its entire Buick or Cadillac divisions could muster on their own.

And with G.M. expected to emerge Friday from bankruptcy as a newly constituted company, it is hardly surprising that the Camaro will play a starring role in the company’s coming-out party and news conference at G.M.’s Detroit headquarters.

G.M.’s chief executive, Fritz Henderson, and new chairman, Edward Whitacre, plan to offer the Camaro as proof that a comeback is under way.

A product renaissance, of course, cannot be led solely by a retro-styled sports car that harks back to the horsepower hysteria of the 1960s. But in its short time on the market, the Camaro has brought some much-needed buzz to G.M. showrooms.”

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The Chevrolet Camaro, a working-class hero of the 1967-2002 model years, has been reintroduced for 2010. At left, the Camaro SS model.

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The Camaro’s arrival completes a baby boomer trinity of so-called pony cars, following the return of the retro-styled Ford Mustang and Dodge Challenger.

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For those who want to save money and fuel, or just be seen in the Camaro’s hunky embrace, the V-6 will do the trick. But muscle car mavens will want the 6.2-liter V-8, with 426 horsepower when paired with a 6-speed manual transmission, or 400 horsepower for the version mated to a 6-speed automatic. If saving gas is a priority, note that the car will also run the V-8 on 4 cylinders.

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The new Camaro has sharp style outside, but the interior is less enticing.

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The SS starts at $30,995, while the base model begins at $23,995. RELATED

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With more displacement, the V-8 engine in the SS offers nearly 150 extra pound-feet of torque (for a total of 400), as compared to the base-model V-6 engine


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The coupe is built on a modern sport sedan platform, a modified offshoot of the Holden Commodore that General Motors builds in Australia.

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Source:
A Muscle Car to the Rescue for General Motors
BILL VLASIC and NICK BUNKLEY
NYT, July 9, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/10/business/10auto.html

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