Let me explain a little more on what I'm talking about. The Mustang, Charger, Challenger and Camaro all went away from what the original were. They became pathetic cars in the day, 80s I believe, and the Mustang drug it on the longest. That was the only car that went along, and then in the 90s made an attempt to look like the old Mustang.

Come 05, the Mustang comes back to what it looked like in the past, sells huge, the others decide to get in on it. Dodge/Chrysler brings back the Challenger and hits it head on, topping Mustang on the exterior, failing a little on the interior. Then comes the Camaro. WTF?! Someone not give them the news letter about it looking like the old vehicles. They got the interior, but what happened to the exterior?

See, I don't mind them changing the cars and such, but when they are trying to base the Camaro off the old Camaros and it looks very little like the old Camaros, that's when a name issue comes into play with me. Call it a Camaro if you will, but don't try to say it's based off the older Camaros when it really doesn't show worth a darn. I feel the same way about the Charger. The name disappeared and then they bring back the name plate with no manual transmission and four doors. Don't kill the name like that.

IMHO, at some point you either let the name die, as should have happened in the 80s, or you bring it back right, as it's happening now with two out of three. The Camaro evolved alright, the Mustang didn't do so hot until now, the others died and came back with a whimper, except the people drooling over the new "Camaro" and of course the King Challenger.

 

You are correct that GM did not nail the look of the classic Camaro as well as Dodge or Ford got the look of their classic pony cars. The Challenger is almost a perfect update of the original. The Mustang is close. The Camaro has some issues with how the front looks, and the overall proportions have changed a lot more. I can see a resemblance to the old Camaros though, especially from the side view, and as a 2 door, rear drive, sporty coupe it certainly fits the general mission of the Camaro.

I find it OK, but not amazing. It definitely has elements of the 69 Camaro in its desigh. The C pillar, the hood, the grill coming to a point (though the new one is pointier than the old one), the 'gills' or vents in front of the rear wheel all echo the 69. It just does not all hang together as well as the almighty Challenger design.

If you look at these two pictures, I think you can see at least some of the similarities:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_FoXyvaPSnV...-Camaro-28.jpg
http://www.firewheelclassics.com/ima...llery/Dawn.jpg

I agree that the Charger should probably have been called something else, at least from a purists perspective. To me, the Camaro has enough similarities to be called a Camaro, given that it looks more like the original than the most recent generation did, and maintains the same general layout.

It would be more accurate to say that it was influenced by the 69 rather than based on the 69. I don't know if they were trying to do a Challenger style remake and missed the mark, or if they wanted a futuristic car with some retro cues.

 

I can definitely see what you are saying. I see the similarities with these cars, but I think the problem is that they made it very exaggerated at points, and you point that out in the nose of the car. Like they were trying to hard to make this piece stick out, or bend this one a little more, the door is another example. In the pictures the new door has a bowed in look while the original is bowed out. I guess it's safe to say that it's a lot closer then the Charger.

 

I agree. Exaggerated is definitely a good way to put it. Neither the mustang or the Camaro can compare to the Challenger for looks. The Challenger is so HOT!

 

As far as I can tell, the GM designers just couldn't bring themselves to get the design as far retro as the Challenger goes - they wanted to have it echo some cues from the past but wanted to put their own spin on it. There's a fair number of people that aren't on board with the whole retro thing, and those people are pretty happy with the new design. As for me, well, I own a 69 Camaro and bought the Challenger. I'll give the new Camaro a look over when it comes out, but until the Z/28 comes out I'll be more than content with the Chally.

 

They should of asked the public a few questions..looks like it was built in the board room

 

Hello Folks,

I have been following the development of this car and your forum for a very long time. This is my first post. There will be more posts to follow. My recent experiences in the purchase process of this car have prompted me to break my silence.

I have had an R/T on order since June. I was kind of excited about the auto stick until I test drove the local dealers first arrival. I too was a little disappointed in the performance even using the autostick. I understand that the autostick is kind of a different animal, and given a little experience I may or may not feel differently about it. The car was reasonably "fast," but it didn't really feel that way. I was expecting a little more. It just didn't feel like 370 horsepower.

I understand that this is a big heavy car, and to get that "quick" feel out of the autostick might require less weight or more power. The car had pretty good tone but seemed "too quiet" for the visual character this car projects.

After driving the automatic, I immediately changed my order to the manual transmission. I hope that the manual will give me the feel that I am looking for. Also, I am hopeful that the canister style exhaust will come through with a little more sound.

I have waited a long time for this car. I could care less about the actual zero to 60 times or if the R/T can hold its own against the high end mustangs. I am looking for a retro, muscle car driving experience every time open the garage door. I hope that the manual transmission and canister exhaust will work in concert with the visual character to give me the driving experience that I am looking for.

Fitz

 

Probably the same board that screwed up the Aztek.

 

Believe it or not, they did have significant outside involvement. In their defense, it is a pretty close rendition of the concept.

 

Well, thank God the front end isn't QUITE as pointed as the concept.

A big problem for me with the Camaro is they appeared to have tried to base the front end on the front end of the Cadillac XLR Roadster. It looks fine on the Caddy but like crap on the Camaro.