The Chevrolet Camaro is an excellent, sporty, and sexy vehicle. And it’s kicking the living asphalt out of the Ford Mustang when it comes to sales. However, the Camaro isn’t perfect — and here are the top three things GM Authority’s Alex Luft would like to see changed on the 2013 Camaro.
- Lighter or more powerful
- Better infotainment system — like Chevy MyLink
- Performance tracking tools to measure 0-60, quarter mile, and 60-0 braking distance
What would you like to see changed on the Camaro? Sound off in the comments below.
Comments
Alex, I agree with your assessments of the much-needed improvements for the Camaro, but I’ve got plenty more.
Here’s what I suggest in the following order:
1) Trim weight by 400-500 pounds (this alone would improve both fuel economy and handling in one fell swoop)
2) Better steering feel and response
3) Improved ergonomics with integrated navigation system and back-up camera
4) Upgraded seats with active head-restraints and adjustable rear head-restraints
5) Cutting edge technology such as: blind spot detection, radar cruise-control, lane departure warning, and around-vehicle camera (like Infiniti)
6) LED tail-lamps with integrated reverse lamps and amber directionals
7) LED turn-signals on the door-mounted rearview mirrors
8) Foglamps that have LED Halo rings to match the main headlamps
9) Redesigned trunk-lid with a lower lift-over height and wider opening, plus a lower floor in the trunk.
10) offer a plug-in hybrid, a turbo-diesel, or an eAssist to trump the Mustang.
More power via LS7. 18 inch aluminum wheels that will clear the brembo breaks for winter tires. Aqua blue metallic paint. And play blondie.
Less standard luxuries to bring the cost and weight down.
Like what? Besides the AC, I don’t see there being much more to remove that will keep the Camaro competitive on a feature-for-feature basis with its cross-town nemesis, the Mustang.
I’ve never driven a Camaro (only sat in one two years ago at a dealer) so I can’t really say what it needs. However, lemme chime in on Alex’s wishlist.
1: More power/less weight: Always a good thing both ways. Big number sell so I say lose some weight AND add some power too.
2: Infotainment: Unfortunately that will usually come with added weight which contradicts the all-important, item #1 above.
3: Performance tracking: See item # 2 above.
Hey Richard — good points. However, I think the Camaro’s weight problem has more to do with the nature of the Zeta rather than the car’s tech toys… which are pretty much non-existent right now (save for a really nice HUD).
And even the Mustang — with SYNC/MyFordTouch AND a glass roof — and bluetooth audio streaming is only 9.4 pounds heavier than the base “Stang. So while tech does add a certain amount of weight, I think it will be negligible compared to what should be shaved off (around 300-500 pounds).
DEFINITELY the MyLink. My brother bought a 2012 Mustang rather than a Camaro because of the cabin tech in the Mustang. It is very cool. I hope MyLink is as good.I’ll trade in my 2010 Camaro when Chevy gets their act together on cabin tech.
Yeah, the advantages of SYNC/MyFordTouch are very noticeable to those who care about such features. At first, I didn’t really care — since the Camaro looks so amazing. Then I drove the Mustang with the fancy cabin tech. And now I care.
Chevy MyLink will at least match the functionality of SYNC… at first. Will be interesting to see how it evolves (with things like updates and such)… We’ll see!
Alex, while I don’t disagree with point one it’s kind of a mute point. As we all know the Camaro was engineered from the ZETA/VE platform and as such any weight savings to be had were pretty much engineered in on development. So that’s a wish for the 6th gen Camaro.
As for the better info system, I disagree. that’s just gimmicky jumk that adds to an already over priced car in the first place. We can all agree the current Camaro is priced right out of it’s original demographic as it is. What they need to do is trump everyone and face reality with a smart phone interface. We all know there is nothing any in car info system does that is on par or better than what a decent smart phone can do.
I’ll admit, when I bought my 2011 Ford Flex Limited with Ecoboost, the SYNC system was a major selling point. But after living with it for a while, it’s no comparison to what I can do with apps on my Iphone, never mind the internet connectivity. Also, what’s up with the voice recognition systems in these cars? Every single one sucks and all of them do things that are purely superfluous! Until they get at least as intelligent as SERI and as easy to use as well, leave the “hey I can talk to my car Shanagins” to Knight Rider. I have yet to come across one where physically interfacing with the touch screen or buttons is not quicker.
I do agree with the data logging feature. that’s what SHOULD have been on the useless gauges in the center console. A lateral G meter, 0-60 timer as well as 1/4mile and other elapsed time trackers. I wouldn’t mind a stopping distance gauge either. Hey even a in car dynometer would be great too!