A new report claims that General Motors had plans to offer a new sixth-generation Chevy Camaro Z/28 with a flat-plane crank V8 engine, but those plans were later axed.
Per a recent post from MotorTrend, which cites an insider going by the codename “Deep Burble,” General Motors was originally set to build a new Chevy Camaro Z/28 based on the current sixth generation, equipping the go-faster muscle car with the same naturally aspirated, flat-plane crank 5.5L V8 LT6 as the upcoming C8 Chevy Corvette Z06. Output is estimated to have been over 600 horsepower, similar to that of the new C8 Z06. What’s more, the proposed Camaro Z/28 would also likely have come equipped with a manual transmission, unlike the auto-only C8.
Although such a proposal undoubtedly has the enthusiasts out there licking their lips, MotorTrend goes on to say that it isn’t going to happen. The reasoning comes down to poor sales, which, as the publication paints it, is the result of the sixth-generation’s highly criticized styling.
Despite the Camaro’s impressive on-track performance, MotorTrend’s source says that the Camaro’s styling effectively cancels its desirability in the minds of buyers, thus leading to poor sales, and eventually, the cancellation of projects like the proposed sixth-generation Camaro Z/28.
With regard to Camaro sales, the nameplate had its worst first-quarter results in a decade earlier this year, selling a mere 7,089 units. That’s nearly 100 fewer units than were sold during the same time period of the 2020 calendar, during which 7,185 units were sold, as GM Authority covered previously.
Factors involved include the criticized styling already mentioned, as well as higher prices, low visibility in the cabin, and perceived low-quality materials in the cabin.
Back in July of 2019, GM Authority exclusively covered that there would indeed be no Camaro Z/28 model for the latest sixth-generation vehicle.
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Comments
I’m other news, GM marketing is probably a bunch of college graduates who have a simple minded approach to corporate product identity.
Kind of a “eh, who cares. We’re all in for electric.”.
College graduate = simple minded… is quite an interesting take, lol
Interesting take, but sometimes quite accurate. Having experience with people with college degrees, military experience, & regular real work life experiences, some common sense is almost always welcome into business environment.
Too bad. It is somewhat ugly, and visibility out is bad. So, if they know what the problems are fix them.
They knew about the visibility problems since Gen. 5 and when they designed Gen. 6 they made them worse.
Since Gen 3 actually. Terrible visibility is a Camaro trademark unfortunately.
Sadly, back to a familiar GM story. Shoot the car in the foot and then use that as a rationale to put it out of its misery.
Remember Pontiac Fiero anyone?
I know there’s supposedly no market these vehicles any more, but how is the best driving vehicle in its class a distant 3rd in sales?
>> how is the best driving vehicle in its class a distant 3rd in sales?
Performance numbers alone won’t always address what the customers want.
IMHO, the Camaro is the worst looking of the three. That could be a factor.
Aside from numbers, even subjective ride, handling, steering feel, etc. is better in the Camaro.
Shows how much the rest of the design and packaging is lacking.
It’s the best kept secret in it’s class and is far and beyond a better car, except for the sh++y 8 spd automatic. Drive all three and you’ll get the point. The Camaro hands the others their backsides in handling and build quality.
I personally think the only problems with the Camaro is, most people don’t care if it’s a track focused car . I’m sure if it had as much hp as the other muscle cars and was built for the street it would outsell the others. Having said that, I wouldn’t GM to do away with the current car for those who would like ‘the best driving car of the big three’.
It’s clear they don’t care about this segment and this is what they do when they have a lame dog. They let it suffer then they shoot it and blame the market.
..when Gm started putting 4 cylinders in Camaro…people took that as a cash grab on a famous name plate…I can see a six cylinder…but 4 cylinders belong in Toyotas, Hondas…what’s next a tomato can on the end of the exhaust pipe…bring back the 68 style…today’s camaros are way too heavy…
I wouldn’t have an issue with a high powered 4 cylinder in a next generation Camaro.
But the car needs to look good and be more practical than the current vehicle.
Wow! So bummed to hear about this. When the Flat-plane crank LT6 engine was announced I thought it possible for an option on the 6 Gen before 2023 or possibly 2026. I don’t understand all the hate in the Camaro design. I must be in the minority but I think my 2021 LT1 RS looks bad ass. It’s a car that doesn’t look like anything else on the road. Retro but also modern. I’m 60 years old and have owned 2nd 3rd and 4th Gen F-body’s so maybe I’m biased. Hopefully the new EV Camaro will be the home run in design and trend that everyone is looking for. Me I’ll continue being loud and burning fossil fuel.
GM dropped the ball, big-time, when they re-styled the resurrected Camaro and I say that as a former Camaro fan that owned three of the ’60’s and early 70’s cars. While Chrysler and Ford both captured and updated the essence of their former pony-car’s styling…GM failed. Before lamenting the non-production of a flat-plane V-8 from GM, I’d respectfully suggest you seek out a Ford owner of their flat-plane engine or try and discover one of the many complaints on the Net about terminal engine problems that Ford seeks to hush-up/cover-up.
Actually they could drop a 2.7 in the base Camaro to replace the 2.0 and 3.6 together, turn the RS into an actual trim instead of a package and give it the 5.3, keep the 6.2 in the SS, put a high performance version of the truck 6.6 (make it aluminum block) in the Z28, and replace the current 6.2 supercharged in the ZL1 with one from the CT5-V Blackwing or the C7 ZR1. Give them all 6 speed Manuals and 10 speed automatics. I think a $30,000 Camaro RS with a 5.3 and 6 speed manual would ignite the passsion for the Camaro. #ReturnOfThe327
The 6 cylinder Camaro is neither heavy nor is it hard to see out of. The high beltline IS an issue for those who enjoy resting their elbow on the window sill. The superchargers make the Camaro heavy, not the lightweight V8.
The 5.5 flat plane would be an excellent option but yes, the car is overpriced.
Just like Ford using the Mustang name on their Mach E. Pointed one out to the wife the other day, going down the road, & her immediate comment: “That is not a Mustang”!
Poor Camaro sales aren’t due to styling issues (subjective at the very least), or some perceived “lack of visibility” (which parrots who’ve never been in one of these cars continue to spout because they read it somewhere).
When was the last time anyone saw a TV ad for the Camaro? When did you last see even just a print ad in any automotive periodical for the Camaro? Why would anyone expect the public to buy a car that, as far as they know, is no longer being built?
GM, in their mad and misguided rush to EV exclusivity that nobody wants (and no one will buy until major practicality/technical issues are eventually solved) is systematically shedding carlines. The performance segment of the auto market, already relatively small, is an obvious prime target for elimination.
You are correct about the asinine, ridiculous “rush” to stupid EV’s. No one is mentioning nor considering how the current electrical grid is overwhelmed with Government pleas in both CA and NY not to switch on their A/C or face rolling blackouts. Try adding millions of highly expensive EV’s to that load and see what happens. Hydrogen is the future…not Lithium-battery EV’s.
I like your comment that Hydrogen is the future and that is what will make the likes of Toyota and Porsche to shine in future.
You like that comment about Hydrogen because it’s hilarious, or because you actually think that’s true?
Right, if only gm advertised, then it’d sell some Camaros with high-performance engines. Build it, promote it, and they will buy. It’s easy.
Fact is, not many folk want high-perf cars. Only 7,000 Camaros sold in the first quarter? That isn’t down to a lack of advertising.
Take the original 426 HEMI. It went away in the early ’70s because Chrysler only sold a couple hundred cars a year with it. It didn’t go away because of the EPA, as legend has it. It went away because dealers couldn’t get rid of them. And there were tons of ads touting it, from its introduction until the end. It was a glorious seven or so years.
It’d be great if everyone wanted high-perf cars, but only if everyone could drive them properly. To tell you the truth, the idea of ten times as many Z/28s on the road, powered by 600-horse engines and driven by today’s average drivers, kind of scares the crap out of me.
Ton Southridge – You are exactly right. I could not have stated it better. Motor Trend by the way is garbage, don’t know who runs it but they are dolts! August 2021 issue calls the C8 design “dated” but loves the Porsche Cayman with a design, like all Porsches, that is sixty+ years old?????
Liberals, just like the ones that run car and driver.
Commonly called “Import Trend” for a reason.
The difference is that Porsche’s designs are timeless while the C8 is a trendy design that will age poorly. Give it ten years and it will look horribly dated, you’ll see.
What else would you expect from a leftwing female CEO?
Yeah, the flat-plane got canceled ‘cuz it was the wrong time of the month, right? Why can’t they just stay in the kitchen? Why do they always want to do man stuff like running big companies….
Camaro sales have been great since Chevrolet launched the LT1. Problem is they did not produce many over the last 15 months as GM shut down the plant to conserve semiconductors for the higher volume and more profitable vehicles like the Silverado.
The LT1 is the perfect poor guys/gals hot rod priced thousands of dollars under the SS models. It is also a much better vehicle to lease than the SS as the residual value is 7% higher than the SS on 24 month lease, and 8% higher than the SS on 36 month leases. That difference equates to $2800 on the typical $40K MSRP LT! or about $120 a month reduction in lease payment compared to the SS residual. This combined with the lower price point of the LT1 compared to the SS allows us to lease this vehicle in the Mid $300’s per month with only normal lease start ups due. The SS is a great car, but due to its considerably higher price point, and way lower residual value those leases come in north of $500 a month on a moderately equipped SS.
The LT1 was a much needed and welcome addition the the Camaro line up and yes they literally fly out the door, most are sold prior to even hitting the lot.
Not sure how this story got so twisted, but the Camaro is a viable model for Chevrolet and when they build them we do sell them very quickly. The LT1 opened up a whole new market with its incredible lease. The SS is certainly the Halo model, but, the LT1 dominates Camaro sales. Does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that this vehicle is every bit as fast as its more expensive cousin, at a price that is way more affordable.
Rick thanks for your input on the LT1 and their incredible lease deals. I recently tried to lease a base no option LT1 from a dealer that wouldn’t do that lease and jacked the price up from $36K to $44k. Luckily I just found a loaded LT1 RS for MSRP and purchased got $43k for my 2020 Camaro 1SS. They wouldn’t deal on a lease either. I think to keep people from reselling in this crazy used car market.
A 3LT RS with a v8 option would also sell like hot cakes.
A Silverado with big duallies and a waterbed option would sell like hotcakes. A BEV Impala with a solar-panel roof to charge the batteries would sell like hotcakes. Boy, this is easy….
I’m the guy that actually secured one and what you explain the case. I hired car broker [smartest thing ever] he found an allocation per my spec being Summit White LT1, 3.0 infotainment, RS package, no NPP, A10 and the LZ1 lease.
I had an SS prior and that price vs this is hard to chew on. I’m paying less than my mom pays for her Subaru, my kook friends who drive Prius’s. If Chevrolet made more of this, they would go. Do an evolution to the quirks. No reason Camaro shouldn’t be a staple in the Chevrolet Performance line up.
Ive done the math I’m paying the least amount for most hp in the current marketplace. Pretty cool. And I love the car. Every time I drive it here in grim traffic LA, I love it.
This Z28 sounds incredible.
Good to read the author’s comment about Camaro’s woeful “styling”. After taking a test drive and not liking what I saw on the outside I found myself in agreement with many, many others who said it was like you were in a cave with a low overhead and trying to see out. As far as the flat-plane V-8 goes, GM surely became aware of the myriad problems FORD has had with its Flat Plane shaking itself to pieces and decided not to go there.
GM is going forward with the Flat-plane in the upcoming C8 Z06. As far as woeful styling and cave like interior. Styling has some compromises to interior room. It’s been that way from Muscles cars to Ferrari. Find yourself a car that has the room and styling you like and don’t hate on the Camaro.
Yet it will out sell the Camaro and take many of their sales.
I find the interior of the Camaro to be pleasing but I suppose one has to buy the upsell car model to get there. After all, they do charge big bucks for a “Black Bowtie” which is stupid because it costs no more to apply than a gold one.
GM”s gone china mode has an effect on their built in america sales and over pricing vehicles !
Follow the money!
China sells way more cars so they get more attention. Just look at the numbers.
Only because all of our jobs are now in China or other third world counties.
The harsh reality is high priced coupes from Ford and Chevy are selling a fraction of what they used to sell. The impact at Chevy is that they are losing to the Corvette.
The Z would be more than a Z51 Vette and not sell like last time.
It’s not visibility as none are easy to see out of and never have been. Same for the Corvette. Ford offers nothing close to the Vette. Chrysler low balls price on an out dated vehicle.
The truth on the flat crank is that it’s all for sound and adds noting to the performance. This is what the. Corvette team stated clearly in development.
The Z would have been just another high price model that would live a limited life and hold no impact on the future of GM.
I would have loved to see it but in the end no money would have been made.
GM and Ford are all following the “siren song” of EV’s and will end up wrecked on the rocks
just like the old sailors were.
I don’t like it either but the automakers way to survival in the future economically is EV.
Time to get a grip of reality and find that these companies have not been doing all the great for a long time and would like to make higher profits like the tech industry.
How many companies have to merge or fail before they get it? ..
We can wax poetically all we like but the bills need paid and investors need to see growth.
I thought y’all said it was supposed to have a naturally aspirated 6.6?
I was just thinking about a Z28 the other day. Since the handwriting is on the wall for the demise of the Camaro, why not throw it in the model lineup and it doesn’t have to be a track car. I don’t know why some idiots at Chevy have such a hard on for making the Z a track car. Take the LT-1, throw in the 1LE package, maybe even up the HP to 500 or more and you have a nice Z. But hey, we know what GM does best is screw up a good thing, they have been it doing for years. Don’t worry the Camaro will be back as a E car in the 2030’s, GM loves to revive old nameplates. that’s what they do best!
The Challenger is a living proof that you can keep an older model in production with decent sales if you keep it relatively fresh and interesting.
Replace the 2.0 and 3.6 with the 2.7L, the SS 6.2L is ok, replace the LT4 with the LT5 for the ZL1 since the Hellcat and the GT500 completely outgun the current ZL1, and bring back the Z/28 with the upcoming C8 Z06 flat plane. 10-Speed AT and 6-Speed MT available in all trims. Redesign the interior with the latest tech and give it a more retro looking front and rear ends. That should keep relevant the Camaro at least for 5 more years.
This is nothing more than ANOTHER BARRA BLUNDER…..
Sometimes I wonder what GM thinking. It’s the Camaro for God’s sake! I’m pretty sure someone at GM can design a Camaro everyone would like! Not everyone wants a Corvette!
Highly doubtful. GM Design Studio has gone full ugly in recent years. We will have to wait another generation for the lead designers with bad taste to retire.
This is looking like past gm mode of operations when slow death of a brand or vehicle. Ignore it and it will go away. Sad. They don’t improve a product to gain sales they just let it bleed out.
Like The Birds Of Capistrano So Are GM And What They Were Going To Do!…Fantastic Concept Vehicles That Were Dummy Down To OMG What Happened. SS Rumors That Perpetually Appear Every Other News Cycle…Engines That We’re Rumored Only To Fade Away!
Lots of good comments, GM, who can’t seem to get chips it needs to build Camaros, has stopped production a few times, has left dealers with little or no Camaros to sell, has not advertised this car almost anywhere, seems to blame and wonder why sales are low…..buyers can’t even get their hands on one if they wanted to…… The 6th Gen Camaro is quite a good car, I love the looks, power & performance myself, and find the criticisms unfounded… I have no visibility issues, with sensors and cameras, mirrors etc. I can see out just fine… The interior quality looks and feels better than my friends new Porsche…..you get a car capable of near supercar performance at a price point some $100k less… Not a car for everyone, as all tastes are different…. But if you can find one, especially a 6.2 V8, take a drive, I think you just might be impressed… also has received automotive awards as one of top sports cars currently made, and punches above its weight in all racing formats
If they made a 6th gen Z28, I would buy it !!!
I did like the ’67-’73 Camaro & Trans Am. After that not so much….or not at all. I’ve owned several and always enjoyed driving them. Everything mentioned here is true. Folks complained way back then that seeing out was problematic. It’s just been designed to be worse. Too heavy…and definitely too expensive. I know folks like to shift but it’s difficult to fault the new dual clutch transmission in the C8. I’m afraid the Camaro that we think we want will never be built again.
The Z28 is just a trim level for the same basic platform….the trim levels offered today, cover the same options, just are called by another name…. SS, 2SS, ZL, etc…. There are low cost to Very Hi performance trim levels available…. I see comments about pricing, the Camaro line is in tune with its competitors…. Mustangs, Challengers, and foreign models…. A couple of Mustangs now are priced over $100k….. they make very high HP, but they seem to have trouble using that power and getting it to the ground, and are being beaten by lesser powered cars….I personally love my 2020 Camaro, I have owned more expensive cars, that at the time were considered Hi Performance, The pwr offered today makes all these once supercars look pale by comparison….. what will be enough HP, were approaching 1000hp and cars that can go 0-60 in under 2 sec….. and over 200 mph…. I love perf. As much as anyone, but for everyday driving where are you going to use these speeds??? How much are you willing to pay for bragging rights???
Is a car capable of getting to 60, one second faster worth an additional hundred grand???….. Maybe to some! Or on a race track, but most of us never really race our cars, might speed away from a red light when it turns green,but that’s probably about it….anyway, I will shut up now…. I like all the gas powered perf models being sold today, even the sub compacts today are about as fast as the older hemis and 427 Vettes used to be….hope the govt doesn’t force us all into full size elect slot cars
Like everything else GM does, horse crap, including the new Corvette, C7 is a better car. Mary Barra, what an ass. Keeo going and it’s bye bye gm.
I live in LA. Most liberal woke place.
I think we don’t realize that companies posturing in this environment are being pushed to go EV. We and the Camaro is a victim of this narrative.
My 6.2 gets better mileage then the new state of the art v4 T. I tell people that they look at me incredulously.
I dont live in house. I cant get a EV and any of us not living in a home wont because the charging infrastructure sucks. I live across the street at a 440 charge station. Ive seen super Betas driving Prius’s in fist fights in waiting lines over charging stations. Actually the best thing ever to see. Lol
I dont blame GM. I see where they have made mistakes. But truth is this way bigger than marketing. Theres a weird cultural social shift/manipulation going on.
Truthfully with work and economy me buying new LT1 wasn’t exactly on radar.
I had to put my money where my mouth is, support and do it.
What’s really a bummer is seeing new powerplants and ICE innovation stop. : /
The Camaro is not ugly, and a somewhat restricted view out of the rear is not a deal killer. What’s killing the Camaro is GM’s utter failure to compete with Ford and Dodge. GM has left the Camaro out there to die a slow death while Dodge and Ford continue to innovate and update their muscle/pony cars. The Camaro isnt selling because STUPID GM isn’t promoting and “refreshing” the car with minor styling updates and a much needed boost in power to compete with Dodge and Ford… IDIOTS
Ugly, both inside and out.
Impractical, with a ludicrously small trunk opening and not even a convenient place near the driver to set a phone.
Dangerous, with unncessarily bad visibility.
Ugly, with an adolescent vibe and overcompensating aggro features. Not very lucrative to target a demographic that can’t even drive yet.
Yet someone thought it was a great idea and that person remains in power at GM.