How to Locate Your Own Muscle–Car in Minutes on MotorMapUSA.com, a New Google Map + eBay Motors Mashup
“The New Google Map + eBay Mashup” locates all eBay Autos on a map. This new website makes the old way of "Searching eBay Autos" passé. You don’t want to search; you want to “Locate a Car and see on a Map." MotorMapUSA.com makes all the difference by showing you instantly where each car is located on the Map and how far the cars are from your home. eBay sells a car every minute with over 30,000 autos listed for sale all on MotorMapUSA.com.
Gulf Shores, Alabama (PRWEB)June 29, 2006 -- Displaying the location of the auto in addition to the eBay information is a major step forward for all eBay Auto buyers and sellers. This help buyers locate autos close to their homes or to calculate the cost of inspecting and delivering distant purchases of rare models.
MotorMapUSA.com the new eBay Affiliate website is the first consumer site to combine the visual location of a map with the detail auction data of eBay.
The fun begins seeing the location of all the autos of sale on a map! Locate a car just like your very first car you owned and see what it is worth today. Don't you wish you still owned it?
You might even find an undiscovered muscle car hiding in a barn, untouched for years, and see its location on the map!
Here are some of the CNN Motors top ten muscle cars we located in minutes:
1971 Plymouth "Hemi" 'Cuda convertible In Bridgeport CT, $179,000 Buy it now price
1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z-28/SS coupe - 19 found
1970 Chevrolet Chevelle - 23 found
Have Fun Motor Mapping!
Ted Bailes, President
www.MotormapUSA.com
Carbon Fiber Toilet Seat
Looking for a gift for the gearhead that already has everyting?
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Checkout their website for details and take a look at the other items available -- www.TruckTechniques.com
Tailgate theft prevention - The Gate Keeper™
The most common places for pickup truck tailgate theft are parking lots in Home Improvement stores, shopping malls, grocery stores, etc. If you frequent these places, you are very likely to fall victim to tailgate theft.
Tailgates are very easy to steal and sell. With factory replacements often costing up to $1,000 when it is all said and done, you can buy a nice complete setup for as little as $100 through a variety of sources.
Some companies sell locking tailgate handles, but for those that use their tailgates almost daily as I do, that can become more of a hassle then a tool. The locking tailgates are not that difficult to get past, and once they do, they can have your tailgate in less than 30 seconds, you know how quickly you can remove your own...
We offer the Gate Keeper which bolts onto your truck and covers the pivot point so the tailgate cannot be removed without proper tools. We supply everything you need including the tool to install/un-install the unit. Installation takes only minutes yet allows you to open/close your tailgate at will while keeping is secured to your vehicle!
Checkout our online store at TruckTechniques.com and order your Gate Keeper today!
Tailgates are very easy to steal and sell. With factory replacements often costing up to $1,000 when it is all said and done, you can buy a nice complete setup for as little as $100 through a variety of sources.
Some companies sell locking tailgate handles, but for those that use their tailgates almost daily as I do, that can become more of a hassle then a tool. The locking tailgates are not that difficult to get past, and once they do, they can have your tailgate in less than 30 seconds, you know how quickly you can remove your own...
We offer the Gate Keeper which bolts onto your truck and covers the pivot point so the tailgate cannot be removed without proper tools. We supply everything you need including the tool to install/un-install the unit. Installation takes only minutes yet allows you to open/close your tailgate at will while keeping is secured to your vehicle!
Checkout our online store at TruckTechniques.com and order your Gate Keeper today!
Camaro = cool
After test-drive, News panel tells GM to make car a reality
Anita Lienert / The Detroit News
MILFORD -- When Wendy Anderson was in the 10th grade at Crestwood High School in Dearborn Heights, she dated a guy for his Camaro.
"It was a '69 model that was jacked up and painted baby blue on the underside," said Anderson, a 53-year-old hair stylist from Southfield. "The guy who owned it was hot, but the car was the real reason I went out with him. I sat in the middle and shifted while he drove."
Memories of the classic Detroit muscle car came pouring out of Anderson and other members of the 2006 Detroit News Automotive Consumer Panel, as they gathered at the General Motors Proving Ground in late June to drive the hot Camaro concept vehicle that caused such a sensation at the 2006 North American International Auto Show. They were the first consumers in the U.S. to get behind the wheel of the hand-built, one-of-a-kind Camaro and they were pumped.
So pumped, in fact, that 32-year-old panelist Amy Bowman, who was supposed to be at home recovering from delivering a baby, showed up for the test session. The Royal Oak teacher wasn't up to driving, but she brought along her husband, Jeff Bowman, 32, a brick mason, to chauffeur her around the course.
So pumped, in fact, that a former panelist who had heard about the event through the grapevine decided to crash it. Paul Tassi, 19, a University of Michigan junior and member of last year's consumer panel, wasn't invited to the Camaro concept drive, but he came anyway. And he had a mission: to convince GM executives to build it.
"It will easily challenge the (Ford) Mustang for the king-of-the-retro-muscle-car title," said Tassi, after making several loops on the track in the $3 million prototype. "And don't change a thing about the new Camaro. It looks like it wants to kill and eat me."
The 10-member panel, which includes a lawyer, an architect, a Ford Rouge Plant pipe fitter and two teachers, delivered its unanimous verdict to the Detroit automaker: Build the Camaro, but keep it affordable.
The panelists also had bad news for Ford. Everyone preferred the Camaro to the redesigned Mustang.
"The Mustang lacks the style and the coolness that Camaro always had," Anderson said.
GM remains coy about whether it will revive the Camaro, even though there has been rampant speculation that it will emerge as a 2009 production model. Before the panelists got behind the wheel, GM spokesman Tom Wilkinson told them the concept is "fairly close to what could be produced."
"We are studying it, but no final decision has been made," he said.
Even though the panelists said they were ready to burn some rubber and get in a few hot laps, the delicate concept wasn't designed for "hard operating conditions." It is somewhat cobbled together, with a floor pan from a Cadillac STS and a rear suspension put together from the Cadillac CTS-V and the Chevrolet Corvette. And it did have a few squeaks and rattles.
The Camaro concept is outfitted with the 400-horsepower 6.0-liter V-8 from the Corvette and has a snarling exhaust note, but the top speed is electronically limited to about 40 miles per hour. Nobody was able to get the concept, which has a six-speed manual transmission, out of third gear on the short course. The seat belts don't work, either.
But none of that seemed to matter.
The panelists gave high marks to the Camaro's muscular looks, lauding its long hood, sunken headlights, massive haunches and oversized 22-inch rear tires, which contribute to its jacked-up look.
"The best thing about it is the aggressive exterior," said Michael Lysaght, 18, a University of Michigan freshman from Northville. "The Camaro makes the Mustang look passive."
GM designers were anxious to hear the panelists describe their impressions of the concept, as well as previous versions of the car. It's clear that there is some concern about Camaro's blue-collar roots.
"Did you guys associate the old Camaro with mullets and heavy-metal rockers?" asked Micah Jones, the 29-year-old Camaro concept interior designer, of Lysaght and Tassi.
"Yeah, and Confederate flags," said Lysaght, somewhat facetiously.
While they argued about the Camaro's image, Andrew Hetletvedt, a 32-year-old Detroit architect who is the most detail-oriented member of the panel, carefully studied the interior.
Its retro cues include a beefy steering wheel with a small hub and a thick rim, a center console that runs the length of the cabin and dives under the instrument panel, and gauges inspired by the 1969 Camaro "Rally" package.
He pronounced the gauges a bit "too fussy," but said he loved the concept's retro shift lever and striking copper metal cabin trim.
"You gotta start it at $20,000," he said to designer Jones, who sat in the front passenger seat while Hetletvedt drove the concept. "They are pushing Mustangs out the door for less than that."
Reginald Dozier, 47, a Detroit attorney who was sitting in the rear seat, added, "And don't go any higher than $55,000."
"I hope they don't price it where the (Dodge) Viper is," said Wendy Anderson of the $80,000 car. "Nobody would buy it."
The GM executives at the Camaro drive would not speculate about pricing, but they hammered home the point that the concept's engine features the company's "active-fuel management" system, which cuts off four cylinders in certain situations to conserve fuel. The concept is estimated to get more than 30 miles per gallon at highway speeds. Few on the panel seemed to care about that, though.
Panelist Shaniya Jarrett, 34, a Detroit insurance executive, said that while the Camaro is "a wonderful car that GM should build," it was not enticing enough to get her to give up her Dodge Durango SUV.
It was clear that the Camaro's magic was not in the fuel economy or even in such critical details as horsepower and bucket seats. It was all about evoking the past, especially one filled with drive-in movies and drag races on Telegraph.
"It takes me right back to my youth, when I had no responsibilities," said Zora Callahan Jones, 48, a Detroit teacher. "I have fond memories of being a student at Cass Tech and riding around in my girlfriend's white Camaro.
"If GM brought it back, it would be easy to sell me on it."
Anita Lienert / The Detroit News
MILFORD -- When Wendy Anderson was in the 10th grade at Crestwood High School in Dearborn Heights, she dated a guy for his Camaro.
"It was a '69 model that was jacked up and painted baby blue on the underside," said Anderson, a 53-year-old hair stylist from Southfield. "The guy who owned it was hot, but the car was the real reason I went out with him. I sat in the middle and shifted while he drove."
Memories of the classic Detroit muscle car came pouring out of Anderson and other members of the 2006 Detroit News Automotive Consumer Panel, as they gathered at the General Motors Proving Ground in late June to drive the hot Camaro concept vehicle that caused such a sensation at the 2006 North American International Auto Show. They were the first consumers in the U.S. to get behind the wheel of the hand-built, one-of-a-kind Camaro and they were pumped.
So pumped, in fact, that 32-year-old panelist Amy Bowman, who was supposed to be at home recovering from delivering a baby, showed up for the test session. The Royal Oak teacher wasn't up to driving, but she brought along her husband, Jeff Bowman, 32, a brick mason, to chauffeur her around the course.
So pumped, in fact, that a former panelist who had heard about the event through the grapevine decided to crash it. Paul Tassi, 19, a University of Michigan junior and member of last year's consumer panel, wasn't invited to the Camaro concept drive, but he came anyway. And he had a mission: to convince GM executives to build it.
"It will easily challenge the (Ford) Mustang for the king-of-the-retro-muscle-car title," said Tassi, after making several loops on the track in the $3 million prototype. "And don't change a thing about the new Camaro. It looks like it wants to kill and eat me."
The 10-member panel, which includes a lawyer, an architect, a Ford Rouge Plant pipe fitter and two teachers, delivered its unanimous verdict to the Detroit automaker: Build the Camaro, but keep it affordable.
The panelists also had bad news for Ford. Everyone preferred the Camaro to the redesigned Mustang.
"The Mustang lacks the style and the coolness that Camaro always had," Anderson said.
GM remains coy about whether it will revive the Camaro, even though there has been rampant speculation that it will emerge as a 2009 production model. Before the panelists got behind the wheel, GM spokesman Tom Wilkinson told them the concept is "fairly close to what could be produced."
"We are studying it, but no final decision has been made," he said.
Even though the panelists said they were ready to burn some rubber and get in a few hot laps, the delicate concept wasn't designed for "hard operating conditions." It is somewhat cobbled together, with a floor pan from a Cadillac STS and a rear suspension put together from the Cadillac CTS-V and the Chevrolet Corvette. And it did have a few squeaks and rattles.
The Camaro concept is outfitted with the 400-horsepower 6.0-liter V-8 from the Corvette and has a snarling exhaust note, but the top speed is electronically limited to about 40 miles per hour. Nobody was able to get the concept, which has a six-speed manual transmission, out of third gear on the short course. The seat belts don't work, either.
But none of that seemed to matter.
The panelists gave high marks to the Camaro's muscular looks, lauding its long hood, sunken headlights, massive haunches and oversized 22-inch rear tires, which contribute to its jacked-up look.
"The best thing about it is the aggressive exterior," said Michael Lysaght, 18, a University of Michigan freshman from Northville. "The Camaro makes the Mustang look passive."
GM designers were anxious to hear the panelists describe their impressions of the concept, as well as previous versions of the car. It's clear that there is some concern about Camaro's blue-collar roots.
"Did you guys associate the old Camaro with mullets and heavy-metal rockers?" asked Micah Jones, the 29-year-old Camaro concept interior designer, of Lysaght and Tassi.
"Yeah, and Confederate flags," said Lysaght, somewhat facetiously.
While they argued about the Camaro's image, Andrew Hetletvedt, a 32-year-old Detroit architect who is the most detail-oriented member of the panel, carefully studied the interior.
Its retro cues include a beefy steering wheel with a small hub and a thick rim, a center console that runs the length of the cabin and dives under the instrument panel, and gauges inspired by the 1969 Camaro "Rally" package.
He pronounced the gauges a bit "too fussy," but said he loved the concept's retro shift lever and striking copper metal cabin trim.
"You gotta start it at $20,000," he said to designer Jones, who sat in the front passenger seat while Hetletvedt drove the concept. "They are pushing Mustangs out the door for less than that."
Reginald Dozier, 47, a Detroit attorney who was sitting in the rear seat, added, "And don't go any higher than $55,000."
"I hope they don't price it where the (Dodge) Viper is," said Wendy Anderson of the $80,000 car. "Nobody would buy it."
The GM executives at the Camaro drive would not speculate about pricing, but they hammered home the point that the concept's engine features the company's "active-fuel management" system, which cuts off four cylinders in certain situations to conserve fuel. The concept is estimated to get more than 30 miles per gallon at highway speeds. Few on the panel seemed to care about that, though.
Panelist Shaniya Jarrett, 34, a Detroit insurance executive, said that while the Camaro is "a wonderful car that GM should build," it was not enticing enough to get her to give up her Dodge Durango SUV.
It was clear that the Camaro's magic was not in the fuel economy or even in such critical details as horsepower and bucket seats. It was all about evoking the past, especially one filled with drive-in movies and drag races on Telegraph.
"It takes me right back to my youth, when I had no responsibilities," said Zora Callahan Jones, 48, a Detroit teacher. "I have fond memories of being a student at Cass Tech and riding around in my girlfriend's white Camaro.
"If GM brought it back, it would be easy to sell me on it."
THE MAKING OF A HALO
June 25, 2006 - montgomeryadvertiser.com
There's no magic elixir to creating a successful halo. It's usually a concoction of several ingredients:
Heritage. Retro rules. Almost all the recent halo cars have been updated versions of classics. Solstice is an exception.
Almost invariably, designers reach back to the single decade that's a touchstone for today's wealthy boomers -- the 1960s. BMW's Mini, the latest version of Mustang and, if they are built, Camaro and Challenger all fit the mold. "Every good halo car has its roots in the '60s," said Ford Motor's design chief, J Mays. It's not just looks, he said, but rather being born of "rebellious times" with bold styling.
Horsepower. Halos often rack up the ponies. Chrysler considers its SRT line of muscle cars, such as the 425-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT8, as halos. "The car sells itself," said Steve Bartoli, a Chrysler vice president. "When you're at a cocktail party on a Friday night, you start talking about it."
A big engine can't guarantee success, but lack of one can sometimes lead to failure. Gordon Wangers, an auto industry marketing consultant, thinks Chevy's SSR and Ford's T-Bird both suffered from lack of a powerful engine. The SSR later got one, but it was too late.
General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz disagrees. He said the problem with SSR wasn't power but price, close to $40,000. Mays said T-Bird isn't given credit for being one of the biggest-selling two-seaters ever made.
more...
There's no magic elixir to creating a successful halo. It's usually a concoction of several ingredients:
Heritage. Retro rules. Almost all the recent halo cars have been updated versions of classics. Solstice is an exception.
Almost invariably, designers reach back to the single decade that's a touchstone for today's wealthy boomers -- the 1960s. BMW's Mini, the latest version of Mustang and, if they are built, Camaro and Challenger all fit the mold. "Every good halo car has its roots in the '60s," said Ford Motor's design chief, J Mays. It's not just looks, he said, but rather being born of "rebellious times" with bold styling.
Horsepower. Halos often rack up the ponies. Chrysler considers its SRT line of muscle cars, such as the 425-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT8, as halos. "The car sells itself," said Steve Bartoli, a Chrysler vice president. "When you're at a cocktail party on a Friday night, you start talking about it."
A big engine can't guarantee success, but lack of one can sometimes lead to failure. Gordon Wangers, an auto industry marketing consultant, thinks Chevy's SSR and Ford's T-Bird both suffered from lack of a powerful engine. The SSR later got one, but it was too late.
General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz disagrees. He said the problem with SSR wasn't power but price, close to $40,000. Mays said T-Bird isn't given credit for being one of the biggest-selling two-seaters ever made.
more...
Mustang will get renewed and refreshed every year
Ford is going full steam ahead while GM plays games with the new Camaro, eating up marketshare they have owned since the 2003 model year after Chevrolet dumped the Fbody
T.O. Whenham - Edmunds.com
CEO quiz: What would you do if you were head of Ford and you only had one car, the Mustang, that consumers actually care about? The correct answer, apparently, is to ride it for all that it is worth. The financially troubled company has announced that there will be new product content every year for the Mustang and that Carroll Shelby will work on every model year. To keep people interested, the company has hinted that a 600+ horsepower Mustang is very possible. Shelby himself said that it would be "very easy" to drop more than 600 horsepower into the car while still being able to offer the 50,000 mile warranty. Shelby also mentioned that an all-new Mustang will see the light in 2009.
Ford's moves are part of a war with GM, another company struggling mightily but using a muscle car to prove that they still have game. Rumors are that GM may drop a Corvette Z06 engine into a Camaro, which would up the horsepower ante significantly.
T.O. Whenham - Edmunds.com
CEO quiz: What would you do if you were head of Ford and you only had one car, the Mustang, that consumers actually care about? The correct answer, apparently, is to ride it for all that it is worth. The financially troubled company has announced that there will be new product content every year for the Mustang and that Carroll Shelby will work on every model year. To keep people interested, the company has hinted that a 600+ horsepower Mustang is very possible. Shelby himself said that it would be "very easy" to drop more than 600 horsepower into the car while still being able to offer the 50,000 mile warranty. Shelby also mentioned that an all-new Mustang will see the light in 2009.
Ford's moves are part of a war with GM, another company struggling mightily but using a muscle car to prove that they still have game. Rumors are that GM may drop a Corvette Z06 engine into a Camaro, which would up the horsepower ante significantly.
Driving the competition: Dodge Challenger Concept
Looks like GM and DCX are busy getting the word out about the new Camaro and the Challenger. DCX has given the press a chance to put the car through the paces, 40 MPH at a time. Below is a recent review from ESPN.com
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – Smoke pours from the Dodge Challenger Concept’s rear wheels after dumping the clutch at 5,000 rpm and matting the accelerator to the floor. The tail slews until we speed-shift into second, and another stab at the throttle results in another set of thick, black stripes on the pavement as the Challenger picks up speed and rips past 60 mph before the upshift to third. Now we’re rocketing toward triple digits, the functional butterfly-valve intakes scooping desert air into the humongous Hemi V8, the exhaust roaring beneath us, the landscape blurring, blurring by on either side of the Orange Pearl performance hood’s bulges...
more...
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – Smoke pours from the Dodge Challenger Concept’s rear wheels after dumping the clutch at 5,000 rpm and matting the accelerator to the floor. The tail slews until we speed-shift into second, and another stab at the throttle results in another set of thick, black stripes on the pavement as the Challenger picks up speed and rips past 60 mph before the upshift to third. Now we’re rocketing toward triple digits, the functional butterfly-valve intakes scooping desert air into the humongous Hemi V8, the exhaust roaring beneath us, the landscape blurring, blurring by on either side of the Orange Pearl performance hood’s bulges...
more...
Exposed to daylight: An early taste of the car that might become the next Camaro
By Rex Roy - Edmunds.com
06-19-2006
And you thought it looked good spinning on a turntable under the electric lights at your local auto show? Well, the 2006 Chevrolet Camaro Concept looks even hotter rolling on asphalt under a bright, open sky. And it drives pretty darned well, too.
The bow-tie folks at Chevy invited us out to General Motors' Milford Proving Grounds to test-drive the Camaro concept. Next to the expansive Black Lake skid pad, we had the smooth North Loop all to ourselves. Its gentle curves and moderately long straights gave us ample room to sample the Camaro concept at speed. Not high speed, but moving at least.
Naturally, GM provided a vehicular chaperone to babysit our enthusiasm. Our "overseer" was none other than Tom Peters, director of GM's rear-wheel-drive production studio. For those needing a translation of Peters' title, he's the design boss who directed the Camaro concept's birthing.
On the pavement
We walk around the car before getting in. The shoulders on the top edge of the rear fenders are huge…perfectly huge. The gas cap is beautiful. Peters is particularly fond of the areas featuring the most complex compound curves; where the front fender and hood flow together over the headlights, and where the rear fenders flow into the trunk lid. "It takes a really special person to get surfaces like these just right," Peters announces, obviously grateful and proud of his team's work. He's right. When you look at those two areas up close and personal, there's a lot going on, with multiple lines and panels coming together.
On the inside
Wanting to get in, we look quizzically at the flush-mounted, thin door handle. How do it work? Peters presses the trailing edge of the chrome bar in and the leading edge pops out. The long door opens wide to a beautifully detailed interior. We duck under the low roof line. First impression: The driver seat is way too high off the floor. A show-car compromise, Peters tells us. The only adjustment is fore/aft.
Regardless, we settle in. The beefy steering wheel frames circular gauges recessed within chromed rectangles. The wheel feels good, the pedals are well placed and the huge ball atop the Tremec T56 six-speed manual falls to our grip. So far, so good.
Peters directs us to clutch in and press the red button to the right of the steering column. Brrraaaammmm! The Hounds of Hell sound pretty good. (If only Chevrolet could bottle the sound from those quad pipes….) "We worked a long time getting it to sound like that. Do you think it's too loud?" Peters asks. We shake our heads "no" and just smile.
As we look out over the long hood to see if we're cleared for takeoff by Milford's flight personnel, we notice its careful detailing. The fender lines and cowl-induction rise look even better from the driver seat than they do from the outside. The dash is higher than you'll find in garden-variety cars, and the roof line is low. Peters watches us getting the feel of his creation and asks another question. "Do you think the roof is too low? We're getting some internal people saying they want a higher roof."
Before we answer, we wonder how Harley Earl or Bill Mitchell might respond. Those guys knew design, and they wouldn't let comments from hand-wringing, prune-faced marketing wonks screw up their designs. Thinking that discretion is the better part of diplomacy, we tell him to leave the roof line alone. So you'll have to stop a few feet farther back from a traffic light. That's not a good enough reason to alter a shape that is so obviously spot-on.
On the throttle
Granted clearance by the track monitors, we move out. The clutch's take-up is smooth. The cabin fills with the sound of the tuned exhaust and the familiar Tremec gear noise. Short shifting into 2nd gear, the all-aluminum 400-horsepower LS-2 V8 (lifted from a Corvette) pulls strongly. We had expected the concept to be a veritable rattletrap, being hand-assembled and all. And we love being wrong about things like this. A heavily modified Cadillac STS underpins the Camaro, and bits from many rear-wheel-drive General Motors vehicles were used to make the concept drivable. The result is surprisingly good and delivers a taut, virtually rattle-free ride.
While Chevrolet PR categorically forbade slaloming or full-throttle bursts of acceleration, Peters did let us push the car a bit. Steering response was crisp and cornering was pancake flat. The front struts were firmly calibrated, and the independent rear suspension tracked along as if it were painstakingly developed solely for this application. The huge 21- and 22-inch Goodyears did their jobs without protest. Performing as it always has, the 5.7-liter V8 provided far more power than we ventured to tap, fearing instant ejection from the grounds and permanent blacklisting by GM. Monster 14-inch front rotors easily burned off the modest speeds we achieved.
To that point, none of the gauges in the Camaro concept worked, so we don't know how fast we were driving. The climate control didn't work either. And the exterior and interior mirrors were fixed in spots that look great from the outside, but proved utterly useless for the driver. This is what driving a "concept" is like. The car's purpose is to point to what could be, not to be what could be.
After a good hour behind the wheel, we gave up the reins. Pressing the red button again killed the V8. We climbed out, seeing the threatening storm clouds gathering in the rural Michigan skies. Wanting to take in the shape one more time before it disappeared into its garage out of the rain, we turned its way a final time. With natural light spilling off its surfaces, the look was unmistakably Detroit. No other city could turn out a shape like this and call it their own.
Walking out with Peters, we ask the question he's fielded a thousand times since the Camaro concept's January introduction in Detroit: "So, are you going to build it?" Peters answers in kind, "If you were Bob Lutz or Rick Wagoner, what would you do? I mean, come on. After the reception this car has gotten…you answer that question for yourself."
We answer, "Yes." But that's always been our answer. It's time for the General to step up and make it official.
See the images and a video HERE
06-19-2006
And you thought it looked good spinning on a turntable under the electric lights at your local auto show? Well, the 2006 Chevrolet Camaro Concept looks even hotter rolling on asphalt under a bright, open sky. And it drives pretty darned well, too.
The bow-tie folks at Chevy invited us out to General Motors' Milford Proving Grounds to test-drive the Camaro concept. Next to the expansive Black Lake skid pad, we had the smooth North Loop all to ourselves. Its gentle curves and moderately long straights gave us ample room to sample the Camaro concept at speed. Not high speed, but moving at least.
Naturally, GM provided a vehicular chaperone to babysit our enthusiasm. Our "overseer" was none other than Tom Peters, director of GM's rear-wheel-drive production studio. For those needing a translation of Peters' title, he's the design boss who directed the Camaro concept's birthing.
On the pavement
We walk around the car before getting in. The shoulders on the top edge of the rear fenders are huge…perfectly huge. The gas cap is beautiful. Peters is particularly fond of the areas featuring the most complex compound curves; where the front fender and hood flow together over the headlights, and where the rear fenders flow into the trunk lid. "It takes a really special person to get surfaces like these just right," Peters announces, obviously grateful and proud of his team's work. He's right. When you look at those two areas up close and personal, there's a lot going on, with multiple lines and panels coming together.
On the inside
Wanting to get in, we look quizzically at the flush-mounted, thin door handle. How do it work? Peters presses the trailing edge of the chrome bar in and the leading edge pops out. The long door opens wide to a beautifully detailed interior. We duck under the low roof line. First impression: The driver seat is way too high off the floor. A show-car compromise, Peters tells us. The only adjustment is fore/aft.
Regardless, we settle in. The beefy steering wheel frames circular gauges recessed within chromed rectangles. The wheel feels good, the pedals are well placed and the huge ball atop the Tremec T56 six-speed manual falls to our grip. So far, so good.
Peters directs us to clutch in and press the red button to the right of the steering column. Brrraaaammmm! The Hounds of Hell sound pretty good. (If only Chevrolet could bottle the sound from those quad pipes….) "We worked a long time getting it to sound like that. Do you think it's too loud?" Peters asks. We shake our heads "no" and just smile.
As we look out over the long hood to see if we're cleared for takeoff by Milford's flight personnel, we notice its careful detailing. The fender lines and cowl-induction rise look even better from the driver seat than they do from the outside. The dash is higher than you'll find in garden-variety cars, and the roof line is low. Peters watches us getting the feel of his creation and asks another question. "Do you think the roof is too low? We're getting some internal people saying they want a higher roof."
Before we answer, we wonder how Harley Earl or Bill Mitchell might respond. Those guys knew design, and they wouldn't let comments from hand-wringing, prune-faced marketing wonks screw up their designs. Thinking that discretion is the better part of diplomacy, we tell him to leave the roof line alone. So you'll have to stop a few feet farther back from a traffic light. That's not a good enough reason to alter a shape that is so obviously spot-on.
On the throttle
Granted clearance by the track monitors, we move out. The clutch's take-up is smooth. The cabin fills with the sound of the tuned exhaust and the familiar Tremec gear noise. Short shifting into 2nd gear, the all-aluminum 400-horsepower LS-2 V8 (lifted from a Corvette) pulls strongly. We had expected the concept to be a veritable rattletrap, being hand-assembled and all. And we love being wrong about things like this. A heavily modified Cadillac STS underpins the Camaro, and bits from many rear-wheel-drive General Motors vehicles were used to make the concept drivable. The result is surprisingly good and delivers a taut, virtually rattle-free ride.
While Chevrolet PR categorically forbade slaloming or full-throttle bursts of acceleration, Peters did let us push the car a bit. Steering response was crisp and cornering was pancake flat. The front struts were firmly calibrated, and the independent rear suspension tracked along as if it were painstakingly developed solely for this application. The huge 21- and 22-inch Goodyears did their jobs without protest. Performing as it always has, the 5.7-liter V8 provided far more power than we ventured to tap, fearing instant ejection from the grounds and permanent blacklisting by GM. Monster 14-inch front rotors easily burned off the modest speeds we achieved.
To that point, none of the gauges in the Camaro concept worked, so we don't know how fast we were driving. The climate control didn't work either. And the exterior and interior mirrors were fixed in spots that look great from the outside, but proved utterly useless for the driver. This is what driving a "concept" is like. The car's purpose is to point to what could be, not to be what could be.
After a good hour behind the wheel, we gave up the reins. Pressing the red button again killed the V8. We climbed out, seeing the threatening storm clouds gathering in the rural Michigan skies. Wanting to take in the shape one more time before it disappeared into its garage out of the rain, we turned its way a final time. With natural light spilling off its surfaces, the look was unmistakably Detroit. No other city could turn out a shape like this and call it their own.
Walking out with Peters, we ask the question he's fielded a thousand times since the Camaro concept's January introduction in Detroit: "So, are you going to build it?" Peters answers in kind, "If you were Bob Lutz or Rick Wagoner, what would you do? I mean, come on. After the reception this car has gotten…you answer that question for yourself."
We answer, "Yes." But that's always been our answer. It's time for the General to step up and make it official.
See the images and a video HERE
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