2010 Chevrolet Camaro: The Story Till Now

That article pretty much sucked. The LS3 is a 6.2 not a 6.0. There is NO way the production spec v8 powered Camaro is running a 9.x lap on the ring at full tilt (that car was likely testing handling and NVH at low speeds). And the LT moniker likely won't appear on the 5th gen either (it hasn't been used since the late 70s while the RS designation was a separate model as late as 92 and was a package as late as 97).

Agreed, this article SUCKED. "The story till now" is NOT a story at all; it's just a short string of observations of some mule spotted testing in Germany.

Since the car was on full display in last summer's blockbuster Transformers, camouflage is a moot point.

They probably should've kept it out of that movie and covered up until its launch, that way its looks wouldn't seem so stale today. Well, its not stale necessarily, it still looks good but being out in the open for the past two years haven't helped.

You mean the fiberglass covered GTO built to look like the concept was in the movie. The production spec car is still not completely known.

I have a long heritage in Camaros, but damn am I tired of seeing "spy" photos of the car. I've seen this car so much in photos that seeing it on the road will probably be anti-climactic. By the time GM gets it out, it will be time for a refresh/redesign!

I hope the car does well, but goodness gracious GM -- next time, be a hell of a lot more secretive!

utah,

They already do. They are called Think Tanks, consumer focus groups, pre-production screening etc...

These methods work well and provide the manufacturer with meaningful feedback based on the opinions of owners of that brand and/or people in the market for that type of vehicle.

Removing camo from the get-go is pointless, manufacturers want to keep a car's appearance fresh at launch, and they don't need the opinions of 16 year-old boys on an Internet forum to tell them how to design a car.

That's what paid designers are for, you know, the ones that have undergone years of training and design education and can predict and create future design trends...

It is also too costly to just 'change' a car's styling a few months before production begins, as suppliers and tooling have to already be finalised prior.

Desperate to disagree? I've held these beliefs for a long time, and shared them before- you aren't the only one to question the transparency (or lack thereof) of a car's development process.

I believe I may have ruffled your feathers, as your were less than impressed with what I had to say. So, instead of me rebutting your statements, I'll leave it to another Autospies contributor who replied to EnnNorak a while back on similar issues. I believe he put it very succinctly and backed up the original statements I made in that thread:

From DW1968:
"EnnNorak--

The issue isn't the relationship between the automakers and their retail customers--in fact, most luxury automakers engage their retail customers with special preview events and offers.

The issue is the relationship with automakers and their competitors. When a market reaches saturation / commoditization (such as the auto industry has, relatively), they need as many differentiating competitive advantages as they can get.

If you don't like that model, then you will need to find some insiders to provide you with inside details confidentially, or you'll learn to live on the back side of the early adopter curve."

For context, see top of this thread:
http://www.autospies.com/news/Latest-7-Series-Photos-With-Less-Camoflage-Than-Ever-28319/

So to put it more simply: Manufacturers need their secrecy to maintain any advantage they have in the marketplace. Public transparency would dilute this advantage.

There are plenty of more points that could be raised on this issue, but I wouldn't like to get in an argument ;)

Utahnkid,

I participated in a focus group on the Chrysler 300 back in 2002. It included a wide range of people, from business owners to executives and women and men in uniform (it was in San Diego). Uniformly, everyone said the car looked like a Bentley or like the kind of car old-school gangsters would use. The interior had the tortoise shell steering wheel, which the women loved but the men seemed to think was kind of sissyfied. When the car debuted to the public, there were only detail changes, and the steering wheel was part of an options package. The car looked even better. My point is when car companies do listen to the public, it is only for small things like what we were able to give our opinions on.
If only we had complained about all the hard plastic!

They need to get rid of those orange turn signals pronto...if not, I will bet you anything they change that for the midlife refresh...

I bet the orange turn signals are just on there because they are required in both Europe and Australia. The US model will most likely not have those.

Quickie-mart robbers and trailer park managers, your car is almost ready.

I agree with gooch !! This is the only vehicle I can recall that is not new anymore and it hasn't even come out in production yet !!

Time to re-design it before they release it !!!