Corvettes and Mustangs

[Joe L.]

Re: Corvettes and Mustangs

Tom-----

The styling cues are so subtle nad "extrapolated" that, for all practical purposes, they're a non-issue. In fact, I think that you might find similar styling cues from previous Corvettes in other cars which aren't even made by GM.

[Joe L.]

Re: price killed the Camaro

Mark-----

The Camaro was more-or-less price competitive with the Mustang if you compare "apples-to-apples". If you compare a Z-28 Camaro with a base Mustang, of course the Camaro is going to be much more expensive. Also, with the incentives which GM offered on the Camaro during its last years of life, the Camaro was a bargain compared to the Mustang (for which Ford rarely offered incentives). Plus, the Camaro offered way more power and a chassis that was FAR more modern than the Mustang. A 6 speed manual transmission was offered, too, compared to the Mustang's old 5 speed.

[Joe L.]

Re: price killed the Camaro

Mark-----

The Camaro was more-or-less price competitive with the Mustang if you compare "apples-to-apples". If you compare a Z-28 Camaro with a base Mustang, of course the Camaro is going to be much more expensive. Also, with the incentives which GM offered on the Camaro during its last years of life, the Camaro was a bargain compared to the Mustang (for which Ford rarely offered incentives). Plus, the Camaro offered way more power and a chassis that was FAR more modern than the Mustang. A 6 speed manual transmission was offered, too, compared to the Mustang's old 5 speed.

[Joe L.]

Re: Corvettes and Mustangs

Mark-----

Yes, there were many styling changes for the Mustang. However, every single one, including the Mustang II (which was the car that almost resulted in the Mustang's demise that you referred to), were "unmistakably Mustang". Just about anyone could tell the family lineage at a glance.

[Joe L.]

Re: Corvettes and Mustangs

Mark-----

Yes, there were many styling changes for the Mustang. However, every single one, including the Mustang II (which was the car that almost resulted in the Mustang's demise that you referred to), were "unmistakably Mustang". Just about anyone could tell the family lineage at a glance.

[Chas Kingston]

Re: price killed the Camaro

Real Corvettes have straight axles, not rubber ones (Per O. Dale Pearman).

Geezer

[Chas Kingston]

Re: price killed the Camaro

Real Corvettes have straight axles, not rubber ones (Per O. Dale Pearman).

Geezer

[Dave Suesz]

[Dave Suesz]

[Clem Z.]

i had a couple of those. *NM*

[Clem Z.]

i had a couple of those. *NM*

[Michael W.]

Re: price killed the Camaro

True enough Geeze, but he always said it with a twinkle in his eye. There's too many A/R types around that like to repeat that phrase (and similar) in complete sincerity.

[Michael W.]

Re: price killed the Camaro

True enough Geeze, but he always said it with a twinkle in his eye. There's too many A/R types around that like to repeat that phrase (and similar) in complete sincerity.

[Joe L.]

Re: Original C6 design Rejected? (rear)

Michael-----

Yes, I'm familiar with this one. This would have been a TRUE "retro" car. FAR too "retro" to ever have been built. It would have been HUGE HIT, but, unfortunately, only to a VERY, VERY small number of customers. It would have ensured the death of the Corvette.

What really happened to the Corvette that "changed its design course for all-time" happened in 1963. The revolutionary change in design did two things. First, it set up the expectation that all Corvette redesigns would be revolutionary in nature. Second, and most important, it established a situation where any attempt by designers to "recapture" styling from previous Corvettes would be considered "retro" (generally considered a "suicidal" thing in the car business). In other words, once the "mold was cast" in 1963, there was no going back. From then on, Corvette redesigns would need to be total with only the nameplate carried forward. The first "evolutionary" redesign happened for 2005 and look how that was received (i.e "C5-1/2").

The same thing happened with the Camaro. The mystique of the original 67-69 Camaro "died" with the 1970 redesign. No subsequent redesign could ever capture the mystique again. The Camaro became a "Flying Dutchman" seeking an "identity" and it never happened. After the 1970 redesign, it just wasn't possible to capture the original design or mystique again without doing a "retro" thing which also probably wouldn't have been accepted. For GM, it was then a case of "damned if you do and damned if you don't". The Camaro couldn't survive in the long term with only a name-plate carried forward. So, the Camaro died. It just could never recover from the 1970 redesign, as great as the 1970 redesign was.

The Mustang never suffered that fate. It never had a revolutionary redesign. The Gen I Mustang was first produced for 1964. They haven't gotten to Gen II yet!

[Joe L.]

Re: Original C6 design Rejected? (rear)

Michael-----

Yes, I'm familiar with this one. This would have been a TRUE "retro" car. FAR too "retro" to ever have been built. It would have been HUGE HIT, but, unfortunately, only to a VERY, VERY small number of customers. It would have ensured the death of the Corvette.

What really happened to the Corvette that "changed its design course for all-time" happened in 1963. The revolutionary change in design did two things. First, it set up the expectation that all Corvette redesigns would be revolutionary in nature. Second, and most important, it established a situation where any attempt by designers to "recapture" styling from previous Corvettes would be considered "retro" (generally considered a "suicidal" thing in the car business). In other words, once the "mold was cast" in 1963, there was no going back. From then on, Corvette redesigns would need to be total with only the nameplate carried forward. The first "evolutionary" redesign happened for 2005 and look how that was received (i.e "C5-1/2").

The same thing happened with the Camaro. The mystique of the original 67-69 Camaro "died" with the 1970 redesign. No subsequent redesign could ever capture the mystique again. The Camaro became a "Flying Dutchman" seeking an "identity" and it never happened. After the 1970 redesign, it just wasn't possible to capture the original design or mystique again without doing a "retro" thing which also probably wouldn't have been accepted. For GM, it was then a case of "damned if you do and damned if you don't". The Camaro couldn't survive in the long term with only a name-plate carried forward. So, the Camaro died. It just could never recover from the 1970 redesign, as great as the 1970 redesign was.

The Mustang never suffered that fate. It never had a revolutionary redesign. The Gen I Mustang was first produced for 1964. They haven't gotten to Gen II yet!