LOL

When exactly is the contract up anyway with that plant?? I still wonder though if the current GM can make the Camaro people are looking for. It seems they can't make anything exactly the way it should be recently.



[This message has been edited by IZ28 (edited August 13, 2002).]

 

all depends..alot of people want a more upright retro camaro.

 

no.... to the infinite power...

 

Seems the only people who oppose a more upright Camaro are the ones that like the current 4th gen.

 

And third and second gens.

 

......and first.

 

I have it from a very reliable source that Solstice is currently a "GO." But I guess that could change....

Delta has been killed, according to the latest reports.

I would LOVE to see Pontiac get the Solstice, and, furthermore, I don't think it has anything to do with the fate of an F5.

I love the Camaro.... BUT GM has a lot more to worry about at the moment.

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"THE F_O_G HAS RISEN, AND WITH IT BEGINS THE DAWN OF A NEW ERA."

1967-2002, Thanks for 35 years of prestige and performance...... We look forward to the FUTURE.

 

It's pretty safe to say that Solstice comming to production is a given. Pontiac as well as Bob Lutz want it as badly if not moreso than Chevy wants a Camaro, so unless something caves in, it'll be on the market within a few years.

Chris, Camaro hasn't always been a substantial car. It was orginally based on a ChevyII, (red, they did share cowl & floorpan, although the front subframe was new), and from 69 till gen 3 came was basically a rebodied Nova (both GM's smallest car till Vega).

Branden, I wouldn't put much stock in the person who told you about Solstice being more like Miata than anything else, since he didn't state what anything else he meant & that Solstice's "had no place even in the same room as the Camaro" statement is alot like comparing an Escalade to a PT Cruizer. Not exactly strative of grasping the concept of different target markets.

Just the same, I'm not a Solstice fan, and I'm not likely to buy one (though the coupe is interesting). However, I think it's good GM is looking to compete in something other than the SUV or rental car market. I'm still suspect at the proposed $25K pricetag, but we'll see. Yet, if we are looking for a lowslung rear drive Camaro, I think Solstice may be the ticket. Or even more accurate, if Pontiac & Mr. Lutz want a Solstice, they will have to upsize it and put a volume car on that chassis to make it financially viable IMHO.

Now, about DEW. Ford hasn't stripped any luxury "crap" out of the DEW chassis to make the S197. Instead, it's going to be a bit of a modified hybrd in a way the 3rd gen Camaro was. Mustang is set to have a new independent rear suspension called "control blade suspension" (CBS).

The DEW chassis with it's forged alumunum pieces would be costly on a Mustang, and to cast those piece in steel or iron would drive up weight. Instead Ford came up with components (based on Focus of all things!) that is cheap to produce and relatively light weight. Also, the DEW chassis has it's fuel tank under the rear seat in front of the rear axle which would have made a true dual exhaust system impossible.

 

I own a 4th Gen, have owned 3- thirdgens, my dad has owned a 1st gen (69 Z28), and my mom has owned a 2nd gen (75 camaro350 i think), and we all agree...against making it look like a stang with its sedan-like upright seating.
I would sacrifice by having a hump in the floor and single pipe exhaust for ANOTHER generation of Fbodys, as long as it doesnt have the profile of an Accord or mustang.



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my Ex-Xtreme
the truck has been traded in on 5-22-02(my 20th Bday) for a:
'98 Z28 M6- red/white leather, TTops, completely stock, 37k miles

 

I agree. The Camaro is a real all around musclecar that is meant to do more than just straightline acceleration. Handling and aerodynamics have always been a part of the Camaro, which the M*****g still hasn't figured out yet.

 

More on Solstice (thecarconnection):
"PONTIAC SOLSTICE ON TRACK FOR PRODUCTION?
While there are still a number of obstacles to overcome, there’s a strong and growing likelihood General Motors will put the well-received Pontiac Solstice into production. If all goes well, “you could see it 24 months from now,” said Advanced Vehicle Development Director Mark Hogan, though he stressed, “That’s got a ton of reach in it.” One of the critical goals is to keep a production version as close as possible in look and feel to the sporty two-seater that debuted at the Detroit auto show last January. That would include the futuristic double-bubble fairings and the 240-horsepower, turbocharged L-850 engine of the concept convertible. “The goal is to bring it in at under $20,000” for the base , which would likely be a 160-hp version, added Hogan."

 

GM roadster faces 4 big hurdles

Automotive News 08/19/02
author: Peter Brown

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - If General
Motors approves the Pontiac Solstice roadster as a production car, it will be small, affordable and international. GM is "within spitting distance" of deciding whether to produce the car, which was a star of the Detroit auto show in January, said Mark Hogan, GM group vice president for advanced vehicle development. Vice Chairman Robert Lutz said the big challenge is fitting the roadster into GM's investment plans. To succeed with the Solstice, Lutz said in an interview at a press event here, the project needs several attributes: 1. A four-cylinder engine and rear-wheel drive, which would require a new or substantially altered vehicle architecture. 2. Manually operated convertible roof and windows, to hold down cost. 3. A version for GM's Adam Opel AG subsidiary in Europe. 4. A price below that of the Mazda Miata, whose 2002 base price is $21,800, including the destination charge. The up-level Miata LS starts at $24,600. Investment and price are key, Lutz said. "If we do a Honda S2000," he said, "all we will have proved is that we can do a good car for $30,000." The company is considering development of a rwd architecture for the Solstice, the Chevrolet Bel Air concept and an Opel. At GM, architecture refers to a vehicle's chassis, dimensions and major components, along with their connecting points and assembly sequence. Lutz has discussed the project with Opel Chairman Carl-Peter Forster. Separately, Forster said he likes the concept, but the Solstice's rounded lines would need to be adapted to the more "edgy" Opel design. Forster said he wants the roadster to have more than a four-cylinder engine eventually. He said he would like to see six cylinders or even eight. Hogan said the car and any derivative would be built in one plant rather than in both Europe and North America. He declined to name the region of manufacture. GM executives have discussed producing the proposed cars on an altered version of the Delta small-car architecture or doing them on their own unique rwd architecture. Hogan described the architecture that would be required for the rwd Solstice as "Delta with a tunnel" - that is, Delta architecture with the driveshaft running to the back wheels. If the Solstice is approved, it would continue a big product turnover at Pontiac. In the 2004 model year, Pontiac will get a powerful V-8 rwd version of GM's Holden Monaro that will be sold as the Pontiac GTO. The Grand Prix will be restyled and re-engineered in the 2004 model year, and
the Grand Am will be redesigned a year later.

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If it breaks, it wasn't high performance enough.

2001 Mustang Bullitt GT
2000 Jetta M5

 

The front end of the car is just ugly as sin.

 

Please don't tell me they are considering producing the Frumpmobile AKA Bel-Air concept as it was shown at NAIAS????

------------------
Mark

94 Z28, Red, A4, 3:23
Lone Mods--LPE CAI, !Lapeer Dragway.
(Hey, I'm a college boy I can't afford gobs of bolt-ons!)

Best time: 14.658 @ 95.1
with SES light on and Driver off! (First and only time at track)

The F-body will NEVER die.