Well, the racing season has begun, so I have racing cars on the brain. And when the Camaro comes up, naturally I think about the unveiling of the 2010 Chevy Camaro SS that will pace the 2010 Indianapolis 500 in May. The official unveiling took place in December.
It turns out that the Camaro has paced the Indy 500 a bunch of times: 1967, 1969, 1982 and 1993. What interests me is the comparison with the 1969 Camaro SS, since the look of the '69 model inspired the 2010 model. (Actually GM designer Bob Boniface originally conceived a car based on the 1970 Camaro, but the GM execs decided that the '69 model was the proper starting point, since they were old and the '69 Camaro is the one that all the old guys collect.)
So maybe a simple comparison between the 1969 Camaro SS and the 2010 Camaro SS can give us an idea of what might have been lost (or gained) in translation.
1969 Chevrolet Camaro SS
OHV V8 5733cc/350 cu-in
300 hp @ 4,800 rpm; 380 lb-ft @ 3,200 rpm
Length 186.6 inches
Width 72.3 inches
Height 50.9 inches
Weight 3,174 pounds
Top speed 121 mph
2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS
OHV V8 6162cc/376 cu-in
400 hp @ 5,900 rpm; 420 lb-ft @ 4,600 rpm
Length 190.4 inches
Width 75.5 inches
Height 54.2 inches
Weight 3,857 pounds
Top speed 155 mph
Michael Jordan, Executive Editor @ 11,455 miles
roadburner says:
09:08 AM, 02/ 9/10
"(Actually GM designer Bob Boniface originally conceived a car based on the 1970 Camaro, but the GM execs decided that the '69 model was the proper starting point, since they were old and the '69 Camaro is the one that all the old guys collect.)"
The 1970-1972 Camaros were the most beautiful Ponycars ever built. The new Challenger and Camaro look like life-size Hot Wheels- almost, but not quite a parody of the originals.
dougtheeng says:
09:29 AM, 02/ 9/10
Shame they picked orange.
bankerdanny says:
09:35 AM, 02/ 9/10
I think the 70-72 Camaro and Firebird were the best looking of those models. But I think the 69-70 Mustang fastback and the 67-69 Barracuda notchback Coupes are the best looking pony cars ever.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1967-plymouth-barracuda.jpg
hybris says:
09:45 AM, 02/ 9/10
Is the 2010 Camaros speed limited to 155 or is that the absolute max that V8 can do?
roadburner says:
11:35 AM, 02/ 9/10
bankerdanny,
I'd take a 1970 Boss 302 or a 1969 Formula S 340.
bankerdanny says:
11:42 AM, 02/ 9/10
Roadburner, I'm with you on the Boss, but Firebird wise I'd rather have a '71 Formula 400. I love the jet plane nose and ram air intakes.
bankerdanny says:
11:44 AM, 02/ 9/10
Oh, and isn't the 2010 SS rated at 426hp, not 400?
bimmerjay says:
12:30 PM, 02/ 9/10
I'm assuming the '69 Camaro's numbers are the old-school gross[ly overrated] numbers compared to the SAE net numbers on the '10. How fast was the featherweight '69?
Side note - I didn't realize how high up the rev band the new one makes its numbers. Somewhat surprising for a cam-in-block engine.
1487 says:
12:36 PM, 02/ 9/10
bimmerjay:
All of the current LS based V8s are like that. The OHV V8s in GM's trucks have a higher redline than some DOHC V8s in other trucks and torque peaks lower in those DOHC V8s. In addition the LS3 redlines higher than the current 4.6L SOHC V8 in the Mustang or the 5.4L in the GT500.
formerhpb says:
01:00 PM, 02/ 9/10
Is the 2010 Camaros speed limited to 155 or is that the absolute max that V8 can do?
It's speed limited. My G8 GT is limited to the same. I'm sure it could do more than that easily.
bodyblue says:
02:55 PM, 02/ 9/10
"Roadburner, I'm with you on the Boss, but Firebird wise I'd rather have a '71 Formula 400. I love the jet plane nose and ram air intakes."
The 340 Formula S is a Baracuda not a Firebird. On a side note I always loved Formula 400's
subytrojan says:
03:36 PM, 02/ 9/10
1993 Indy 500 Camaro Z28 pace car FTW! :o)
http://www.zorly.com/images_camaro/08/09/16/Camaro%20Z28%201993%20Indianapolis%20500%20pace%20car%20-%20commons.jpg
bankerdanny says:
06:55 PM, 02/ 9/10
Ah, thanks for the clarification. While I really like the Barracuda, I don't really know that much about that generation.
kingfish4 says:
07:05 PM, 02/ 9/10
formerhpb-
The G8GT limiter kicks in at 137-140mph
I know;)
It is only turning about 3500 in 6th at that speed. I've read that when the limiter is removed/reprogrammed top speed is in the 170-175 mph range, possibly more before drag kicks in. It is very stable at 137 though.
roadburner says:
07:26 PM, 02/ 9/10
"I'm assuming the '69 Camaro's numbers are the old-school gross[ly overrated] numbers compared to the SAE net numbers on the '10. How fast was the featherweight '69?"
The actual net hp of the 350 was closer to 200. It wasn't all that quick by either 1969 or 2010 standards; 0-60 mph in around 7.5 sec and 15.4@90 for the quarter.