Holden Confirms Camaro Is Coming
The long talked about will they-won’t they car from GM is confirmed. The Camaro is coming but there’s a catch. Of course. Ford US is building the Mustang in both left and right hand forms and therefore is able to amortise the cost. Here in Australia that lands in 5.0L form at somewhere north of $60K. Holden has confirmed the Camaro, to be imported and converted to right hand drive, at $85,990 recommended retail. THEN there are government charges to be added so it’s a fair bet to say it’ll be over $90K. It effectively has the legendary nameplate of Mustang at something like $20K LESS than the car GM brought out in the mid 1960s to compete against the “pony car”.
However there are one or two tempters. The Mustang has a four cylinder or a 5.0L V8. The Camaro will be fitted with a V8 only and at 6.2L is over a litre bigger in capacity. That will translate to a potentially better driving experience for some, as the torque output is 617Nm, a full 61Nm better than the Ford product. Peak power is the same, apparently, at 339kW but of course you’ll need to drive around at something like 6000rpm to take advantage of those. The sole transmission choice is an eight speed auto, complete with paddle shifts. Specification will be the GM speak “2SS” and metallics only will be the paint choice. Bose audio will feature inside, as will a heated tiller.
Thankfully there will be vented leather seats, an under-rated part of the equipment list for Australian spec cars that come with leather seats in the Australian heat. There will be an eight inch touchscreen for sound and controls, whilst outside the Camaro will roll on twenty inch diameter alloys wrapping Brembo stoppers. Rubber will come from Goodyear and will be their Eagle tyres, and at a hefty 245/40 front and 275/35 rear combination grip levels shouldn’t be a problem.
Current first year delivery figures are expected to be between just five hundred to six hundred. This is purely down to Holden Special Vehicles getting a handle on the conversion process. “Our business model has always been to provide a niche offering with strong connection and support to our customers and, with just 550 available in our first model year, we are excited to get the product in customers’ hands.” says HSV managing director, Tim Jackson.
Expected deliveries are due to start in the next few weeks.
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