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Old 03-15-2012, 06:37 PM   #65
PYROLYSIS
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Drives: 2004 KME PREDATOR, 2014 2SS/RS/1LE
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Summerv1LE SC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by black34v6 View Post
They can't use the split bumper design from the early 1970 Camaro because of crash safety standards. This was why the 1970-era Camaros ditched this idea, to comply with government crash safety standards; I don't see GM trying to make anything good come of that.

Also - the 1969 Camaro cars are lighter than today's cars because crash safety standards have gone up and there is more material in the doors and the car all around. This makes the entire car heavier as a whole and then the skin added to the car just adds to the weight. You have to go to great lengths to keep car weight down and push the Camaro slowly into the area the Corvette is in, and this will drive the price upwards as well.

Using carbon fiber is a good idea for weight savings - and it's fairly strong compared to the fiberglass and urethane that is used on the cars currently. It should go a long way towards fixing the weight issue. But you have to come to expect it - all cars are getting heavier due to compliance with new safety regulations.

The elephant in the room seems to be that while cars are getting safer, they are burning more gas because they are heavier, and it will take more powerful engines to push these heavy cars down the road. So while they tout EPA numbers - the problem is that it's harder to meet CAFE requirements if they are just making cars heavier and heavier. Maybe instead of just adding material they should figure out how to reinforce the structure better so that they can add less and it will hold its shape better in a crash.

Just my thoughts on the matter - I could be wrong.

-R
As far as I know the 2nd gen body was changed to adapt to the $500 bumper law. It was a bigger challenge back then and shouldn't be a problem now. They can pretty much build whatever they dream up as long as the aerodynamics aren't too crazy.
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