CAMARO6 - View Single Post - Has GM dropped the ball with the 6th gen?

MikeT · 02-08-2015, 01:02 AM

In my opinion, yes, they have dropped the ball. In the current hyper-competitive, internet-savvy automobile marketplace, you've got to keep folks interested. You've got to throw out a few bones. Pre-release hype is part of the game now. If you want to have a vehicle that sells well out of the gate, you've got to build interest for months in advance. You want a car that gets people down to the dealership demanding to be put on a waiting list to pre-order it before there's even an order guide. Let's admit it. The Mustang had that in December 2013.

Is there ANYONE out there who is bugging their dealer to be put on a waiting list to buy the next Camaro? I seriously doubt it.

Sure, GM has put out the camo cars, and that's something. But after a while, they get stale. For the most part GM has played this one very close to the vest... too close to the vest.

Now, of course, some folks don't care and have the attitude, 'I'm in no hurry. It'll come out when it comes out.' Maybe these are people who aren't really in the market for a car in the near-future. Or maybe they're folks who are so loyal to the Camaro brand that they're not even tempted by competitive vehicles, and they're totally okay with getting little or no information about the car. And that's awesome for them... and for GM.

But then there are some buyers who are on the fence. Maybe they want a new car sooner rather than later. Maybe they're interested in the new Camaro... but maybe they're also tempted by the Mustang or the Challenger or a truck or a BMW or whatever. Maybe they've held off on those other vehicles because they first want to see what the new Camaro has to offer. At a certain point, some of these folks say, 'Screw it. I'm tired of waiting. I'm going to go ahead and buy something else.' And it's this group of people that GM risks alienating with their super-duper-double-secret-probation approach to this car.

Bottom line... I just don't think that GM has done enough to build interest in this upcoming vehicle.

Now, of course, maybe the new Camaro will be so undeniably awesome that when it does come out that none of this will matter. It will sell itself even with minimal advance publicity. That's possible... but I wouldn't bet the farm on it.

02-08-2015, 01:02 AM	#23
MikeT Drives: 2008 Malibu V6 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: California Posts: 280	In my opinion, yes, they have dropped the ball. In the current hyper-competitive, internet-savvy automobile marketplace, you've got to keep folks interested. You've got to throw out a few bones. Pre-release hype is part of the game now. If you want to have a vehicle that sells well out of the gate, you've got to build interest for months in advance. You want a car that gets people down to the dealership demanding to be put on a waiting list to pre-order it before there's even an order guide. Let's admit it. The Mustang had that in December 2013. Is there ANYONE out there who is bugging their dealer to be put on a waiting list to buy the next Camaro? I seriously doubt it. Sure, GM has put out the camo cars, and that's something. But after a while, they get stale. For the most part GM has played this one very close to the vest... too close to the vest. Now, of course, some folks don't care and have the attitude, 'I'm in no hurry. It'll come out when it comes out.' Maybe these are people who aren't really in the market for a car in the near-future. Or maybe they're folks who are so loyal to the Camaro brand that they're not even tempted by competitive vehicles, and they're totally okay with getting little or no information about the car. And that's awesome for them... and for GM. But then there are some buyers who are on the fence. Maybe they want a new car sooner rather than later. Maybe they're interested in the new Camaro... but maybe they're also tempted by the Mustang or the Challenger or a truck or a BMW or whatever. Maybe they've held off on those other vehicles because they first want to see what the new Camaro has to offer. At a certain point, some of these folks say, 'Screw it. I'm tired of waiting. I'm going to go ahead and buy something else.' And it's this group of people that GM risks alienating with their super-duper-double-secret-probation approach to this car. Bottom line... I just don't think that GM has done enough to build interest in this upcoming vehicle. Now, of course, maybe the new Camaro will be so undeniably awesome that when it does come out that none of this will matter. It will sell itself even with minimal advance publicity. That's possible... but I wouldn't bet the farm on it.