[Hrothgar]

Thanks for letting me participate on your Boards, hopefully, I can contribute some worthwhile content while I am here.

Part of the reason I joined actually was because I have decided to order a 2022 Camaro, largely because the current new and used market seems a little nutty to me. I have found some very useful insights reading up on the threads, especially as it pertains to the current market for the Camaro.

I wanted to share some insight, and welcome some honest critique of my opinion of what this all means for the future of our beloved 6th gen Camaro.

So, we are all here because we love and have a passion for this car. Its a fantastic handling platform, one of the best sports/muscle cars ever built in the US. It has its shortcomings, but they are relatively minor compared to its strengths. With that being said, GM has not committed to a 7th gen Camaro, and largely reassigned the original design team to other projects. The reality, especially when considering the dwindling sales numbers compared to the Challenger and Mustang, is that next year 2023 will likely be the final year of production, until, perhaps, an EV vehicle with under the Camaro nameplate debuts at some point in the future. And then, we can all debate or not whether that vehicle is really a Camaro or not.

However, what I see in the marketplace today may actually impact how long the 6th gen Camaro stays around for, and it may not be good news.

First, the primary market for "New" Camaros is very hot, as there is basically no supply. I did a search on Cars.com a week ago for "New" 1SS or 2SS Nationwide, and the number returned was 72. In total. In the whole country. Most are advertised at MSRP, or even higher in some cases. So, clearly, there is still demand out there for the vehicle.

Second, the secondary/used car market for Camaros is extremely strong. Personally, I think it is too strong, at least to be sustainable, however, with production of new vehicles stopped (again) until at least June/July, if you want a Camaro, you don't have many options. However, when people start selling their 2-3 year old cars to online dealers for MORE than they paid when new, it's not a trend that sustain itself in my belief. Personally, I think it may end badly for the VROOMs and Carvanas of the world, especially if the supply of New cars ever returns to pre-COVID levels, but that's a discussion for a different day.

So, simply from a demand perspective, the future of the 6th gen Camaro seems pretty good. However, let's look at the supply-side of things.

Companies/Corporations act in their own self-interest, and in the interest of their shareholders, which by and large means they seek out modes and methods of maximizing profit, and when they find a "sweet spot" that accomplishes that, they tend to ride the wave as long as possible. Its no secret that GM recorded a record profit in 2020, despite revenue actually declining from the year before. This might seem counter-intuitive, but when supply is constrained, you don't have to be as generous with your incentives to get vehicles to move.

We all know of the plant closures that have affected the Camaro platform, as they continue through today and into the foreseeable future. The Camaro is not a priority Platform for GM, as they have not kept building them through the microchip shortages, unlike the Silverados, Tahoes, and other "high profit" units. In fact, the CEO herself made the following comment when their 2020 profits were revealed back in Feb: “The semiconductor shortage won’t slow our growth plans, and without mitigation strategies we still expect to see a very good year for General Motors,” she said, according to the Times. “Right now, we won’t lose any production as it relates to full-size trucks and SUVs throughout the year.”

In a nutshell, GM will continue to focus its efforts on producing high profit, high margin, high volume vehicles like trucks and SUVs.

So, my thought, or worry to be more accurate, would be that if the microchip shortage continues, and GM continues to be forced to have to prioritize their production lines, I can see a scenario where the Camaro line is only open sporadically to fulfill existing factory/dealer orders, and not much else (you can make the case that its happening right now). And since the car is 2 model years away from possible retirement, there may be a chance that GM decides to advance that retirement schedule for the Camaro at worse, or at best, we'll see production numbers that are a fraction of past years . Its hard to believe a car that sold nearly a quarter of a million units in 1969, and 80k+ units in 2017, in just a few years, can't move break 30k units sold for 2020. And compare that with the 45k units the Impala moved in its last full year of production (2019), and the writing may be on the wall for our beloved Camaro, even if the microchip shortages are mitigated.

That's one of the reasons I decided to order a 2022 now, at the beginning of the build year, in case things worsen and the car ends up on the chopping block before its due. I hope I am wrong, and the car continues on in its current incarnation for a few more years (as its really a great platform), sees a 7th Gen ICE version, or even makes the jump to EV (which I would seriously consider).

For those of you who have already taken advantage of the prices Camaros are getting from the online auto dealers, and sold yours off, what if production never returns to pre-COVID levels? Would you overpay for a used one? Order a new one? Or simply go in another direction?

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Open to hearing everyone else's....

[m6z]

I'm very close to placing an order as well. For mostly the same reasons as you.

The only thing making me hesitate is the possibility that they'll do a minor update on the 2023 model if 2023 marks the end of the 6th gen like they did on the 2015 cars.

The used market is going to be a mess for at least a couple years IMO.

[Adios]

I just heard from somebody that works at the plant that they are hearing that they might shutdown for a year.... I hope not! I want to order/buy a 2022 Camaro too! I sent a message through LinkedIn to Mary the CEO to please start making Camaros again....

[3.8TransAM]

For what it's worth I was dumb enough to agree to Chevy and dealer surveys. I fill them all out and bash them mercilessly for basically ignoring the Camaro and how good of a car people do not know it is..............