The semiconductor shortage has been taking no prisoners as manufacturers across the globe hustle to produce enough cars to meet demand. Despite falling under the powerful General Motors umbrella, Chevrolet has not been spared of this with the Camaro, in particular, being subjected to the removal of important features. In January this year, the brand was forced to forgo rear park assist on all models. One month after this, it had to make further cuts by removing the Performance Data Recorder (PDR) system from all 2022 SS and ZL1 models. This omission of this Cosworth-developed feature only affects owners who have a desire to monitor their times during a track session. But now, there's another shortage affecting the pony car, and the net result is that some buyers of the 2022 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE may have to wait until 2023 for their cars to arrive.
According to reports, some customers who placed orders for a 2022 Camaro ZL1 will have to wait. Specifically, buyers who opted for the 1LE package. This is due to the ongoing supplier constraints but interestingly, it is not related to the semiconductor shortage. The reason for the lack of fulfillment is that the brand is struggling to get its hands on enough carbon fiber for the T42 rear wing.
The 1LE Extreme Track Performance Package is a $7,500 option that can be added to the ZL1 which turns it into a knife-edged track machine capable of clearing a lap of the Nurburgring in 7:16.04. Giving it an extended athletic ability is a performance suspension with adaptive dampers, specialized gear ratios for the six-speed manual gearbox, and a catalog of carbon fiber aerodynamic panels.
Chevrolet is scheduled to start production on the 2023 Camaros by the first week of June this year. This is set to be the model's eighth production year with very little information regarding a possible replacement. Some reports even suggest that once this model's life-cycle runs its course, Chevrolet will put the badge to rest altogether.
The big question is whether Chevrolet has any plans to create an electric muscle car offering to rival the likes of the upcoming Charger and Challenger successors due from Dodge. With the group's new Ultium EV platform, there's no reason why this wouldn't be possible. The Camaro may be suffering in the new car market as of today, but the moniker still holds a lot of stock in terms of brand presence. It would be a shame to see it put out to pastures.