Camaro Coupe

Make
Chevrolet
Segment
Coupe

The Chevrolet Camaro is unlikely to survive much longer. It's had its worst first-quarter sales in a decade and, although production of the 2021 model has resumed, it still hasn't been updated in forever. While the Ford Mustang and Dodge Challenger have been bossing sales, the now-ancient Camaro can't keep up because it's just not good enough. And while epic models like the Mustang GT350 and Challenger Super Stock have been grabbing headlines for Ford and Dodge over the past couple of years, Chevy hasn't built anything really noteworthy for the Camaro. But things could have been very different. According to a new report from Motortrend, Chevy almost built a sixth-generation Camaro Z/28.

This isn't news to us - we reported on it back in 2019. But what is news is that this stillborn track toy was set to feature the motor from the upcoming Corvette Z06. That means a 5.5-liter flat-plane crank V8, likely with more than 600 horsepower. Furthermore, unlike the Corvette, the Camaro's architecture would have allowed for a manual gearbox, and it probably would have been offered too. So why is it that the Camaro is having such a bad time of it lately? After all, if you read our reviews of the various Camaro models, you'll know that it often outperforms its counterparts.

Apparently, the problem lies in the styling. People just don't like the way the sixth-gen Camaro looks, and that's why they opt for Mustangs and Challengers instead. But this is all Chevrolet's own doing for not updating the Camaro enough and failing to drum up hype for the car. With such dismal sales results, little to no interest in bringing out special models like the Z/28, and an aging design, we wouldn't be surprised if the Camaro ends up being axed altogether. It's a pity, but as we head into the age of electrification, the Camaro could make a comeback once it has reinvented itself.