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That's All Folks...

zimmthumps

Full Member
Joined
May 11, 2002
Messages
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Royal Oak, Michigan
This is pretty interesting...

Well Suited for Both Smokeys and Bandits

The New York Times
August 25, 2002
By NORMAN S. MAYERSOHN



FIREBIRDS have their fans, and Camaros have their cheerleaders. Among the few things on which both sides agree is this: the Pontiacs got the movie roles and the Chevys got the bad guys.

Pontiac's version of the General Motors F-car played leading roles in the ''Smokey and the Bandit'' movies and in television series like ''The Rockford Files'' and ''Knight Rider.''

But it was the Camaro with the ''special service package'' that was usually found in the motor pools of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration, as well as in the fleets of many states' highway patrol departments.

Essentially a Z28 in sheep's clothing, the specially equipped Camaros are agile, high-speed chase vehicles. As such, they are often assigned to open roads and highways where their top speed of 150 miles an hour is most useful. (After an apprehension, larger four-door police cruisers are often called in to take the suspect away.)

The Secret Service also uses Camaros to train agents in evasive driving techniques. President Bush watched a demonstration of those techniques this spring at the agency's training center in Beltsville, Md.

And the Camaro contributes to national security. Scott Settlemire, a product manager with the Camaro and Corvette brand team at General Motors, said every flight of the high-altitude U-2 spy plane uses a Camaro Z28 to pace the craft on takeoff and landing because the pilot, who must wear a bulky pressure suit, has limited visibility. An Air Force pilot riding in the chase car keeps the U-2 pilot apprised of the distance between the landing gear and the runway.

Both cars have had high-profile roles on the national racing stage. The Camaro served as pace car for the Indianapolis 500 four times (in 1967, '69, '82 and '93) and the Firebird twice (in '80 and '89). Both cars have played visible roles at many other races and automotive events.
 
PRODUCTION OF CAMARO AND FIREBIRD CONCLUDES TODAY ....

This morning marks the end of an era for high-performance sports car enthusiasts. Workers at the Ste. Therese, Quebec plant will build the last Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird before the end of the day.

Since the vehicles first appeared on streets in 1967, more than 4,750,000 Camaros and 2,600,000 Firebirds were produced. For the 2002 model year, GM celebrated the 35th anniversary of both cars with special limited editions.

:cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:
 
I still can't believe they are killing off these cars!!! This is the one time Chevy has really disapointed me. :C: :C: :C:
 
A moment of silence please....

:cry:


We now resume our regularly scheduled programming...
 
This really makes no sense.

GM is going to lose a lot of these buyers to Ford when they go out and buy Mustangs. I would have to guess that a large percentage of these buyers can't afford Corvettes.

I just don't understand why they would want to miss out in the mid-priced sport car market.

--chaz
 
I've been fortunate enough to have owned a couple early model Camaros (both 69) and to this day I still admire and respect them. ?

I will get another one some day and this move by the General will probably make it that much more expensive to pick up my next one. ? :( ? But I will get another eventually. ? :B:

zimmsAV said:
PRODUCTION OF CAMARO AND FIREBIRD CONCLUDES TODAY ....

This morning marks the end of an era for high-performance sports car enthusiasts. Workers at the Ste. Therese, Quebec plant will build the last Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird before the end of the day.

Since the vehicles first appeared on streets in 1967, more than 4,750,000 Camaros and 2,600,000 Firebirds were produced. For the 2002 model year, GM celebrated the 35th anniversary of both cars with special limited editions.

:cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:


Zimms, thank you very much for the post. ?I've already forwarded to several F-body fans! ?And I haven't seen this news anywhere else yet. ?regards... ? -pete

 
They'll be back in some form . . . likely better than ever. Well liked marques don't stay down for long . . .

Now how about a 2003 Corvair - there's one that Chevy may not likely resurrect!

'Tis sad though to see the current era end!
 
I am glad I got my 2000 TA when I did.

I knew this day was coming 2 years ago, but it doesn't lesson the void left in my heart. :cry: I think I am going to go hotrod my TA around on the way home and let people see what they are losing >:D

 
wrchism...is right...these legends aren't gone forever...they will make a return eventually possible redesigned from front to rear and better than ever....I believe that Chevy is just taking back to the drawing board and making that much better....

I believe the reason for this is because of the boost in sales from the pocket rockets...most young folks rather buy an import car and mod it to run...When I was growing up everyone wanted or owned a Camaro or Trans-am.....in this new generation it just isn't the case...they didn't want the big V-8's or the gas guzzlers...they want the small 4's with the turbo's or V-techs.... :B:
 
I wouldn't be sad for very long

Look how surprised everyone was when Ford killed the T Bird - a couple of years later it is back.

I suspect that they killed it in public, but in private were working on a new design.

just my .02
 
That's what I was also told by a connected GM car guy but I was dissed on another post. It seems very credible that a new series of F-body (new designation I'm sure) will re-surface in about 2-3 years time. With the success of Holden's cars in AU, I'd not be surprised to see GM add those cars to the Chevy & Pontiac fleet (we already know what they are doing with regards to the Grand Prix/GTO).

Hopefully though, it won't be a flop like bringing back the Impala, Caprice, Nova (3-cyclinder engine? WTF?) or like Daimler-Chrysler did with the re-introduction of the Daytona. Come on, if you are going to re-introduce a car with a storied lineage, the new version has to at least live up to the original. A FWD 4-cylinder Daytona ?has little in common with it's predecessor as would a 4-cylinder, or let's be honest, a 6-cylinder Camaro. Camaro, Firebird, TA all are synonymous with V8 and musclecar status.

Jamie
 
Well, I hope they do bring it back and better than ever, but history has shown otherwise.

Monte Carlo
Malibu
Impala
even the Cougar

All classic names, but just a shadow of what they used to be. :cry:
 
I guess the 92 Z-28,I just bought for my son is going to be a collectors item.I wonder if I can ground him and keep it for myself?

I really like that Irontrain
giggl.gif


FYI - If anyone is thinking of getting a 2002, you better kick it in gear!!! My friend camem to me last week and told me he wanted a Z-28. I looked all over. The last one we had in Ohio was 2 weeks ago, shipped from a dealer in Indiana and only lasted on the lot for 2 hours. That's all F-bodies, not just v-8's
 
... I wonder how many of us that "love" the F-body have actually bought a NEW one in the past 5 years.

The reason it went away is because they were not selling. I have seen many posts on many boards of people crying about the termination of these vehicles, but the fact is, those that say they love them ..... didn't buy them NEW. GM doesn't make money if those that love the car don't buy the NEW models.

Ford tried to kill the Mustang a decade or more ago, then was going to badge the Probe a Mustang. There was such an enormous uproar AND flurry of existing model mustang buying that the company decided to continue the line. When the new Mustang rolled out people snapped them up!!

.... didn't happen with the F-body.
 
My family has done their part :B:
92 Camaro IROC
94 Camaro RS
96 Camaro RS
98 Firebird convertible
00 Camaro convertible

My fave was that 92 red IROC though... :love:
T-tops, red powdercoated aluminum rims, red interior, and a bad ass engine >:D
 
teking said:
... I wonder how many of us that "love" the F-body have actually bought a NEW one in the past 5 years.

Well, I have owned 2 Camaros (1st generation) and a couple of other chevy cars. The bottom line for me is that I'm a truck person. I could have and I wanted to buy a 2002 Ram Air Trans Am, but when it came time to decide between the T/A and the Avalanche, I knew what I had to do. If I had gotten the T/A I would have loved it, but I know I would have ended up getting rid of it for a truck in a year or two. That doesn't mean that I'm not allowed to think that the Camaro and Firbird are some of the baddest cars on the road and that GM is messing up. Now, if I had the money to have two vehicles, then yes I would have gotten the car.
 
I agree.

I consider myself a Chevy guy but I gotta be honest. When the wife wanted to get a Mustang 3 years ago, I tried to steer her to a Camaro. We took a Mustang out for a spin, then a Camaro. Engine performance notwithstanding, there was no comparison. I had to admit, the Mustang won hands down.

GM has really gotten lazy on car redesign. I mean, look at an Impala. Is that not an embarrassment to be labeled "Made in America"?

Remember, I'm a Chevy guy so it hurts when I say these things.
 
I figure they'll be back in a few years. Ford shut down the Thunderbird line then brought it back 4 years later completely redesigned. I'm guessing that's what'll happen to Camaro and Firebird.
 
Back to a comment made by NJAV . . .

Do young folks really WANT ricers? My guess is it's more like they can AFFORD ricers, and get cheaper insurance . . and then try mightily to make a 'performance' car out of it.

I'm sorry . . a 4-banger with a fart pipe don't hold a candle to a big cube V-8 with free flowin' exhaust system - either in terms of performance or melody!

Sadly, I've not been a Camaro / Firebird owner, but I do mourn the loss just the same.
 
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