Camaro! Chevy's Classy Chassis: An Illustrated History

In the Fall of 1966, two and a half years after its major competitor had shown the way, General Motors unveiled a new car designed to staunch the flow of buyers flocking to Ford's new Mustang. Based largely on the characteristics of that car, the dimensions of the new GM product were almost identical, this styling extremely similar, and the price highly competitive.

By the time that GM's new Camaro appeared, Ford had already sold over one million new Mustangs, creating both a demand from new customers and a market within for the now-loyal owners. It had been incumbent upon GM to respond, and their response was an extremely effective one.

First revealed to the public on September 12, 1966, its body shell would remain fundamentally unchanged for three model years and then after its first substantial redesign, would continue for another twelve! Throughout these 15 years the car retained its own special characteristics, performance, handling ease, comfort, and distinctive appearance. At first a slightly undersized car, it appeared even smaller as other contemporary cars grew in the early 1970's, but by 1980, when others had been "downsized" it began to appear almost ponderous.

Camaro was a "sporty" car; it went with ease to the fun places of the era. Driving an early convertible with the top down was an enjoyment long remembered. It offered a quiet, almost docile trip to the supermarket but at the same time some production versions of the car came off the showroom floor ready to compete as racing vehicles. With special preparations, including stuffing oversize power plants into its commodious engine compartment, it performed outstandingly on the race circuits.

This was, and is the classy Chevrolet. Other models are larger, some more powerful, some more aggressive, and some more solid, but Camaro offers response, comfort, distinctive appearance, and most of all enjoyment!