DETROIT, MI – Here it is. The cloak has been pulled off the all-new, sixth-generation Chevrolet Camaro.
It’s a sleek update to one of General Motors’ signature pony cars. Design aside, the company has maintained it is almost completely updated from fender to fender.
GM has dropped hints about lighter weight, stiffer ride and better aerodynamics, but now we know more about what’s going to be under the hood, too.
Some readers’ suspicions a four-cylinder, turbo engine could be offered have been confirmed: The 2016 Camaro will come equipped with 2.0L turbo that gets 275 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque.
That’s on the lighter end. It also will come with a 3.6L V-6 engine with direct fuel injection and active fuel management — a first on the Camaro. That V-6 will get an estimated 335 horsepower and 284 lb-ft of torque.
Last but not least, a 2016 Camaro SS will be Chevy’s most powerful ever, with a 6.2L V-8 that gets an estimated 455 hp and 455 lb-ft of torque.
Each engine is available with a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission.
The six-gen Camaro is about 200 pounds lighter than its predecessor. The model outfitted with the four-cylinder engine also will be the most efficient Camaro ever, GM said, achieving greater than 30 miles per gallon on the highway.
The fifth generation of the Camaro first went on sale in August 2009. The Camaro then passed the Ford Mustang in 2010 to become the best-selling performance car in the U.S., according to GM.
“After the Japanese sports car took over in the 90s, it’s been great to see pony cars come roaring back with style and substance,” said Akshay Anand, an analyst for Kelley Blue Book. “There has been serious competition between the Mustang, Challenger and now Camaro, and sales numbers have reflected these dogfights.”
The sixth-generation Camaro will be built at General Motors’ Grand River Plant in Lansing, where the Detroit automaker also produces the Cadillac ATS and CTS models.