Lets just be real...
The mustang isnt the king of the muscle cars because of its POWER. If you think that....your fooling yourself. The mustang has been on top because of 2 things.....1... its affordable price....2.....its killer styling. The V6 mustang outsells the GTs by a wide margin...so power has nothing to do with the mustangs current reign of, Top Muscle Car.
The Problem going on now is that Ford is actually getting worried....why? you ask. Well lets see. The Mustangs new look 05-09 took off like wildfire (Yet Again) and ford offered a more powerfull V8..yet the V6 was still outselling the GTs. Because of styling of course...so Ford thought that just to keep the fire burning, Ford would unveil the new mustang Styling to fend off Camaro buyers, right ? I mean its in the mustang history that its Looks always out did its performance, especially from 85 to 04 styling wise....so Ford offered a new restyled Mustang thinking thats all it needed. Yet the New Camaro is pulling away in sales, lets be honest....the Camaro has been out for years....pictures anyway, movies.ect. When Ford unveiled the mustang it had several faces untill launch, which is why it sold to unbelievable numbers (Smart, very smart move).
Heres where all this is leading......Although WE want a new 5.0, and WE are hyped about the performance aspect of the new motor..... Most buyers could care less !! Thats the problem..... Why would we think a car thats down 34%, is going to get a HUGE boost by being more expensive, heavier and still has the skin of a car that apperantly isnt appealing to the american consumer.....Because of more horsepower? No way.....V6s rule the mustang roost.
Maybe to you and me its appealing to have more horsepower and torque, but the numbers arnet lieing...and we dont make up the majority of mustang sales.
Like this comment or not, the new Camaro is a more than a "got to have it" car in my opinion. The styling is very nice, and power is great..the wieght not so much....but then again, thats a car junkies opinion, not the majority buyer. One statistic thats interesting is that 80% of all camaro sales are V8s...so that leaves hope that the New 5.0 is indeed going to boost sales, although that would be first that the majority buyer would buy a mustang for its power rating. I dont know.....Id like to be optimistic about the future sales, but history says different about the mustang.... maybe the Camaro isnt a Dead stick after all....maybe the future King of the Muscle Cars is about to change regimes...
Time will tell, and this is an opinion.....
Rumor has it that the Camaro is slated for destruction in 2014. Figure on the car being gone, because GM cancels any car that people like.
As for the Mustang being "king" because of its looks and low sale price, that's a load of bs if I've ever heard one. The Mustang has always been more refined (if that's what you wanna call it) and the quality has always been just a little bit better than that of the Camaro. When Ford unleashes a Mustang, there's one to suit all, and the "top dog" Mustang is ALWAYS better than the Camaro in every single way, from the acceleration to the handling.
I will agree with you that the Camaro is more "polarizing" to look at than a 2010 Mustang, but that's not always a good thing. IMO, it looks like a Hot Wheels concept car, plus it looks large, and close up it looks slab-sided and just...porky. Don't even get me started on the rear of the car. IMO, the new Camaro looks good from the front, the rear, and side profile, but anything else and it looks poorly designed. It's clear it was designed on a computer. Right now, the ONLY reason that the Camaro is selling so well is because all the fanboys have been waiting for "their car" to return for 7-8 years, and GM can't keep up with the production. Give the Camaro two more years in production and they'll be all over the dealer lots.
The Mustang sells because it has a very loyal band of followers. People of all ages buy Mustangs. Teenagers buy Camaros. Now, with the new 5th Generation, the same people are buying them that owned Camaros back in 1969, trying to relive their youth. GM can market the Camaro as a sports car, performance car, or whatever, but in the end it is nothing more than a straight-line shooter that's only real talent is cruising down Main Street and gathering up a few stares. It's a one-trick pony.
I'm not on a "I hate Camaro" mission here. I own one. I'd love to own another one, and quite honestly, if GM did this one right, I wouldn't even be here. While GM may have succeeded with the public, they failed miserably with the automotive performance enthusiast. The Mustang will always be more successful than the Camaro, for a number of reasons. If you want a Ford convertible, you have to buy a Mustang. If you want a Ford sports car, you have to buy a Mustang. If you want a MUSCLE Car, you have to buy a Mustang. Not only do the looks or performance of the Mustang sell, but it's how it's marketed, and how people view it. The Mustang is "American motoring at its finest." It's "America's sweetheart." It's also the highest selling American sports car of all time. It's like the Corvette. It's dear to America's heart. The Viper tried to knock Corvette off the pedestal with better performance, but when the smoke cleared, the Corvette was still "America's baby." It will never matter which company makes a car faster than a Corvette, because it's just the way it is. It's no different than in sports. The New York Yankees
are baseball. I hate'em, but that doesn't matter, because millions of people don't.
Sorry, the "regime" isn't even threatened to change.
When I go out shopping for a particular car, I view the competition, and maybe some models that aren't even the competition. I wanted a Camaro. GM didn't build me a Camaro that I want. I have looked at the 370Z, Mustang, new STI, new Evo, Audi TT, Audi A4, BMW 335i, Mini Cooper, VW GTI, etc., and I've driven them all. I came away STILL wanting a Mustang. The Mustang is not the fastest, nor the best handling of the bunch, but Ford just got it right. It felt "right" to me; from the feel of the V8, to the weighted steering, the sounds, the look, the view over the hood from the cockpit, etc. THOSE are the things that make the Mustang so good, and a notch above the rest.
Oh yeah, and FWIW, I just got my Camaro back from the shop, and wouldn't luck have it that a new SS pulled up wanting to play. They are quick, for their weight, I'll give them that, but they ain't quick enough...
