Camaro Build Quality

[OVERKILL]

So, a buddy of mine who's a bit of a closet GM guy, has a bit of a "thing" for the new Camaro.

Our local GM dealership has a red SS in the used car lot (of all places?) and so we went up last night to take a look at it.

I wasn't too impressed (go figure).

Car looks good from 20ft away.

-The gas door is a different shade than the body panels. As is the nose.

-Where the rear valance meets the rear fenders near the wheels, it "bulges out" on both sides.

-The nose does not line-up well with the fenders (at the top, sides were fine).

-The door gap was not uniform (passenger-side only)

-The hood did not line-up well.

-The windshield rubber was folded-in on the passenger side about 4" down from the top.

-The wheel weights on the front brake calipers (LOL!)

-The quarter windows did not fit well and the rubber surround bulged out noticeably at the bottom where they came to a point as you headed toward the rear of the vehicle.

-Where the rear licence plate mounts, where the trunk curves around, there was no paint. Since it is a "curved" area, it looks like it was sprayed straight-on, and subsequently, no paint made its way into the "curve". He was actually the one to notice this, not I.

I wasn't very surprised, but he was pretty disappointed.



We went up to Ford to compare to a 2010 Mustang GT and the only flaw we could find was the exhaust pipes stuck out slightly different lengths. Every panel fit, every seal was perfect and every part that was supposed to have paint did. There was also a marked lack of wheel weights on the brake calipers

This dealer had 13 Mustangs a couple of months ago, they now only have two.

 

[drewjp]

I agree with you. It's sad that only Cadillacs seem to 'deserve' decent quality control at GM nowadays.

I'm not a Mustang fan, but I'm looking forward to see if Ford brings the Fiesta over here unmolested. The European version is excellent.

 

[bdcardinal]

could the camaro have been an accident car that was traded back in? i know the wheel weights on teh calipers was a funny oops from the factory.

 

[rshaw125]

Could be an early production model. What was the build date???

 

[OVERKILL]

No idea on the build date. Didn't LOOK like an accident car. The parts that appeared a different shade were of course plastic. Perhaps they are using junk or thin paint?

 

[XS650]

Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL


We went up to Ford to compare to a 2010 Mustang GT and the only flaw we could find was the exhaust pipes stuck out slightly different lengths. Every panel fit, every seal was perfect and every part that was supposed to have paint did. There was also a marked lack of wheel weights on the brake calipers

Yeah, but you don't get a free mullet cut with a Mustang.

 

[Gradient]

Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL

Our local GM dealership has a red SS in the used car lot (of all places?) and so we went up last night to take a look at it.

There's probably a good reason it's on the USED CAR LOT .

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: Gradient
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL

Our local GM dealership has a red SS in the used car lot (of all places?) and so we went up last night to take a look at it.

There's probably a good reason it's on the USED CAR LOT .


Yeah, it's a Camaro!

Maybe the owner had it repossessed or traded it in on a 'vette after all the recalls.

I have no idea.

 

[sciphi]

Might be an early build car. That is hilarious, however!

 

[Drew99GT]

The new Camaro is yet another vehicle that will sink GM (permanently).

They still don't get it!

I'm guessing another $50 billion..............and they still won't get it!

Ford has their [censored] together.

 

[oilboy123]

First year car and first year Government owned company.....

I owned a 68 Impala as my first car but have owned Fords the last 18 years. I am not a GM basher.

 

[saaber1]

Definitely a car with a previous major accident. All of the items you mentioned are tell-tale signs of major body work. Also look for evidence of new door skins and look for folds/different welds in the frame or structural components under the hood. They almost certainly will be there (except door skins only if it had side damage).

 

[Nick R]

Sounds like an accident car to me. The camaro is a car that will save GM. The fact they are selling them faster than the factory can make them doesn't speak *ship sinker* to me.

 

[buster]

It does have a cheap look to it. Interior especially.

I think the Mustang is the better of the two cars.

 

[ADFD1]

Originally Posted By: buster
It does have a cheap look to it. Interior especially.

I think the Mustang is the better of the two cars.


+1

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: saaber1
Definitely a car with a previous major accident. All of the items you mentioned are tell-tale signs of major body work. Also look for evidence of new door skins and look for folds/different welds in the frame or structural components under the hood. They almost certainly will be there (except door skins only if it had side damage).


Unless the car was hit from both ends, I doubt it?

The rear (trunk area) that had no paint on it was definitely original.

I will try and find another (new) one and compare.

 

[OVERKILL]

I should also note that going around the GM dealership, the Camaro was not the only vehicle with these kinds of issues. There were a pile of them.

Interestingly enough though, the TRUCKS were EXCEPTIONAL! I couldn't find one with poor fitment or obvious issues like the Camaro (and some vans) had.

It is almost like SOME of the plants are "on the ball", whilst others, well, they aren't.

 

[UNC197]

Sounds like they are using the old quantity over quality method.

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

Originally Posted By: ADFD1
Originally Posted By: buster
It does have a cheap look to it. Interior especially.

I think the Mustang is the better of the two cars.


+1

+2

 

[BuickGN]

I went and test drove one just a few days ago.

First thing I noticed, it made my TL look tiny parked next to it.
Surprisingly, the interior was tiny. I had to put the seat in it's lowest position to keep my head off the roof. Front seat room is fine but the rear seats are there only for small children, I can't imagine an adult back there.

I loved the aggressive looks with the projector style headlights with an all black car. I liked the seats. Gauges and dash may grow on me over time. The door panels were a little on the cheap side but not enough to stop me from buying it.

Performance was ok, about what you would expect for such a heavy car but I wasn't expecting it to handle worse than my TL. It also has that dead on center feel like most GM cars. Power was ok. Not so much Camaro related, but why do they put traction control and stability control on a sports car? It ruins the whole driving experience. I went to slide it around a corner forgetting it had traction control and it started to slide just a little, I started to lead it a little with the steering and then the electronics took over and it could've caused an overcorrection easy. IMO, the electronics make the car more dangerous for someone who is used to driving a car without.

With all of it's flaws, I still want one. Don't know why.