2014 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 To Start At $75,000*

That is just too much money for a Camaro. That is Corvette Z06 money.

That is just too much money for a Camaro. That is Corvette Z06 money.

Same engine as the Z06. I would have thought it would have been priced below the ZL1--which starts around $56k, or at most comparable to the Shelby GT500 in price--- $65k or so. With dealer markup it will probably be pushing $100k...absurd.

Another nutjob pricing strategy by GM. First, their luxury golfcart, the ELR, and now this badass individual. In.sane.

people will pay for it.

people will pay for it.

Not many. But I am sure a few fools will, 6 people bought an ELR last month, so there is hope. But what ever happened to the Camaro being the affordable sports car?

It's probably intentionally priced high to keep volume as low as possible--maybe production volume is limited for this particular engine (how many Z06s did they build) or to avoid issues w/ CAFE?

I thought when they announced the Z/28 revival it was going to be Chevy's equivalent of the '12-13 Mustang Boss 302 which is priced between the GT and GT500..i.e. I assumed it would be between the SS and the ZL1 (which I assumed to the top end model).. I guess they only want to sell a couple 100 of these instead.

There is a difference between a sports car and a race car. This car is in the race car territory with closest street legal offering from a OEM aka a BMW CSL and MB Black Series. It actually runs faster on the Ring than many famed Porsches, BMWs, MB Black Series and Lamborghinis and even its more powerful brother ZL1. That is an accomplishment.

Let us look at the hardware: LS7 ~$9K difference over LS2, Carbon Ceramic brakes ~$10k, carbon fiber ~$5k. That itself justifies over $25k over a SS2 LE. Other improvements such as light weight wheels, suspension modifications and under body aerodynamics I did not include since I assumed them a wash with the loss of creature comforts in this car (although lopsided in the favor of former).

As far as being just a Camaro, the ratio of a base C Class (the 4 cylinder ones sold in EU) and a C Black series is more outrageous than this. People don't get how expensive is a race car to make.

Just because it shares the engine with the Z06, the actual hardware equivalent of a Z06 is the one with Carbon Edition or with the Performance package, which costs another $20K over the base one. That car is then in the $100k bracket.

Race hardware does not come cheap, people. A M235i race car with puny 333hp (huge 10hp increase over standard M235i) is going to cost twice as much as the 235i. It does not have ceramic brakes, nor carbon fiber nor a vastly superior engine.

Z/28 & 75,000 who'd have thunk that...

I guess the days of 250,000 Camaro units per year are way over

Z/28 & 75,000 who'd have thunk that...

I guess the days of 250,000 Camaro units per year are way over

84k sold for 2012. Probably most were V6s.

nicely put into perspective, Z! On those notes, it's priced well for a very serious performance machine.

Yeah, thanks Z. The SS would be enough for me anyway, if I could even afford that. I guess I, like a lot of ppl my age and older, remember the Z28, or Z/28, as a minor appearance and hardware upgrade over a base model car, and that is our problem. This time around it is a whole new ballgame. A lot of people have been asking for a car with a Z/28 option, and a 1LE option, based on what they were in the past. But Chevrolet has gone all serious on us. How many of these new Z/28s will be sold, when such a large majority of the traditional Camaro demographic is priced way out of the market? Time will tell, because I see no way for Chevrolet to go back to the traditional way of marketing a Z/28 or a 1LE after this. It is almost like Chevrolet is doing this as a final send-off so they can justify getting rid of the Camaro all together... or at least, as we've known it since 1967.

Let us look at the hardware: LS7 ~$9K difference over LS2, Carbon Ceramic brakes ~$10k, carbon fiber ~$5k. That itself justifies over $25k over a SS2 LE.

More like nearly a $40k markup over an SS2 (which starts at $37350). Pretty pricey. I know these kind of massive markups and pricey options are SOP with BMW and Porsche, it's just strange to see Chevy trying to play in that arena w the Camaro..

Racing is what it is, Racing and the parts are expensive to build and support.

The Z/28 appearance package of memory is just that a performance package with a small amount of improvement.

As Z clearly stated, this is a race machine that is barely street legal. You will have people buy them as collectors and they will hold their value.

Not a bad price if you are looking for a street legal race car. These prices are comparable with other street legal races cars produced.

Racing is what it is, Racing and the parts are expensive to build and support.

The Z/28 appearance package of memory is just that a performance package with a small amount of improvement.

As Z clearly stated, this is a race machine that is barely street legal. You will have people buy them as collectors and they will hold their value.

Not a bad price if you are looking for a street legal race car. These prices are comparable with other street legal races cars produced.

I really doubt if many of these will be raced..they will end up in collector's garages or totalled by incompetent drivers..

As far as race cars, this is an actual Camaro race car:

Z/28 & 75,000 who'd have thunk that...

I guess the days of 250,000 Camaro units per year are way over

84k sold for 2012. Probably most were V6s.

Somewhere around 88,000 2011's were sold I believe. These are pretty good sales numbers considering all the other cars out there now (as compared to 30-40 years ago)

The Zeta Camaro is a beautiful car, but it's too big & too heavy. Looking forward to seeing the Alpha bodied Camaro, although I am already worried it will still be too big and too heavy. I do like smaller cars - a 2,800 pound Camaro would be very interesting!

Chevy will make just a handful of these. They are too expensive. If GM offers a Z-28 option on the Gen 6 Camaro, it will be 5 or 6 grand more. Whatever. Totally not interested in it because of the price, don't care HOW much fiber is in its diet.

I miss the old Camaro days. The 1st & 2nd Gens. I miss the 'ala-carte' option choices - I miss VINYL seats, there, I said it. Even sitting on them when they were steamy hot. I miss the cool tiny trunk with the full-size 14'' spare in it. There was no room, but who cared, you were driving a CAMARO!

Ramblin' here - GM should have made a Z/28 they could sell 10,000 - 15,000 - 20,000 of instead of 300 -

The current Camaro portfolio shares nothing with where the Camaro of yore was besides the name. If it was still a coupe with Nova underpinnings (to a degree), starting off with a 105-HP 250 CI six (top 350 was only 155 HP in '75)... IF the current car NOW was anything like where the pale shadow performance car the Camaro was in the mid '70s was THEN, griping about the price would totally be justified.

However, those harping on the price, linking it ONLY to the 'Camaro' nameplate and an outmoded ideal that Chevy should be selling 250,000 units is so far off base they're in the parking lot.

Look at it this way; you can moan there's no serious track package available OR you can thank GM for building one and who the F cares how many they sell; it's there for those who want to shred most everything on the road...., but you can't do both.

And I'll bet a much higher percentage of the Z/28s will get road raced than whatever equivalent ferrari will. Talk about garage queens...

Let us look at the hardware: LS7 ~$9K difference over LS2, Carbon Ceramic brakes ~$10k, carbon fiber ~$5k. That itself justifies over $25k over a SS2 LE.

More like nearly a $40k markup over an SS2 (which starts at $37350). Pretty pricey. I know these kind of massive markups and pricey options are SOP with BMW and Porsche, it's just strange to see Chevy trying to play in that arena w the Camaro..

Why I compared over SS2 LE? Because it is one step above SS when it comes to racing pedigree. That car was less than 1.5 seconds off the ZL1 over the VIR. And the cost differential over the SS2 does not refute my statement of the price being right. Mid-grade race Blistein shocks cost close to $5,000 on BMWs. LE package is $4,000 option.

And another intrinsic costs - cost of engineering the car, cost of manufacturer's full warranty, cost of testing - they have to be recuperated somewhere. Z06 cost is shared with C6R and C7R, this car is blessed with no development cost sharing. ELR may be a markup but this is not.

Yes, people will race these just like they race the Z06. I do not foresee these to be wholesale garage queens.

This just doesn't make sense... not because the price isn't justified based on the components that went into the car, but the pricing for the entire package doesn't make sense.

(1) The Zeta Camaro is never going to be as light as a Corvette Z06 even when you take 300 lbs out of it. For essentially the same price as a Z06 you are getting a heavier car with less performance -- it just took a lot more expensive parts to get there.

(2) The Z/28 label does not traditionally have association to ultra exotics. If anything the ZL-1 should been the car getting the carbon panels, carbon brakes and the $75,000K price tag. At least the it'll fit better with its contemporaries with the supercharged LS engine -- namely the ZR1 and the CTS-V.

(3) The Z/28 could have been a LS7 powered version of the SS otherwise comparably equipped and slotted in at about 45~50K between the 37K SS and the 55K ZL-1 (or a 75K ZL-1 with all the carbon stuff). This will make it about about 20K less than a Z06 -- a lighter, faster, car with a Corvette nameplate.

I agree with Dwight, why buy a Camaro Z28 when a Corvette Z06 is the same price, and the new Stingray with performance options is probably cheaper and faster also. Or you could get a 2 year old GT-R. The problem here is it is $75,000 for a Camaro, just like the Equus is $65,000 for a Hyundai, it is a tough sell. At least if you pay $90k for a Porsche 911 you get to tell people you drive a Porsche 911.

Because some people don't want a Corvette. This concept can't be that elusive....

Because some people don't want a Corvette. This concept can't be that elusive....

I understand that. But why is the ZL-1 not the 75K car with carbon panels and brakes, whereas the Z/28 is simply the LS7 powered version of the SS at 45~50? Why all the expensive bits on the car with the second tier engine?

Regardless of how you cut it, breaking the positioning of the Camaro as a cheaper, less expensive sports coupe than a Corvette, then making the most expensive version of the Camaro have 75 hp less than the 2nd tier car selling for $25K less simply doesn't compute for people open to considering a Camaro, a Corvette or both.

Plus some Over Educated Marketing Dweeb has to justify his over priced MBA from some over priced Ivy League college.

Because some people don't want a Corvette. This concept can't be that elusive....

I understand that. But why is the ZL-1 not the 75K car with carbon panels and brakes, whereas the Z/28 is simply the LS7 powered version of the SS at 45~50? Why all the expensive bits on the car with the second tier engine?

Regardless of how you cut it, breaking the positioning of the Camaro as a cheaper, less expensive sports coupe than a Corvette, then making the most expensive version of the Camaro have 75 hp less than the 2nd tier car selling for $25K less simply doesn't compute for people open to considering a Camaro, a Corvette or both.

LS7 is about ~$3,500 more than a LSA. LSA does not feature titanium heads, dry sump, and other racing related hardware that LS7 or LS9 has. So it is not a second tier engine to a LSA when it comes to the guts.

With the above logic (underlined), we can say that ZL1 is simply a supercharger bolted on SS' LS3. And there is no engineering effort because third parties have proved that zeta and LS are capable of handling horsepowers with that bolt on FI.

So the basic problem is that it is a "Camaro" and it costs more than a more powerful engine car. Let us compare with the ZL1 shall we?

Engine price difference ~$3,500, carbon ceramic brakes ~$10,000, carbon fiber and other modifications ~$5,000. Total ~$18,500. Which is a fair delta from the starting price of $56,000 of the ZL1.

And there is going to be an M2, and yet the M235i racing car is going to cost more than a M4 with about 100 hp less. For cars with big engines, there is no need for FI in racing as one less part to worry about for breaking down. Your many a posts have supported that argument to go bigger for fuel economy and horsepower instead of adding a FI.

Because some people don't want a Corvette. This concept can't be that elusive....

I understand that. But why is the ZL-1 not the 75K car with carbon panels and brakes, whereas the Z/28 is simply the LS7 powered version of the SS at 45~50? Why all the expensive bits on the car with the second tier engine?

Regardless of how you cut it, breaking the positioning of the Camaro as a cheaper, less expensive sports coupe than a Corvette, then making the most expensive version of the Camaro have 75 hp less than the 2nd tier car selling for $25K less simply doesn't compute for people open to considering a Camaro, a Corvette or both.

LS7 is about ~$3,500 more than a LSA. LSA does not feature titanium heads, dry sump, and other racing related hardware that LS7 or LS9 has. So it is not a second tier engine to a LSA when it comes to the guts.

With the above logic (underlined), we can say that ZL1 is simply a supercharger bolted on SS' LS3. And there is no engineering effort because third parties have proved that zeta and LS are capable of handling horsepowers with that bolt on FI.

So the basic problem is that it is a "Camaro" and it costs more than a more powerful engine car. Let us compare with the ZL1 shall we?

Engine price difference ~$3,500, carbon ceramic brakes ~$10,000, carbon fiber and other modifications ~$5,000. Total ~$18,500. Which is a fair delta from the starting price of $56,000 of the ZL1.

And there is going to be an M2, and yet the M235i racing car is going to cost more than a M4 with about 100 hp less. For cars with big engines, there is no need for FI in racing as one less part to worry about for breaking down. Your many a posts have supported that argument to go bigger for fuel economy and horsepower instead of adding a FI.

The guts doesn't matter, output does. BTW, the LS7 does not have titanium heads. Nothing does really. The LS7 has titanium intake valves. In the Z06 it also has titanium-alloy exhaust mufflers.

Because some people don't want a Corvette. This concept can't be that elusive....

I understand that. But why is the ZL-1 not the 75K car with carbon panels and brakes, whereas the Z/28 is simply the LS7 powered version of the SS at 45~50? Why all the expensive bits on the car with the second tier engine?

Regardless of how you cut it, breaking the positioning of the Camaro as a cheaper, less expensive sports coupe than a Corvette, then making the most expensive version of the Camaro have 75 hp less than the 2nd tier car selling for $25K less simply doesn't compute for people open to considering a Camaro, a Corvette or both.

LS7 is about ~$3,500 more than a LSA. LSA does not feature titanium heads, dry sump, and other racing related hardware that LS7 or LS9 has. So it is not a second tier engine to a LSA when it comes to the guts.

With the above logic (underlined), we can say that ZL1 is simply a supercharger bolted on SS' LS3. And there is no engineering effort because third parties have proved that zeta and LS are capable of handling horsepowers with that bolt on FI.

So the basic problem is that it is a "Camaro" and it costs more than a more powerful engine car. Let us compare with the ZL1 shall we?

Engine price difference ~$3,500, carbon ceramic brakes ~$10,000, carbon fiber and other modifications ~$5,000. Total ~$18,500. Which is a fair delta from the starting price of $56,000 of the ZL1.

And there is going to be an M2, and yet the M235i racing car is going to cost more than a M4 with about 100 hp less. For cars with big engines, there is no need for FI in racing as one less part to worry about for breaking down. Your many a posts have supported that argument to go bigger for fuel economy and horsepower instead of adding a FI.

The guts doesn't matter, output does. BTW, the LS7 does not have titanium heads. Nothing does really. The LS7 has titanium intake valves. In the Z06 it also has titanium-alloy exhaust mufflers.

Yes, it has stock titanium intake valves and connecting rods, not heads. Aftermarket titanium heads do exist. C6 Z-06 does not have titanium exhaust mufflers, those are ZR1 specials. C5 Z06 had the titanium mufflers.

Well if guts don't matter then all your stoichiometric analyses on different engine types you have presented so far just went to dust with that SMKesque blanket statement.

What I meant was that people don't buy engines or pay a lot for cars because it has titanium valves. They buy engines and pay for cars because it delivers performance, or looks, or any variety of things, but not how you get to those things. The LS7 is not going to be more desirable than an LSA or LS9 because it has titanium parts. For the most parts, the 580 bhp LSA will the more desirable engine to the high performance Camaro crowd than a 505 bhp LS7 -- titanium or no titanium.