Carmaker GM unveils 2010 Camaro

Posted by admin on 23 July, 2008 under Business news | Read the First Comment

US carmaker General Motors (GM) has unveiled its new fuel-efficient 2010-version of the Camaro, the sports car it retired in 2002.

The move comes after GM said it was closing four truck and SUV factories, and looking to sell its Hummer brand.

Production will begin in February 2009 at the GM Oshawa plant in Canada and hit showrooms later that year.

It comes with V-6, 3.6-litre engines in its LS and LT models, and V-8 powered, 6.2-litre engines in its SS model.

‘Cultural icon’

“It’s a sports car for a new generation of enthusiasts that doesn’t forget the heritage that helped make the original a cultural icon,” Ed Peper, GM North America vice-president for Chevrolet, said in a statement.

The firm first announced it would produce a new a Camaro in 2006.

GM is the US’s top-selling carmaker, but this year its share price has plummeted by more than 60% as investor confidence in the company has dissipated.

It, and other carmakers, are under pressure because of high fuel prices and a dip in demand for larger cars such as sports utility vehicles (SUVs), and rival Toyota has overtaken it in terms of global sales.

Hummer sale

Earlier in July the firm announced it would cut white collar employment costs by 20% as it seeks to counteract falling sales.

GM also said then it would sell as much as $4bn (£1.9bn) of assets, and borrow about $2bn to bolster its finances.

It expects that the measures will free up about $15bn by the end of 2009.

In the first half of 2008, truck sales sank 21%, while overall sales fell 16%.

In June, GM announced the closure of four truck and SUV factories in North America and Mexico, and said it would increase production of smaller more fuel-efficient cars.

The firm has already said it is looking at selling its well-known Hummer SUV brand, but so far it has not released details of its plans for its other brands.

News reported by The BBC