bt4

I just saw the sales figures for Mustang, Camaro, and Challenger for January. It doesn't look good. Mustang sales year over year were down 33%, though still manged over 5,000 units.

Camaro and Challenger sales were anemic. In fact if the sales trend holds, Camaro will not make 50,000 units this year. Unless sales pick up dramatically, GM could be looking at just over 42K units. The last time GM sold 42K Camaros, they pulled the plug on the product.

CUV's and SUV's are dominating the marketing place. A higher transaction price means sports coupes like Mustang and Camaro are competing with entry level luxury marquees.

Couple that with an uncertain economy is there still a business case for a sports coupe like a Mustang or a Camaro, or will GM and Ford have to re-think their pony cars?

I'd hate to see either go the way of the AMC Javelin.

Earlsays

My opinion is that the Mustang will stay...It's been around too long, it's too important to Ford. The F150 of Ford Cars is not going anywhere any time soon.


The Camaro could easily die...they already killed it off once.


The Challenger was nothing but a distant memory when they brought it back, and Dodge has been bought and sold enough over the years, that...at this point, it's not the same company.


Then again, Dodge has probably been the ballsiest out of the big three over the past 15 years...Ford won't build any other "Fast/Fun Car" to avoid competing with the Mustang...Dodge doesn't care how many different fast cars they make, so, they may be the one to ultimately surprise us...


Two door cars overall have been dying off for the past 20+ years, same with manual transmissions.


I feel like the general direction with cars is "What kind of Honda CRV would you like?"


Because everyone builds multiple eggs on wheels...

bt4

I had not thought of it in those exact terms, but it is a good analogy. I've no objection to CUV's per se. But given the nature of the beast, they all share a common form, with nothing but the grill and the tail lights to differentiate the various offerings from manufacturers.

I'm sure some people need the functionality, but I don't get the appeal.

SpectreH

Since all manufacturers have to meet EPA fuel economy regulations and pedestrian impact standards, all cars have been looking the same for a while. Use a computer to seek out an aerodynamic shape and you get the same results every time. The current crop of muscle cars are the only breath of fresh air in an otherwise blandly shaped automotive landscape.

bt4

It's great that we have muscle car choices, I can't help but wonder for how long.

Chevy has an expensive, low-volume, sports car. It's called a Corvette. Do they need two vehicles in that niche? I was shocked to see the 35% drop on what is still a new model. The Camaro barely managed to outsell the Challenger, a much older design. That can't be what GM was planning when they borrowed a Cadillac chassis and a Corvette engine. If the Camaro doesn't pick up sales, will GM still try to make a business case for producing the car? They killed the last Camaro at 42K/Year.

The Arab Oil Embargo had a big impact on the automotive industry. The '73 Mustang was a big car. Ford did a a complete about face in 1974. The Mustang II was a small car, but a huge success in sales--384,000 sold. If the market continues to shrink, could Ford be looking at the costs and the margin and thinking Probe? The problem with that direction is there is already a Focus ST and RS. And, I don't know if Ford could make a financial case for making the Mustang into a Corvette.

Even at a drop of 33% the current Mustang looks fair sales-wise. Over 5K units per month should keep the assembly line running. But I'd be worried if it dropped to Camaro-like numbers.