I agree, competition will be good for both the breeds. It will force Ford to bring the Mustang's power up, and for Chevy to refine the interior of the Camaro. It should be a win/win whichever one you choose. :nice:

Comparing the base Camaro and base Mustang, styling is subject so I wouldn't tackle that subject. I would say the Mustang has better materials inside. I know 300 HP is impressive but it sounds like the Camaro can do 0-60 in 6.1 seconds. The Stang with a stick takes 6.5 seconds. The 2011 Stang will have a 260-270 HP V-6 and will probably beat the Camaro in a straight line. The Mustang is cheaper so for me the only question is the live axle out back. I owned a several cars with a live axle (Firebird, Camaro, Mustang) and never really cared. I'll wait and buy a 2011 Mustang.

Half a second is a huge deal in 0-60. Heck half a second is a big deal in the Qtr Mile. Now if indeed the 2011 has a new V6 then the stang has a chance, but will the price stay the same if ford has to put a new DOHC V6 under the hood??? Mustang 2010 site prices the base at $21,900 and Chevy site prices the Camaro at $22,900. half a second, irs, and a more stand out in the crowd design might net Chevy the win at entry level. (not that I like the styling of the Camaro as well as the 2010 Stang, but on the road there are several hundred thousand 05-09 mustangs that to the laymans eyes look mainly the same as the 2010, however, the camaro doesn't have any brethren similar on the road, hence my chosen vernacular "stand out in the crowd"). I'm pulling for you mustang!!!

The only problem with your logic is that the vast majority of folks that are buying the V6 models could care less if it is a half second faster or slower than a competing model. Exterior styling, interior quality, available options and price play a much bigger role at this level.

I think you would be very surprised. I agree with your point 100% about two to four years ago. More and more of the younger generations are drawn to fast revving, decent gas mileage engines (albeit unfortunate). Also, many v6 mustangs are sold to people who want a V8 and either cant afford the gas or cant afford the insurance. (I work part time for my Father who own a used car dealership). Just look at the current 05-09 aftermarket support for the V6. Testimate of truth. the 94-04 years have some support from the aftermarket, but the S197 V6 support is huge. People are thinking differently about performance these days (to some degree again unfortunate)

My point was ill stated, my apologies. I didn't mean to reference the time as much as the delta in performance. a driver will definitely feel the difference. When you test drive and merge onto the interstate you will easily tell that the camaro is faster. easier to merge or pass with. This IS something people look at when buying a car. I've never had a customer say that they like the way the interior and exterior look, and then buy it without driving it. This may be different in a new car market, but I would never buy a car without driving it. I want to see if I like the way it drives, my wife is the same way and she hates sports coupes.

I think the Automotive market is about to see the return of the V6 sales being far and above the V8s.

I don't get what the problem is people have with the Camaro. From the looks of this youtube clip this baby looks bad @ss! I don't see cartoony anywhere on it, it actually has a nice mean look to it. I'm guessing the color has a lot to do with it. I'm not fond of the bumble bee yellows myself but this silver looks great and an all black w/blacked out headlights must look amazing.

Again, I would NEVER give up my Angelina but would happily park this Camaro behind her in my driveway.

Chevrolet Camaro 2009 Driving Shots

in the original picture the camaro just gave me the hint of another car for the first time, monte carlo. anyone else? :shrug:

I like the way Chevy did thier hip on the Camaro better than the job ford did on the Mustang....

I guess, for me, it isn't so much that the Camaro is ugly (though, I must admit, its styling does absolutely nothing for me), it's the fact that, even before the car is released, its design is old. GM is to commended for how faithfully they replicated the concept, but that in itself is the problem. How long ago was the first Camaro concept shown? Three, four years ago?

I think most are very loyal to their brand--in this case the Mustang, and therefore do not want to give the Camaro the credit it deserves. Looks are very subjective or course, but I still think the Camaro exterior looks better than the 2010 redesign, but the Mustang interior is much nicer. Of course others will still want to dismiss the Camaro even though it will be a much better performer stock for stock--as the saying goes, there is no replacement for displacement. :nice: Of course I have no idea why Chevy can't get the Camaro to the market, the were faster getting the original Camaro out to start the original Pony car war than they have been this time around.

I used to be the same way though, and was a diehard GM guy until we had our children. I always had a Corvette, and used to run down Mustangs and call them Slowstangs and Rustangs even though I secretly liked them too. Once we needed a back seat, it was a no-brainer and I order the Mustang and embraced the Blue Oval as well. I have found you can indeed like both Chevy and Ford, although I never have, nor will I ever own a foreign car...just a little nod to patriotism and the American worker and economy I guess. :)

So when we leave the icy north in a couple more years, I will either be ordering a new Mustang, or a new Camaro, whichever offers the best blend of performance and style, and right now they both have their strengths and weaknesses. So like I said, the competition will be good for both breeds, and the customer should win whichever one chooses.

I really don't think a lot of the V-6 buyers care that much about half a second. If they do, the 2011 Mustang will beat the Camaro by .2 seconds anyway. V-6 buyers want a car that looks good, has a nice interior and is easy to live with day to day. Mustang sales tend to support this idea. The Stang easily out sold the the last generation Camaro. Stock, the last generation Camaro owned a Mustang at the drag strip and went extinct for 7 years. The Mustang formula has out sold every competitor to date and that has to count as a "win" based on some objective standards.

The camaro only owned the v8. The volume selling v6 only differed by about 30 up the new one is up by ninth up and only a grand more expensive. Add to that the potentially better more stable feel of IRS and the entry level mustang may not be able to hold it's own. These are differences you will easily feel in a test drive. I am pulling for the 2011 too, but how far will the price go up? This has nothing to do with the drag strip and everything to do with the initial test drive.

This thread is reminding me why I ordered my '05.

I hadn't driven it yet.

I hadn't heard it yet.

I hadn't even seen one in person yet.

It just felt right.

...Most people buy based on comfort. A lot of people avoid first year production cars. And believe it or not, the V6 Mustang is selling to a lot of women, like it did in the past. There aren't many Camaro chicks out there comparatively speaking... and the few that are out there will probably want the V8.

Remember, Camaro is an all-new car, while the Mustang designers had to contend with a carryover greenhouse/glass and carryover track width, so there wasn't alot of room between the two to create a hip. I think the Mustang is actually nicer, more subtle.

I find this whole debate humorous. Some of you need to start thinking "big picture". It's all predicated on the Camaro actually making it to market. Given GMs money problems, that's beginning to be in doubt. The Mustang might just win it by default.

What does this mean?

Dude in an early post you said .5 seconds (for the record, the Camaro was only .4 seconds faster) was everything to consumer. I'm not real sure what your saying on the next line but I think you are talking about the HP for the V-6s. The 94 and 95 Mustangs only had 150 HP while the Camaro had 200 HP. The Mustang was about even in 2000 with 190 HP. So yes a 150 HP Mustang out sold the 200 HP Camaro for 5-6 years. The only time I've noticed a live axle was in a bumpy corner or incline. I doubt most people would notice the difference on a 5 minute test drive around the dealership. If you're talking about a test drive, the Stang's killer interior will score some major points especially with women. I'm obviously a Mustang fan but I've owned a 80 Z-28 and a 68 Firebird. I usually call things pretty straight up and I'm not concerned by the competition. Ford going bankrupt is a bigger threat to the Stang's future.

After seeing this Picture in the Jan.09 issue of Road and Track I must admit I really Love the way the Hips Look on the 2010. Very subtle and well sculpted, in my opinion. Not Over Blown or a Caricature of the Mustangs of the past. Whether given a Clean Sheet or Not, I think the designers did an Excellent Job.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3148/...20808082_o.jpg

Besides the price, weight and interior styling advantage. Mustang will also be only pony car to offer convertible and glass roof options. As for the factory horsepower deficiency... with the money saved buying the Mustang, the owner could afford to mod the engine. Do the other companies offer dealer installed and warrantied superchargers? Everyone talks about the live axle rear suspension, but I wonder how much the Advance Trac stability control will affect the handling?

The Camaro also has electronic stability control, it's a federally mandated safety feature. It also doesn't improve a cars handling, it helps prevent a car from sliding out of control by detecting if the car is actually heading in the direction that the driver is intending it to go and applying brakes to individual wheels to correct the problem.

ESC is mandated for all passenger vehicles under 10,000 pounds (4536 kg), phasing in the regulation starting with 55% of 2009 models (effective September 1, 2008), 75% of 2010 models, 95% of 2011 models, and 100% of 2012 models.