Wasn't it just a couple of years ago that the American Family Association was boycotting Ford for marketing in gay-centric publications? Fast forward to today and see just how much things have changed. Last month, Chevrolet sponsored an event in Los Angeles called Gay Day at the Movies to promote the release of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Michael Bay's latest opus, of course, features a bunch of General Motors vehicles, not the least of which is the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro that plays the leading role of Bumblebee.

A video was produced to promote Gay Day at the Movies featuring a pair of "Bumblebee Boys" in Camaro-branded briefs washing the Bowtie brand's pony car revival. The cheeky (pardon the pun) video is clearly targeted at the gay community and uses beefcake car washers to that effect in a not-so-subtle way.

Will Chevy or GM see a backlash from being associated with this video? Who knows, but the video isn't exactly being shown in primetime on NBC. For the moment, it lives solely on YouTube with a gajillion other vids – and one would have to actively search to find it.

Follow the jump to watch the video for yourself, and please remember to be respectful in the comments.

UPDATE: The video has been removed from YouTube by the user. We're searching to find it again on the interwebs.



[Source: USA Today via Huffington Post]

Some coachbuilt custom supercars are all show. But the owner of a Bertone Mantide is eager to prove that his has got the go to back up his show. Dan Watkins, the British gentleman-racer who bought the first Mantide, is so eager, in fact, that he's pondering personally financing a run at the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1's Nürburgring lap record. And there's every reason to believe his car could reach that goal.

At 7 minutes, 26.4 seconds, the 2009 ZR1 holds the current lap record for a stock, street-legal, series production automobiles (excluding such track-focused machinery as the Viper ACR and Radical SR8). Nissan has its eyes on the ZR1 and is closing in fast, but as delicate and fragile as it may look, the Mantide arguably stands the best chance of besting the supercharged Vette's time – mostly because it's based on the ZR1. Only it's 80kg (176 pounds) lighter and 30% more aerodynamic, thanks to the improvements made to the body by Jason Castriota and his team at Stile Bertone.

To test the theory, Watkins is mulling renting out the 'Ring for three days, hiring an expert Nordschleife driver, and of course, donating the use of his $2 million supercar. All in pursuit of the ultimate bragging rights. If it happens, well, be watching.



[Source: PistonHeads]

Despite having fewer model variations on the market, pent up demand for the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro appears to have been enough to send the bad Bowtie past Ford's redone Mustang in June. Sales figures for the month are beginning to trickle in today, and General Motors says it shifted 9,320 Camaro units last month, as compared to the Blue Oval's 7,632 Mustangs.

Whether Chevrolet's victory will be sustainable over the long haul remains to be seen, but as The General has a backlog of 10,000 sold orders to fill (equating to less than a seven day supply), the streak is likely to continue for at least the next few months. Presently, GM offers just two main Camaro models, the V6 RS and the V8-powered SS, while the Ford Mustang has more bodystyles and trims than you can shake a stick at (arguably making the Camaro's achievement seemingly that much more impressive).

Sales of the third leg of 2009's pony car table, the Dodge Challenger, trail far behind, with just 1,369 units cleared last month.

As the industry heads into the dog days of summer, it looks like America's renewed pony car war is just heating up. Who will take the crown for the whole year? Sit tight, muscle fans.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Alex Nunez / Weblogs, Inc.


Photos Copyright ©2008 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

According to the well-connected boys over at Camaro5, General Motors will indeed produce a Chevrolet Camaro Z28 after all... and they've even scored some details on the hi-po offering.

According to Camaro5 user Hiney1 who attended a special question and answer session at the Carlisle Nationals this weekend (seen above), a Z28 will arrive after the Camaro Convertible, itself expected in the spring of 2011.

The Z28 will reportedly make use of some sort of high-output LS-based engine (C'mon, guys! You're killing us!), and it will incorporate a hood similar to that of the Bumblebee edition, along with a unique grille, the usual spate of graphics and emblems, and perhaps even a tweaked rear-end. Thanks for the tip, Jay!

[Source: Camaro5]

The folks at Noticias Automotivas have scored shots of what looks to be the next-generation Daewoo Matiz, the subcompact hatch that we know better as the Chevrolet Spark.

The budget runabout is clearly very similar to General Motors' 2007 Beat concept and is in fact bang-on the Bowtie-badged production-intent model we saw displayed at this year's Geneva Motor Show, albeit with a Daewoo-specific upper and lower grilles, less stylized fog lamps and discount looking wheels.

Inside, the motorcycle-like gauge binnacle appears to have to have made the transition to production as expected, although as we were not permitted to touch the Geneva car, we can't tell if it's a tilt/telescope assembly.

Check out the gallery of images below.




[Source: Noticias Automotivas]

Normally the twisting of an ignition key doesn't constitute news here at Autoblog, but this is one of the few exceptions. Back in January, Hennessey Performance announced the HPE700, a concoction born from the combination of an LS9 supercharged V8 from a ZR1 and a 2010 Camaro. The Texas-based company only recently shoe-horned the engine into the engine bay. A video camera was on when it was finally time to start the newly created monster, and the sound is nothing short of amazing. The result of open headers plus what appears to be a fairly aggressive cam makes for a sound that has the hairs on the backs of our necks standing on end. Have a listen for yourself by watching the video after the jump. Thanks for the tip, Brian!



[Source: YouTube]

The technicians and engineers at General Motors' Pre-Production operations center at the Warren, MI Tech Center have been hard at work for the last several weeks finishing up the first of about 75 integration prototypes of the Chevy Volt. They worked so hard, in fact, that the first car was completed a week ahead of schedule. These are the first actual running prototypes and include pretty much all of the production-intent hardware in a production body shell. As is typical of these integration prototypes, items like the light clusters aren't quite done yet. The intended bulbs are included in a flat black plastic cluster with the proper arrangement but the covers and internal sculpting are missing.

Chief engineer Andrew Farah took IVER #1 (that's Integration Vehicle Engineering Release #1) out for a brief drive after it was completed and checked out and, according to the video after the jump, everything worked smoothly. While the car looks pretty much like the Volt that was unveiled last September, if you look carefully you will notice one difference. From the original concept to the styling buck we have seen for the last nine months, the charge port was always hidden under the trim piece just ahead of the driver's side mirror. There is now a flap looking much like a gas cover just below that on the fender. The charge port sits behind that flap. According to Volt spokesman David Darovitz, this is the production intent configuration. Dave, we're ready for our test drive anytime, you have our number. Check out the video with Andrew Farah after the jump.



[Source: General Motors]

General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson held a web chat with journalists earlier today over at the automaker's Fastlane Blog. (Full transcript available here.) Now, despite persistent rumors to the contrary, it's been reported a few times over that GM has no intention of resurrecting the Aussie-built Pontiac G8 under a different division, even though variants of the G8's Holden Commodore source material are sold in foreign markets under both the Chevrolet and Buick nameplates. This is a lamentable course of action, to say the least, because the G8 is a really good car. In particular, the G8 GT and GXP models are downright excellent. Towards the end of the web proceedings, AutoWeek's Greg Migliore went to the well one last time on behalf of enthusiasts everywhere, asking Henderson if the G8 has any future under one of the "new" GM's remaining brands.

14:45 [Comment From Greg Migliore--AutoWeek]
Does the Pontiac G8 have any kind of future within General Motors as a re-badged model? What kinds of changes would need to be made to the car for it to be sold under another brand?

14:45 Fritz Henderson: I am not a fan of rebadging.

That's a terse, disappointing, answer – especially considering that of GM's four remaining divisions, GMC is made up almost exclusively of warmed-over Chevrolets. R.I.P. Pontiac G8. (Or new Chevy Impala. Or Buick Park Avenue...)



[Source: GM Fastlane via Motor Trend]

Last we reported back in March, plans to produce a drop-top version of the Chevy Camaro were still in effect. While the Camaro Convertible may be delayed until early 2011 and arrive as a 2012 model (GM just confirmed it will arrive as a 2011 model), the on again/off again project appears to be firmly in the on position now... and we have proof. Autoblog reader Brad M recently caught the Camaro Convertible getting a tan outside of the Oshawa, Ontario plant that assembls the fixed-roof Camaro. The red convertible was sporting front and rear fascias from the Camaro SS and, with its top retracted, sported a very clean rear deck with only the center stop lamp and satellite radio antenna sticking up. With the chance of a Dodge Challenger Convertible hovering around 0%, we're pleased to see Chevy still intends to take on the Ford Mustang Convertible in the topless wars. Now, back to waiting...

Hennessey Performance has successfully completed the most crucial step in developing its ZR1-powered HPE700: Getting the Corvette ZR1's LS9 motor to fit in the engine bay of the new Camaro. John Hennessey just sent over these images that show the before and after, and from the look of things, the supercharged 6.2-liter V8 fits nicely.

The engine cover that's visible through a polycarbonate window on the Corvette ZR1 lines up nicely against the Camaro's firewall and it appears there's still some room left in front of the engine. While the LS9 normally produces 638 hp in the ZR1, as its name suggests, the Hennessey HPE700 will be shooting for over 700 horsepower. Only 24 examples will be produced and Hennessey has already sold 11. If you're interested, check out the official specs and features on the Hennessey Performance website.



[Source: Hennessey Performance]