Chevy Camaro could be replaced by an EV performance sedan

It's impossible to tell what will become of the Chevy Camaro and when, but the news is consistently unkind to the pony car. U.S. sales peaked at 88,249 units in 2011, fell to 29,775 in annus horribilis 2020, the chip shortage has kept sales pacing even lower so far this year, and the sixth-gen Z/28 has been canceled. The seventh-gen model was first reported to be canceled, then postponed, then rumor said the sixth-gen might be asked to carry the torch — however weakly — until 2026. Now, if Automotive News' survey of future GM products is accurate, it looks like the Camaro's going to be dragged behind the woodshed in 2024. That's the year Camaro assembly is predicted to end, making room for "an electric performance sedan" as a replacement in 2025. Please, let's all give Camaro fans a moment to digest this.

If the Camaro's really given up the fight, that could remove the primary competition for Ford's suspected electric Mustang thought to debut in 2028. Dodge just announced a battery-electric muscle car for 2024 with vulgar specs and teaser photos shot in a nightclub, but we're not sure whether that vehicle will be two or four doors or come in both forms. A battery potent enough for 2-second sprints to 60 miles per hour and a 500-mile range leads us to wager on four doors, at least initially. Chevrolet's entry could be looking more at Auburn Hills than Dearborn, especially by being a sedan, a bodystyle Ford has given up here save for the Mustang Mach-E. And if Chevy does expand the Camaro brief by sliding the name onto a four-door instead of carrying out its teased Camaro silhouette atop GM's Ultium battery pack, then the faithful will take some heart that it isn't a Camaro crossover. At least not at first. 

The mystery electric machine will be part of GM's enormous and enormously expensive electrification plans. The General has set aside $35 billion to get at least 20 new EV models on the market in the next five years, including all of Cadillac's lineup; a replacement for the Chevy Bolt; at least one electric Chevrolet crossover to be dubbed Blazer and perhaps two more; a GMC crossover; and battery-powered pickups for the Bowtie and GMC.

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