After dropping the ball last year when it put its
development plans for the mid-size RWD Zeta architecture on hold, only to see strong sales of the Ford Mustang and
DaimlerChrysler’s LX-platform RWD cars, GM has restarted development under the new banner of a “global RWD
architecture.”
The architecture-formerly-known-as-Zeta is being considered for the new Camaro, a
redesigned Chevrolet Impala, a Buick sedan, a Buick convertible based on the Velite concept (shown at right), a new
Pontiac GTO, and the Pontiac Grand Prix.
As originally planned for the Zeta platform, the new architecture
will be engineered by GM’s Holden subsidiary. The first production version of the new architecture will debut in
Australia later this year.
The most controversial issue facing GM execs will be choosing the first
U.S.-market car to be built on the new platform. According to Automotive News, the choice will be made by mid-2006, for
production in 2008 or 2009.