The 2016 Chevrolet Camaro is All New Shy of the Badges

General Motors has done an amazing job of making sure that we haven’t learned much about the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro ahead of the Belle Isle debut in May, but the first bits of information on the 6th gen Camaro are even better than we had expected. First, not only will the 2016 Camaro be different in every way from the 5th gen models that are in showrooms now – every component is unique shy of the badge in the middle of the back end and the SS badge above the rear taillight. Everything else on the 2016 Camaro is new and that includes both the Alpha chassis platform and the LT1 V8 that will power the Camaro SS.

Also, while the Alpha chassis platform is used on other models including the 2015 Cadillac ATS Coupe and the LT1 V8 of the Camaro SS was first used in the C7 Corvette Stingray, both the chassis and the engine will be unique to the 2016 Camaro.

“Our global engineering team is incredibly passionate about Camaro, and they sweated all the details to make Gen 6 the best Camaro we could possibly put into the hands of our customers,” said Mark Reuss, GM executive vice president, Global Product Development.

Camaro’s Alpha Platform
While the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro will ride on the same Alpha chassis platform as some other GM vehicles, the dimensions of the chassis have been stretched for Camaro use. The chassis has been lengthened in order to give the 2016 Camaro the proper nose to tail proportions while being widened for better stability and cornering capabilities. This doesn’t come as a huge surprise, as the Cadillac ATS Coupe that uses the same Alpha chassis base simply wouldn’t look right when covered in Camaro skin, so the longer, wider car will make a fitting Camaro.

“Alpha provided a strong foundation, but more than 70 percent of the components are unique to the Gen 6 Camaro, including exterior and interior dimensions, an all-new interior, front and rear suspension, and powertrain components,” he said. “The minute you see – and hear – the Gen 6, you know it’s a Camaro, from the stance to the driving experience to the sound of the Small Block V-8.”

The Camaro LT1 V8
The 2016 Chevrolet Camaro SS will be powered by the same LT1 V8 that motivates the 2014 and 2015 Corvette Stingray, the LT1 in the 6th gen Camaro has 20% unique components from the one in the Corvette. GM hasn’t offered up exactly what is unique, but we know that the tri-y exhaust manifolds (shown above) will join other components changes that were required to fit the LT1 in the Camaro engine bay.

The next batch of 2016 Camaro teaser images are set to debut in about a week, so we should soon get a few more tidbits of information as we eagerly await the May 16th introduction of the 6th gen muscle car in Detroit. Of course, we will continue bringing you any information that sneaks out ahead of time.