2012 Chevrolet Camaro 45th Anniversary Edition To Hit Showrooms This Summer

The 2012 Chevrolet Camaro 45th Anniversary Edition, priced between $38,000-$45,000, will arrive in showrooms this summer.

Chevrolet said in a statement on Wednesday that the Camaro 45th Anniversary Edition will be formally introduced at the Camaro5 Fest II on April 15 at the Firebird International Raceway in Chandler, Arizona.

The anniversary of the Camaro calls to mind a simpler era of the postwar freeway boom when the Motor City responded with a series of factory hot rods. It was a time when top versions of Detroit's pony cars — the Ford Mustang GT, Chevy Camaro SS and Pontiac Firebird Trans Am — offered blinding acceleration, sporty looks and single-digit fuel mileage.

The anniversary package that pays homage to this era will be offered on Camaro's top two trim levels — 2LT and 2SS — with either the 3.6-liter V6 engine or 6.2-liter V8 engine.

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Although formal pricing will not be announced until summer, Chevrolet spokesman David Caldwell told Inside Line on Wednesday that the intention is to keep the special model "accessible" from a pricing standpoint. The package is expected to add $1,200-$2,000 to the price of the 2LT or 2SS. Expect a price tag from the high $30,000s to the mid $40,000s on the anniversary model, Caldwell said.

He said Chevrolet is "not limiting" the production run of the 45th-anniversary model.

The Camaro 45th Anniversary Special Edition gets a red-and-silver rally stripe, new 20-inch wheels in dark silver, foglamps and taillamp bezels finished in dark silver, RS-style taillamp lenses, standard rear spoiler and HID headlamps, along with body-color roof molding.

The Jet Black interior gets leather-trimmed seats with the 45th Anniversary logo, a white instrument panel and door trim inserts, with the 45th Anniversary logo on the instrument panel, along with red, white and blue stitching on the seats, steering wheel, shift knob/boot, door armrests and console lid. The package is finished off with a 45th Anniversary logo on the steering wheel and sill plates.

Chevrolet also announced tweaks to the Camaro's 3.6-liter V6, engine which goes into production this summer. It gets a bump of 11 horsepower over the 2011 engine and will churn out 323 horses at 6,800 rpm. Chevrolet said it is 20.5 pounds lighter than its predecessor.

While the EPA has yet to rate the 2012 Camaro, Chevrolet said it expects this engine to return 30 mpg on the highway on the 2LS model. That 30 mpg number is critical, given that the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report on Wednesday pegged the average price for a gallon of unleaded gasoline in the U.S. at $3.80, with prices expected to hit $4 per gallon before Memorial Day.

Chevrolet also announced that a new FE4 suspension will debut as a "performance improvement" for the 2012 Camaro SS, with a focus on "more refined handling." Elements include retuned front and rear dampers, 20-inch aluminum wheels and new solid front and rear stabilizer bars.

New for Camaro in 2012 is a Rear Vision package that adds a rearview camera system and an auto-dimming mirror to the Rear Park Assist feature. The 2012 Camaro also gets a new rear spoiler as standard. Sharkfin, a new body color, is available on the RS package.

Just the Facts:

• The 2012 Chevrolet Camaro 45th Anniversary Edition, priced between $38,000 and $45,000, will arrive in showrooms this summer.
• The celebratory Camaro gets a red-and-silver rally strip, Carbon Flash Metallic paint and a Jet Black interior with the 45th Anniversary logo.
• It can be ordered in Camaro's top two trim levels — 2LT and 2SS — with either the 3.6-liter V6 engine or 6.2-liter V8 engine.

Via: Inside Line

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