General Motors has announced that it will discontinue production of the latest generation of the Chevrolet Camaro, leaving the Ford Mustang as the only remaining gasoline-powered American performance coupe. This decision follows Stellantis' earlier announcement that it would end production of the larger Dodge Challenger at the end of 2022, with plans to introduce an electric muscle car in the future. GM has not confirmed any plans for future versions of the Camaro, but hinted that the brand will have a future.
GM is in the process of transitioning to an all-electric vehicle lineup by 2035, with a majority of capital spending now dedicated to EVs and autonomous vehicles. As a result, the company has scaled back investment in new versions of traditional internal combustion engine vehicles. The current Camaro model, the sixth version in its history, is built at the Lansing Grand River Assembly Plant in Michigan, which will cease production in January 2024.
The Camaro was first introduced in 1966 as a competitor to Ford's Mustang. After five generations, it was dropped from the lineup in 2002 but brought back in 2010. However, in recent years, its sales have not matched those of the more popular Challenger or Mustang. In 2022, GM reported US Camaro sales of nearly 25,000, compared to nearly 48,000 Mustangs sold by Ford and 55,000 Challengers sold by Dodge.
Ford has unveiled a new generation of the Mustang, which will be purely gasoline-powered and go on sale next summer, marking the seventh generation and the 58th continuous year of production for the Mustang. These muscle cars, also known as pony cars, are among the last car models, as opposed to SUVs or trucks, manufactured by the three automakers.