Chevrolet Show Car to Have "Zeta Light" Platform
Date Posted 11-29-2005
DETROIT — The sports car prototype that Chevrolet will unveil in January at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit will ride on General Motors' Zeta Light architecture and is almost certain to have a Corvette engine. GM would love to have a rear-wheel-drive coupe or 2+2 vehicle to challenge the Ford Mustang and forthcoming Dodge Challenger, and the prototype will show how GM thinks it should handle the matter. GM would also like its Mustang fighter to arrive as soon as possible.
Media are reporting that GM will call the prototype "Camaro," but supplier sources familiar with the automaker's plans say the vehicle might instead resurrect the Chevelle nameplate.
"All the magazines are assuming they're going to copy the '69 Camaro, and I think that's highly likely," a well-placed source told Inside Line. "But there's also a chance they could copy the '70 Chevelle, in which case they'll call it Chevelle."
Much of the naming issue also depends on the status of GM's agreement with the city of Sainte-Thérèse, Quebec, where the company used to build Camaros and Firebirds. GM agreed not to use the names Camaro and Firebird for a period of time following the discontinuation of those models.
But whatever its name, a rear-drive Chevy coupe off the Zeta Light platform is a done deal. Supplier sources say the first two Zeta Light offerings will be a sedan and a coupe, both from Chevrolet. The Zeta Light architecture is a version of GM's Zeta architecture, modified to take out cost and accommodate longer wheelbases. GM would price the Chevy coupe closer to the Mustang than the Corvette, giving it (most likely) a Corvette engine but leaving out the kind of sophisticated performance systems and upscale interior the Vette has.
What this means to you: If you're a muscle car fan, get excited: the field is about to get bigger.
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