What to Expect from the 2020 Camaro

When the fifth-generation Camaro hit the market in 2010, it outsold the Mustang for the first couple of years. But that victory was short-lived.

Since the Gen 6 design hit with the 2016 model year, sales have been on the decline every year. The 2020 Chevy Camaro needs to see some changes if GM hopes to reverse this trend.

Let's look at what's in store for Chevy's signature muscle car in 2020.

Will the 2020 Camaro Fix This Controversial Problem?

It would be easy to blame the decline in sales on market conditions but unfortunately, that isn't the cause. Mustang sales jumped way up when the Gen 6 Camaro launched and while they've dropped a bit since it's nowhere near the drop in Camaro sales. And the Challenger is holding steady, even outselling the Camaro in 2018.

One of the most controversial features of the Gen 6 Camaro is the front-end, particularly on the SS model. Chevrolet changed from the previous style, with a body-colored cross-beam and the bow-tie logo centered on the upper grill, to a black cross-beam that has the logo in the center.

And a lot of Camaro fans hated it.

There was more to the drop in sales than just the front-end, mind you. The redesign also created a more cramped interior with a big reduction in visibility for the driver. But judging by the reaction of a lot of Camaro fans, the front-end turned a lot of people off.

Chevy seems to be admitting their mistake. The Camaro SS "Shock" concept car they unveiled at SEMA 2019 shows off a return to the body-colored cross-beam with the bow-tie logo back where it belongs. Hopefully, that's a sign of what's to come in 2020.

In the meantime, a lot of Camaro owners are turning to aftermarket add-ons to solve some of the problems they see in the current model.

The Powertrain - A Mix of New and Familiar

The engine options in the 2020 Camaro are expected to be the same as the 2019 model, with a few tweaks to squeeze out some extra horsepower. There are some interesting rumors swirling around the internet about a possible hybrid engine for 2020, however.

GM is on the record as stating they're working towards an all-electric future. All-electric would have to include the Camaro, much to the chagrin of muscle car fans everywhere.

The transition to an electric Camaro is inevitable though. Fans of carbureted engines were up in arms about the switch to fuel injection but they got over it. Nobody says, "I wish Chevrolet would put a carbureted engine back in the 2020 Camaro," and the same thing will happen with the switch to electric.

What's fueling the rumors are some patents filed early last year for a kinetic energy storage system that could be used in the 2020 Camaro SS. This system uses a regenerative braking process to generate energy during braking. Capacitors would store that energy for later use.

This has led some people to think that Chevy might be looking at using a hybrid engine in the SS in 2020. It's an interesting theory but a major change like that does take some time to engineer. It may be a bit optimistic for the 2020 model year but it's a safe bet that it's coming sooner or later.

Return of the Z/28

Another popular theory is that a 2020 Camaro Z28 is making a comeback.

This rumor has been around for a few years since the Z/28 left the lineup with the launch of the Gen 6 design. But so far, the closest we've come is the ZL1 that arrived for 2018.

While the ZL1 could be re-branded as the Z/28 in 2020, that's unlikely to happen. The Z/28 is a

bit of a sacred nameplate to Camaro fans, and they're going to expect it to check some specific boxes.

In particular, the Z/28 was always intended to be a street-legal track car. Fans expect it to be a stripped-down model, saving weight anywhere possible, paired with a high-revving engine.

A 6th generation Camaro Z/28 needs to use every trick in the book to get the weight down:

Carbon fiber everywhere possible

Thinner glass

Less noise-dampening materials

Slightly smaller wheels and tires

The supercharged V-8 in the ZL1 puts out a lot of horsepower but it's not the most svelte powertrain ever found under the hood of a Camaro. It's also got a lot of ground-effects and other add-ons that add to the weight.

The 2014 Z/28 is considered a classic even though it's only five years old. If GM can check all the right boxes, a new Z/28 could be a worthy follow-up.

That could drive a lot of sales, something the Camaro line could sorely use right now.

How Will the 2020 Camaro Stack Up to the Competition?

Camaro fans will be loyal to the brand regardless of what the competition is doing. Someone who's driven Chevy cars their whole life isn't suddenly going to jump ship to a Mustang.

But they want to know they could blow the doors off a Mustang or Challenger if they ever need to. Car trends for 2020 are raising questions about that.

The top of the Camaro food chain is currently the ZL1. Ford finally unveiled the 2020 Shelby GT-500 Mustang at the 2019 Detroit Auto Show, which is their king of the hill. And Dodge has the Challenger SRT Hellcat Red Eye in the ring too.

The GT-500 won't go on sale until Fall 2019 so there's no real-world data on it yet. But we have got an estimated set of specs based on what Ford has said publicly.

Power-wise, the GT-500 will sport a supercharged 5.2-liter V-8. The output hasn't been officially released but Ford engineers have promised it will be over 700 hp and 600 lb-ft of torque. They estimate a 0-60 time of roughly 3.5 seconds, the same as the ZL1. The Challenger Hellcat Redeye puts out 797 hp and 707 lb-ft of torque, taking the crown for power output.

Compare those numbers to the ZL1's 650 hp and 650 lb-ft of torque and it sounds like it might get a run for its money. It's not only about power though.

Automatic Transmission vs Stick Shift

One of the biggest problems with the GT-500 is that it's only going to be available with a 7-speed automatic gearbox. Anyone who likes rowing their own gears is going to be out of luck. And even the automatic is only a 7-speed, compared to the 10-speed in the ZL1.

The Hellcat Redeye has the same problem as the GT-500 - no manual transmission option. You can get it on the standard Hellcat but if you want top-deck performance, it's automatic-only.

Track performance is one area that's still a bit up-in-the-air, comparing the Mustang and Camaro, at least. The Hellcat has always been more at home on a drag strip than a road course.

The GT-500 is expected to be a very competent track car. The suspension is tuned for the track and there are various option deletes and add-ons that can bring the weight down quite a bit. The ZL1 1LE is also very competitive so it's going to be interesting to see how the two measure up once we can see some real-world comparisons.

When the GT-500 launches, expect to see head-to-head cover stories in every major car magazine. Camaro vs Mustang always sells.

When to Expect the Gen 7 Camaro

Previous generations of Camaros have lasted anywhere from three years (Gen 1) to eleven years (Gen 2). There's no way to judge the length of a particular generation based on what's happened in the past.

There's no question that the 2020 Camaro is not going to see a complete redesign. While prototype Camaros have been sighted, they're clearly built on the same platform.

Close followers of GM are expecting the Gen 7 Camaro to hit the market somewhere around the 2023 model year. It's expected to be based on either GM's Alpha 2 platform or their VSS-R platform.

That would also give GM time to sort out their plans for a hybrid or fully-electric version of the Camaro.

Should Fans Get Excited About the 2020 Chevy Camaro?

With all the rumors swirling about the 2020 Chevy Camaro, it's hard to know exactly what to expect. It does seem certain that GM is going to address some of the easiest complaints to fix, like the front-end on the SS.

If a new Z/28 does launch next year, that's going to be enough to push a lot of fence-sitters back into the showroom. Hopefully, if that happens GM will recognize the potential for the Camaro brand if they start catering to its biggest fans a little bit more.

It's probably a bit too soon for a model to launch with a hybrid engine but there is an outside chance that it could happen. That could also drive some sales from people who are looking for more eco-friendly power. Not to mention the money they would save on gas.

All-in-all, it's an exciting time to be a Camaro fan.

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