automobilemag Milestone Chevrolet Camaro Turns 50

Milestone: Chevrolet Camaro Turns 50

How the Camaro got its name is a point of contention.Chevrolet developed the car under the guise of "Panther," reportedly going so far as to order $100,000 worth of Panther badges.Before Chevy revealed the Camaro in June 1966, though, a couple hundred journalists participated in a conference call billed as the first and last meeting of the "Society for the Eradication of Panthers From the Automotive World." During the call, Chevy boss Pete Estes put forth the potential Camaro name, saying it was a "small, vicious animal that eats Mustangs."The Camaro, Chevys answer to Fords sensationally successful Mustang, went on sale in September 1966, and dealers had no trouble moving more than 220,000 of t hem in the first year.

Rarely Seen Photos Show the Evolution of Chevrolet Camaro Design

To say the Mustang caught GM brass by surprise would be an understatement.They werent very impressed by the slab-sided personal car that debuted at the New York Worlds Fair in 1964, so they were stunned by the news that Ford had a runaway hitâ€"selling some 22,000 Mustangs on the day it was unveiled and more than 400,000 by the end of the 1965 model year.When asked what their answer to the Mustang was, Chevy execs publically pointed to the Corvair already in the Chevrolet lineup.
Jerry Heasley

Chevrolet Camaro through the generations

Chevrolets response to the Ford Mustangs release took more than two years to reach showrooms.When the Camaro finally arrived, however, it proved to be a formidable competitor.Fifty years later, through many mechanical and styling makeovers, the battle for pony car-class supremacy still rages.