Despite having fewer model variations on the market, pent up demand for the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro appears to have been enough to send the bad Bowtie past Ford's redone Mustang in June. Sales figures for the month are beginning to trickle in today, and General Motors says it shifted 9,320 Camaro units last month, as compared to the Blue Oval's 7,632 Mustangs.

Whether Chevrolet's victory will be sustainable over the long haul remains to be seen, but as The General has a backlog of 10,000 sold orders to fill (equating to less than a seven day supply), the streak is likely to continue for at least the next few months. Presently, GM offers just two main Camaro models, the V6 RS and the V8-powered SS, while the Ford Mustang has more bodystyles and trims than you can shake a stick at (arguably making the Camaro's achievement seemingly that much more impressive).

Sales of the third leg of 2009's pony car table, the Dodge Challenger, trail far behind, with just 1,369 units cleared last month.

As the industry heads into the dog days of summer, it looks like America's renewed pony car war is just heating up. Who will take the crown for the whole year? Sit tight, muscle fans.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Alex Nunez / Weblogs, Inc.


Photos Copyright ©2008 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

According to the well-connected boys over at Camaro5, General Motors will indeed produce a Chevrolet Camaro Z28 after all... and they've even scored some details on the hi-po offering.

According to Camaro5 user Hiney1 who attended a special question and answer session at the Carlisle Nationals this weekend (seen above), a Z28 will arrive after the Camaro Convertible, itself expected in the spring of 2011.

The Z28 will reportedly make use of some sort of high-output LS-based engine (C'mon, guys! You're killing us!), and it will incorporate a hood similar to that of the Bumblebee edition, along with a unique grille, the usual spate of graphics and emblems, and perhaps even a tweaked rear-end. Thanks for the tip, Jay!

[Source: Camaro5]

You want a 2010 Chevrolet Camaro? You'd better come strong with more money than the MSRP requires, and you'd better be willing to wait. Bloomberg is reporting that General Motors can't build the reborn bow tie pony car fast enough to quench public demand. That's excellent news for a company that needs a reason to smile, and it could be even better for dealers donning the bow tie. After all, car sales are still firmly in the tank, and GM has seen more than its fair share of shrunken demand.

Dealers have already booked about 25,000 orders for the Camaro, yet only half have been delivered to date. Analysts reportedly told Bloomberg that dealers are getting $500 over sticker on average, too, and at least one dealer is guessing that he won't have a Camaro to sell in stock for at least a year. Bartow Chevrolet in Florida sold its first two Camaros at MSRP, and he's already booked 18 orders.

There is no question that the Camaro has grabbed the attention of the car-buying public, and the debut of Transformers 2 will likely give the pony car another marketing shot in the arm. GM sold 5,463 copies of the Camaro in May, and we're guessing that number will grow as production ramps up.



[Source: Bloomberg]

Normally the twisting of an ignition key doesn't constitute news here at Autoblog, but this is one of the few exceptions. Back in January, Hennessey Performance announced the HPE700, a concoction born from the combination of an LS9 supercharged V8 from a ZR1 and a 2010 Camaro. The Texas-based company only recently shoe-horned the engine into the engine bay. A video camera was on when it was finally time to start the newly created monster, and the sound is nothing short of amazing. The result of open headers plus what appears to be a fairly aggressive cam makes for a sound that has the hairs on the backs of our necks standing on end. Have a listen for yourself by watching the video after the jump. Thanks for the tip, Brian!



[Source: YouTube]

The annals of automotive history are full of great interior fabrics, especially from American automakers during the 1970s and early '80s. While our tastes in seating surfaces may have changed over the years, those colorful prints and durable fabrics still have lots of life left in them – at least according to Kim White, who offers a full line of handbags sewn up from vintage automotive fabrics starting from $95.

According to White, these handbags "have a widespread appeal, from trendy teens to stylish grandmothers and every woman in between," and they certainly good to our eyes, especially the killer Camaro Special Edition ($225 incl. tax and shipping to Continental U.S.). Concerned that a slew of bums have quite literally ridden around on your brand new handbag for the last few decades? Fret not. Says the company's website:

Kim White uses dead stock never-used textiles intended for use in American automobiles: cars, trucks and vans. She fortuitously unearthed an entire warehouse of automotive fabric, which may be the last existing stock anywhere in the US, and she is the sole owner of these amazing textiles.

There you have it. Not only are these handbags assembled right here in the US of A using all-new textiles, Kim White Handbags is apparently the only place in the world where you'll find them. Check out our gallery below for samples.



[Source: Kim White Handbags via vLane]

Less than one week before Transformers 2: Rise of the Fallen goes into wide release in China, fans of the morphing vehicle-turned-robot movie franchise took to the streets of Beijing in full Bumblebee regalia.

What looks to be a well-organized event was put on by website Autohome.com.cn, and it appears that they even managed to get General Motors' Chevrolet division in on the act, with a new Bumblebee-spec Camaro to lead the procession of like-painted fan cars.

We're not sure we'd go with the yellow-and-black stripes treatment on our own rides, but we remain impressed with both the dedication and the sheer variety of cars that have been given the 'Full Bumblebee,' including a couple of new Cruze sedans and a passel of Aveos, a Ford Focus, a Suzuki Swift and an SX4, a Citroen C4 – even a Mark II Volkswagen Golf. Check out the high-res photo gallery after the jump, and be sure to click on the link below for even more shots of the event. Thanks for the tip, Joe!



[Source: Autohome.com.cn via Google Translate]

Last we reported back in March, plans to produce a drop-top version of the Chevy Camaro were still in effect. While the Camaro Convertible may be delayed until early 2011 and arrive as a 2012 model (GM just confirmed it will arrive as a 2011 model), the on again/off again project appears to be firmly in the on position now... and we have proof. Autoblog reader Brad M recently caught the Camaro Convertible getting a tan outside of the Oshawa, Ontario plant that assembls the fixed-roof Camaro. The red convertible was sporting front and rear fascias from the Camaro SS and, with its top retracted, sported a very clean rear deck with only the center stop lamp and satellite radio antenna sticking up. With the chance of a Dodge Challenger Convertible hovering around 0%, we're pleased to see Chevy still intends to take on the Ford Mustang Convertible in the topless wars. Now, back to waiting...

Hennessey Performance has successfully completed the most crucial step in developing its ZR1-powered HPE700: Getting the Corvette ZR1's LS9 motor to fit in the engine bay of the new Camaro. John Hennessey just sent over these images that show the before and after, and from the look of things, the supercharged 6.2-liter V8 fits nicely.

The engine cover that's visible through a polycarbonate window on the Corvette ZR1 lines up nicely against the Camaro's firewall and it appears there's still some room left in front of the engine. While the LS9 normally produces 638 hp in the ZR1, as its name suggests, the Hennessey HPE700 will be shooting for over 700 horsepower. Only 24 examples will be produced and Hennessey has already sold 11. If you're interested, check out the official specs and features on the Hennessey Performance website.



[Source: Hennessey Performance]

Whether or not you're a fan of NASCAR, the simple fact remains that none of the cars bear much resemblance to their factory counterparts, and it's not like the "Fusions" and "Chargers" are particularly sexy, either. So in an attempt to boost the series' viewers and souvenir sales, Fox Sports is reporting that Ford and Chrysler plan to introduce Mustang- and Challenger -bodied racers into the Nationwide series next year.

The new designs are due to be submitted for approval on June 26, and the 2010 NASCAR competitors are reportedly going to be visually closer to stock than anything we've seen since the new "aero-matched" cars began rolling out earlier this decade. Unfortunately, the new Mustang and Challenger cars will still be far removed from their stock siblings, and General Motors has apparently decided not to join its domestic rivals and produce a Camaro shell. Both GM and Toyota will reportedly run their current Impala and Camry bodies, respectively.

[Source: Fox Sports via Cars]

Despite being unusually thrifty for a muscle car, we can't help but think that Chevrolet's new Camaro is secretly happy at the prospect of being released into the Middle East, land of wide-open roads and discount crude. General Motors has just announced that the Camaro will pack its bags and head to the Middle East later this summer, where it already has a wait list at some dealers.

The market will receive two models to start – the 3.6-liter V6 model (in LT trim) and the fire-breathing 6.2-liter V8 SS, the latter of which will be available with the buyer's choice of a six-speed manual or automatic gearbox.

For our Autoblog Middle East friends, you can configure your new Bowtie at www.camaroarabia.com, and for the rest of us, there's a gigantic new high-res gallery of the Camaro checking out the local sights and the obligatory press release after the jump.

Let the countdown to the first sighting of a reflective gold painted Camaro SS begin!