2016 Chevy Camaro Release Date, Specs: Comparison With 2016 Ford Mustang and Other Muscle Cars

Sep 09, 2015 01:33 PM EDT

The 2016 Chevy Camaro will have a release date late this year, and many fans of the brand want to know everything they can about its specs.  Specifically, how does the 2016 Chevy Camaro compare with the 2016 Ford Mustang and other muscle cars?

According to Digital Trends, Ford recently reworked their "Pony Car" with the 2015 Mustang, as a way of celebrating its 50th anniversary of the original 1964 brand.  Chevrolet is also having its own remake as the 2016 Camaro is under the GM Alpha platform for its sixth generation design.  For those that are not aware of this, it currently underpins General Motor's compact to mid-size, front-engine, rear-wheel and four-wheel drives.

There are a lot of similarities between the 2016 Chevy Camaro and the 2016 Ford Mustang.  Both of them have "retro elements" that are essentially reminding drivers of their long automotive history, and yet their exterior designs still have a distinctly modern edge.  The Mustang has its trademark grill, segmented headlights, plus sequential turn signals, but with a tighter edge to it. 

This also goes for the interior, as Ford goes with the traditional gauges, but still has a subtle modern twist to them.  Camaro also wants to keep its traditions on the interior alive, but is more willing to embrace new technology like displays. 

In comparing the engines, it should be noted that Ford goes with a four-cylinder trend with a 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine, capable of 320 pound-feet of torque and 310 horsepower.  Chevy is sticking to the six-cylinder default, with 284 pound-feet and 335 horsepower. 

Of course, there are options for getting V8 engines on both models, and Camaro has three models as the powertrain line up is the 2.0L Turbo, the 6.2 L V8, and the 3.6L V6 according to the official Chevrolet website. The last will have the same 3.6 liter aspirated V6 from the older model, giving it 305 horsepower and 270 lb-ft of torque.  As for the 2.0L, it should have a new 2 liter turbocharged inline that was developed in Europe.  This will make as much as 250 horsepower and 265 lb-ft of torque which will use less than 40 percent less fuel than the V6.  The top of the range will have a 6.2 liter aspirated V8 with anywhere from 460 to 500 horsepower and up to 500 lb-ft of torque, making it faster than its Mustang competitors.  

A recent comparison of curb weight on Autonews showed that the two cars are as different as night and day.  Chevy has gone out of their way to make the 2016 Camaro lose pounds, but Mustang models after 2015 seem to be wanting to add weight. 

This leads to the final comparison: the price.  The basic Mustang with the V6 will cost about $24,625, with the V8 model being $33,125.  As for the 2016 Camaro, its price will probably be in the range of $24,000-$33,000.