How long GM will continue to race the Camaro remains one of the major unknowns following the company’s recent pledge of ongoing commitment to Supercars.
Production of the Camaro was discontinued globally at the end of 2023 in a move somewhat awkwardly announced in the same month the Gen3 version of the muscle car debuted.
Finding a new race car is primarily an issue for GM in the US as it also needs a solution for NASCAR, where its entries are this year running devoid of Camaro branding.
GM Australia & NZ MD Jess Bala told media at the Sydney 500 that the Camaro will likely race in Supercars “for the next couple of years” but noted that future planning is currently taking place.
“We know obviously there are discussions that are happening back at HQ in Michigan in the US around what the next racing car will be,” she said.
“Unfortunately, I’m not privy to that information yet, but we do know that motorsports is a huge part of the General Motors DNA and we’re confident there will be something coming in the near future.”
There remains no obvious solution for either the US or Australian markets.
The mid-size Malibu is the only passenger car left in Chevrolet’s US line-up while Australia gets just two models: the Silverado pick-up truck and Corvette sportscar.
Notably, GM is using its sister brand Cadillac for its current sportscar and upcoming Formula 1 efforts.
The Cadillac brand is currently being rolled out in the Australian market but with an all-electric SUV line-up, devoid of the CT5 V-Series sedan sold in the US.
GM appears keen to continue to push Chevrolet in NASCAR and Supercars as its tries to sell pick-up trucks wearing the Bowtie brand, with a move to Cadillac unlikely.
“It’s not something we’ve even talked about here. We see them as two very different brands, two very different executions,” said Bala of racing Cadillac.
“Obviously, our go-to-market strategy here for Cadillac is unique to just a couple of markets globally, under the GM company.
“But for us, when you look at where Cadillac races around the world and who they race against, they’re different brands again to who’s in the Supercars series as well.
“So no, we don’t see at any time in the foreseeable future, us bringing Cadillac racing into the Supercars series.”
Bala said the fact the Camaro is no longer manufactured, and in fact hasn’t been sold in Australia since 2020, isn’t as big an issue as it appears.
“We don’t sell Camaros, but we do know that what we do at these race events and the activations that we do, the trade nights we do with our dealers and drivers and things like that, does correlate back to building the brand,” she said.
“And we can see that, whether it’s through merch sales, standard ROI (Return on Investment) data research, etcetera, people recognize that Bowtie that’s on the front of the Camaro racing around the track that’s also on the front of the Silverado.
“And obviously everyone knows that Corvette is part of the overall Chevrolet brand as well.
“So while it’s a little bit unique from a relationship standpoint, there are definitely ties and business benefits between both. We wouldn’t be doing it if there wasn’t.”
Chevrolet sold 4,303 vehicles in Australia in 2024. That placed it 31st on an overall ranking led by Toyota (241,296), which is set to join the Supercars grid in 2026, and Ford (100,170).
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