Chevrolet Camaro four-cylinder turbo?
March 20, 2008 by Alborz Fallah
When Ford brought out the XR6 Turbo, many Ford fans felt a little confused, the battle between turbos and V8s had just taken a new direction. But now it’s about to go one step further with GM mulling a four-cylinder turbocharged engine for the new Chevrolet Camaro.
The reason is fuel economy, while the Camaro screams V8 muscle car, someone has to pay for the fuel and with the U.S. economy nearing a recession, selling big V8 fuel guzzlers is getting harder.
GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told journalists at the New York motor show that the entry model Camaro has been dropped, instead GM is considering transplanting the 2.0-litre turbocharged, direct-injected four-cylinder engine from the Pontiac Solstice roadster into the Camaro. The 2.0-litre produces 194kW.
The Camaro will also be available in high output V6 and V8 variants. The V6 version of the Camaro will have the same 3.6-litre four-cam V6 engine used in the Cadillac CTS, however power will be detuned to around 195kW. Fuel economy will be around 13.8L/100km for city and 9.4L/100km for highway.
Seeing a new Camaro go past with a modified blow off valve will undoubtedly make old-school muscle car fans cry, so the crowd pleaser for the Camaro range is the 6.0-litre (capacity unconfirmed) V8 with roughly 300kW.
GM will implement a cylinder cutoff system that shuts down four-cylinders when cruising, to improve fuel economy.
Given the rising cost of petrol, GM believes buyers will compromise, some will go for the turbo, more will go for the V8, but the majority will find the right balance in the V6 with a manual transmission.
“Back in the old days, if you wanted a muscle car, to get a decent one, you had to buy the V-8, and if you bought the V-6, you got a fairly rough, unrefined pushrod engine with low horsepower and weasely performance. This time, the V-6 is 260-odd horsepower, four overhead cams, very smooth and decent 0-to-60-mph times. And now the V-6 is in its own right a very fast, very legitimate car.” ” Lutz said.
Would you buy a four-cylinder turbo Camaro? Or to turn the question around, would you buy a four-cylinder turbo HSV/FPV sedan/coupe?
Print it: 
More choice is always better for the customers, people who are determined to get a v8 still can.
Agreed, i don’t see an issue with this and i’m sure the purists will cry foul at such an option but what choice do the big auto companies have? they get blasted currently for offering too many fuel guzzling models.
The other choice is too have icon models die as a result of high energy costs…
How about just bringing the Pontiac Solstice that the engine comes from to Oz?
I’ve seen them in the US and they are an awseome machine.
would the turbo 4 be much more fuel efficent then the v6?
I’d still own it if it was given to me but, no i wouldnt buy one! It should be a V6 turbo mininum! And range topping V8! Come on a 4 cylinder turbo in a big car like this!
Would be a bit sluggish off boost I would imagine given the size/weight.
I don’t really care, as long as we start seeing cheapish rwd coupes coming here.
Doesn’t the turbo 4 make the 6 redundant
A hard pushed 4Cyl won’t be much more econmical than the V8 but driven gently it will save a few dollars. Given that the yanks drive so slow it won’t be a bad thing. At least thers a choice being offered
solstice is left hand drive only designed by opel even vauxhall dont get one but the gt version in opel land looks better iof i buy a camaro i will get a turbo ewti hall the toppings
Hmm whats the torque on this 2.0 engine? and how heavy is this car?
Thats gay!!! Its supose to be a muscle car, not a rice burner!!! I could understand a twin turbo Alloytech under the hood but not a 4 banga. If they are gonna go and put half as many cylinders under the hood as whats supose to be there they may as well half do everything else – maybe only 2 wheels instead of 4, how about only triming half of the interior. If they want to replicate a legendary muscle car, then any thing less than an LS2 aint gonna cut it.
With the likes of a WRX STi and Evo X blowing off just about anything HSV / FPV has on offer who t f needs the V8? In the daily commute, red light grand prix, the old pacific hwy dash, in fact just about anything save for a very very very long dead straight drag strip the massive displacement engines and the cars they are housed in just dont cut it. Those are the facts and they cannot be disputed.
Save for those with large families, or those towing a caravan or large boat on their annual holiday there is no need for a massive 5, 6 or 7L motor under the bonnet because as the Japanese have proven you can do just as well for much less.
It is called technology advancement – and this is a foreign concept to the Fords and GMs of the world.
Flying high…. couple of things for to thinks about…
1. i am Quiet shore the a STI or Evo are lighter then this Muscle car.
2. the Evo and STI are all wheel drive?? would you want to put AWD under this and add more wieght to already heavy large car with only 190 something kilowatts. i dont think GM would make this thing a AWD as of the wieght issue with the small engine… the STI/Evo are quiet quick unless fully loaded and have so waieght in them…. wieght is the major issue with a turbo 4 in this thing.
3. yes the STI and EVO have been eating FPV/HSV for a while now… but at the prices are are getting closer now because people demand more out of a STI/EVO. and with GM Dropping Bigger More powerful engines. which can compete with the little cars again as the FPV and HSV engines are getting Bigger and Faster but the EVO and STI are really changing that much at all.. because there is only so much u can do with 2-2.5 litre engine. also look at the all might typhoon…. best of both worlds!!!!
NEW EVO – 5.2 to 100 – 13.6
NEW STI – 5.2 to 100 – 13.5
NEW GTS – 5.0-5.2 to 100 – 13.5 1/4
NEW Typhoon – 4.9-5.0 to 100 -13.0 (to be confirmed – has been claimed by FPV)
SO lets say the EVO /STI will need to start really doing some upgrading soon to there cars as these cars are been doing these approx speeds for a while?? and the FPV and HSV are keep improving as they have to compete with each other!!!!
QUOTE……….
“When Ford brought out the XR6 Turbo, many Ford fans felt a little confused”
were they really? well if the massive waiting lists for the XR6T in 2002 was anything to go off i wouldnt say the fans took a bit to “gel” with it.
the funniest thing is that this is all in trying to chase better fuel economy.
i betya the 4 banger wont deliver better economy and the quoted figure for the V6 varient is pretty close to what the current GM V8’s get anyway.
so its really a big joke doing this as an effort to reduce consumption.
the XR6T puts out more power and has an official figure of around 11L/100k.
sorry but performance and fuel economy can be achieved with out lowering the size of the donk.
yet soooooooo many people are fooled to think that ditching the old 6cyl for 4 bangers is going to save them bucket loads
There are many thing that come into the equation when looking at petrol consumption. A Turbo charged 4 cyl is not necessarily going to save a hell of a lot of petrol, especially driven hard – however it drinks less than a v8.
My Suby GT drinks at a rate of 7km/L in the city which equates to about 14.3L/100kms – prolly about the same as a larger 6 cyl – but it certainly goes harder than your standard 6 in every respect. You are unlikely to get 14.3L from a v8 in the city, and you certainly are not going to get that from a XR6T. Even if you drive the car like a complete pussy.
Oh and I am talking real world, not some unrealistic figures bandied about by the car companies as their official fuel consumption figures.
mate i woulda thought the XR6T wouldnt do any worse than 14L through city
Yeah but your a Ford Fairy Andrew.M… a Falcon would be doind well getting 14L in the city, let alone a XR6T
i don’t care if they released a version without an engine!!!
just so long as i can have one in yellow, i’ll stay plenty hard in anticipation.
that car is HOT
Btyf – You need a cold shower my friend. Carefull or you’ll have TP and his band of homo goonies after you.