Cars of Transformers 3 : Part 3, Chevrolet Camaro

Transfromers Dark The Moon will premier in less than one week's time. Earlier, we have done a series of posts on cars of TF3 here. The third feature car today is the iconic Chevrolet Camaro. The Camaro is probably the most recognized movie star car of this generation. Much have been written about the Camaro so we won't repeat them here. But there are still quite a number of interesting trivia surrounding the Camaro.

Most people will think of the Camaro as a quintessential American car, and in many ways that perception is correct. But it is only as American as a globalized America. The America that accepts anyone from any background to be part of them so long as they are ready to do their part for the American dream, not the insular thinking, baseball wearing redneck Americans who doesn't own a passport. Afterall, Einstein was a German refugee who fled to America. Andy Grove, co-founder of Intel was a Hungarian refugee, and closer to our time, Google was co-founded by a Russian immigrant Sergey Brin.

See, the Camaro is one of the better examples of how leveraging on talent from around the world can make a better final product. The Camaro is not exactly a global car - its primary market is still limited to North America. It was however developed by a global team of talent. We have written about Sangyup Lee before, on his contribution to the Corvette Stingray Concept. The Camaro is another one of Sangyup Lee's work. Sangyup Lee grew up in South Korea, and have almost zero prior experience with muscle cars before his arrival to the United States for his post-graduate studies in the highly acclaimed Pasadena College of Design. Under his charge, the 5th generation Camaro became the most successful modern era Camaro. Before this, all previous iterations of a modern Camaro never quite captured the appeal of the 1967 original. The previous generation Camaro, referred to by enthusiasts of domestic American muscle cars as GM F-body cars, was discontinued in 2002. At that time, GM didn't planned for any replacement for the car due the falling sales and little consumer interest. But as the 5th generation Camaro has shown, it was not that the market is diminishing, but rather, the problem lies with GM not having an engaging product. Today, the 5th generation Camaro is the best selling sports car in America. Partly because it was designed by a foreigner with no prior history with American muscle cars and consequently, is not constrained by historical baggages and is in a better position to reinterpret the concept. Below is a short interview with Sangyup Lee.

While the Camaro's design may have originated in America, it was the Australians who translated the concept into an actual series production ready vehicle. GM Holden's facility in Fishermans Bend, Melbourne, Australia, is GM's centre of rear wheel drive expertise. It was here that the Zeta platform, which underpins the Camaro was developed. The Camaro is one of those few cars that went from concept stage to series production stage with very little changes. It is one thing to push out a ground breaking design. To be able to manufacture them in a cost effective manner is another thing altogether.

The Camaro is not a typical American straight-line-only muscle car. Its dynamics were validated in Australia's Philip Island racetrack as well as the fearsome Nurburgring circuit in Germany. Winter testing were done in north of Canada's Great Lakes while hot weather testing were carried in Australian outbacks and US's Death Valley. Around 100 Camaro IVER (Integration Vehicle Engineering Release, GM's lingo for prototypes) cars were made. So it benefited from the cumulative experience of GM's global development centers across Australia, America and Europe.

When the car was finally signed off for series production, the responsibility to put the cars together fell to the Canadians. GM's plant in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada is the world's only source for Camaros. An American car, designed by a Korean, realized by Australians, put together by Canadians, swooned by the world over. How typical of an American success story.

But that's not the end of it. A Thai art sculptor, Anchalee Saengtai , living halfway across the world from America, built a replica of Bumblebee and Optimus Prime using only automotive junk parts and simple tools. Anchalee's work will be displayed at Ripley’s Believe It or Not exhibitions around the world in New York City, London, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Jeju Island, South Korea.

Anchalee Saengtai with her massive Optimus Prime sculpture.

Read our earlier entry on cars of Transfomers 3 here. Like what you read? Share the article and join our Facebook page here.