QOTD: Do You Want a Ford Mustang or a Chevrolet Camaro?
It’s a question that goes back some 50 years.
Nixon or Humphrey.
No, wait. Camaro or Mustang.
Forget your Camry vs. Accord monotony, your F-150 vs. Silverado one-upmanship, and the Smart Fortwo vs. Scion iQ debate that routinely breaks the internet. This, this is the American automotive debate of the decade. And the decade before. And the decade before that.
It’s as though Ali and Frazier just kept on fighting. Annually. For decades. It’s the Yankees and Mets meeting in the World Series every year. It’s like — and I know you don’t want me to go there — Trump vs. Hillary in 2020, 2024, 2028, 2032, 2036…
If you could have just the one, which would it be? Ford Mustang or Chevrolet Camaro?
Go back in time if you must, but the battle of which we speak is a current one. Both cars are now firmly entrenched in their sixth generations. The Mustang never departed, of course. But the Camaro, after dropping out of production in 2002, returned in 2009 with tremendous sales success. The Camaro was America’s favored muscle coupe from 2010 until the end of 2014, a five-year romp.
But the dawn of the latest Mustang brought about renewed popularity for the Ford pony car, not just in the United States but around the world, even in right-hand-drive form. The Mustang was by far the more popular car over the last two years.
But with the right prices, can the Camaro become the more popular car? In April, General Motors sold 8,737 Camaros in the U.S., easily besting the rapidly declining Ford Mustang. The Camaro did so with increased transaction prices, an incentive reduction compared with March, and less fleet emphasis than the Mustang.
After a rocky start, the Camaro just might be back.
For you, pricing may have nothing to do with it. You’ll want the Mustang because of the 5.0 badge, perhaps, or because of the sequential taillights. Or maybe you’re among the thousands who would happily pay extra for a Camaro because of its sharper dynamics or larger V8.
One thing is certain. Deep down, even among those of us who are unbiased, even among those who believe we have no dog in this fight, we all have a favorite. Which one would you actually buy?
Neither is not an option, you Dodge Challenger-loving so and so.
Timothy Cain is the founder of GoodCarBadCar.net and a contributing analyst at The Truth About Cars and Autofocus.ca. Follow on Twitter @timcaincars.
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I'm a Mustang loyalist to the bone. In high school I drove a '76 Mustang II Mach 1 with a 4 cylinder (later a 302) when my friends were driving Camaros and Cutlasses. If I can stay loyal then I'm certainly not gonna change now. My first choice is a 2014 GT (Mustang #9 for me) or a '65 Fastback since they're in my garage. I'm not a huge fan of the current Mustang from the front, looks too much like a Fusion. I do like the upcoming 2018 though. The new Camaro honestly isn't' a bad looking car although I haven't driven one. The last F-body I drove was a friend's WS6 Trans Am; I felt like I was sitting 10" from the pavement and could barely see what was ahead of me. Crazy quick though.
The last line made me laugh (I own a Challenger). Ford Mustang, hands down, even if it does share styling cues with other cars in the Ford stable. I find myself doing a double take when I see a new Mustang; I can't say I do the same with Camaros, although they're excellent machines.