Resolution Soon

General Motors Corp. is expected to decide whether to build a production version of its Camaro Concept car by year's end, a company official says.

“I think (GM has) to come to some resolution soon; I would imagine sometime this year,” Tom Peters, director-global rear-wheel-drive performance vehicles, tells Ward's.

In order to be competitive with the Mustang, its primary competitor, Peters says the Camaro would have to be priced in the low-$20,000 range for a V-6 model and up to about $30,000 for a loaded version.

The car most likely would offer both V-6 and V-8 engines and either a 6-speed automatic or 6-speed manual transmission, he says, adding a convertible version would be “a natural assumption” and most likely would have a soft top.

The concept is based on GM's Zeta architecture, which initially was engineered by GM Holden Ltd. in Australia for its Commodore sedan.

As to where the Camaro could be built, Peters suggests a possible frontrunner would be GM's Oshawa, Ont., Canada, plant, where the Canadian Auto Workers union recently agreed to layoffs in return for new product.