He also posted this in another thread that pretty much sums up his feeling about Camaro.
"thank you all for the kind words.
It's been tough over the years....knowing that the 4th gen would be put to pasture....that a plant would be closed........and worse, I couldn't say much of anything to you other than "keep the faith."
I think what most people don't realize is that when I said "keep the faith" there was credibility attached to that statement. If I said that.....and nothing ever happened, I'm sure that at some point in time, there would be a posse in my front yard........with a rope....and burning torches........(and you get the idea) Therefore, I started with the "Read my book"........
I can honestly say -- as I have been for quite some time -- that the future, INDEED looks very bright.
AS to the Mustang helping the Camaro along.......you betcha. Would we have done a Camaro anyway? Well.....who knows.......but I can tell you that there are dealers like my friends:
Greg Heinrich (Fairway Chevy)
Darrell McCutcheon (Reliable Chevy)
Matt Berger (Berger Chevy)
Tom Henry (Tom Henry Chevrolet)
Steve West (West Chevy)
Bill Heard (Bill Heard Dealerships)
Rollie Purifoy (Purifoy Chevy)
Jeff Cauley (Jack Cauley Chevy)
John Rampone (Ramp Chevrolet)
George Moore (Geo Moore Chevy)
and even Jim Perkins.....former VP of GM and General Manager of Chevrolet Motor Division who is now retired and working for the Hendrick organization...and their many Chevy Dealerships.............
......Every time......and I DO MEAN EVERYTIME they had an audience with the top men and women at GM, the Camaro issue came up. They demanded a new Camaro. You can bet that the hiatus of the Camaro affected these dealers in more than one way. First...they all have a passion for the Camaro......moreover, they sold a LOT of Camaros.....and when Camaro went away...so did some profit!
(a tidbit....I was visiting one of the Bill Heard Dealerships back in late 2001.....they had over 130 new Camaros in stock...and were gonna order more.....and Bill's son came out to see me and said "Mr. Settlemire...if you continue to build the Camaro, our 24 dealerships will buy every one of them!" (Talk about "Hard to say 'no' to someone!) But it was not possible to keep the car in production for several reasons.)
In a way, the past couple of years have been hell.
I knew it would be.
I suppose that I could have transferred over to other Brands (turned a couple of jobs down)......but I chose to ride the Camaro out to the end.
Do I regret it?
NO.
Was it painful?
Boy Howdy.
Did I leave the office on many a night so depressed and defeated that I sometimes questioned if I was sane?
Yep.
But you know what?
I wouldn't change what I did.
When you love something that invokes a passion.....you do what you have to do.
Moreover, every time I meet one of you...
........and you tell me about your Camaro (or Firebird) and I see that certain 'gleam' in your eyes....and the passion you show for these cars........I know it was the right thing to do.
I don't mean to imply that I'm the only one that felt that way.....far from it. I know John Heinricy for one felt just as bad as I about the cars going on hiatus........and many many more just like him. I guess my sorry face is just a little more visible than most...............
I know many of you can hardly wait for January 9.
Well guess what?
I can hardly wait as well......because I want to see the expressions on some faces......
......and I want to be around in 25 years when people say "remember wayyyyyyyy back in January of 06 when we first saw that great concept???"
Again.....thank you for the kind words.........
MORE IMPORTANTLY....to many of you.......
THANK YOU.......
........for 'keeping the faith!"
http://web.camaross.com/forums/showthread.php?t=413391