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Monday, November 8, 2010

52/48 weight distribution

I think it's actually important to point out that the V6 Camaro has an almost 50/50 front and rear weight distribution. It's easy to find any specifications for any car if you search online, and unless your engine is mid mount or rear mounted, it's nearly impossible to find a car that has a 50/50 weight distribution. Now the Camaro is not the best car in the world, there is no way I am blind enough to make that assumption. However, as I have said time and time again, you can see GM making smarter decisions. The V6 has a weight 52/48 weight distribution, which is astonishing for car nerds. The engine weight is usually what tips the scale between the front or the back being heavier. The V6 LLT engine is a good 200 lbs lighter than the V8 LS3 engine. Also the car battery is located in the rear, as opposed to the standard front mounted battery in your engine bay. The chassis and frame on the Camaro is also heavily focused in the rear. For styling and functional purposes, the rear end of the Camaro is much wider than the front, which means more surface area, and more material used, which equals more weight. This does offers more trunk space and more room in the back seats though.
Notice how the car is designed in the above image. The engine is aligned on top of the front wheels, trying to be as near to the center of gravity as possible. Nice! Last but not least, and most people forget this as a weight factor, rear wheel drive. This means there is a rear differential housing. That coupled with gears, axles, and all the other goodies that propel the car forwards: That definately should not be something to forget, and certainly plays a huge role in weight distribution.

In the end, GM did a good job delivering good weight distribution, it would work wonders on the track. However, the Camaro needs to go on a diet, 3750 lbs is a very heavy car for a V6, and it is the biggest mistake GM could have made.

EDIT: The top mentioned discussion isn't as simple as I have explained it. Upon more research, I have realized there are much more things at play than originally described. I won't share what I have found, because you can easily find it online if you do a quick search.

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