Who Won the Ponycar Sales Race? It Doesn't Matter!

[NewsBot]

Eager to find something to write about, media outlets are pumping up the sales results war between Camaro and Mustang. The current hyperbole around who is ahead of whom entirely misses the most significant point. The real winner is You.



From 2002 until a year ago, Ford had an arm-lock on the pony car segment in North America. Until about 18 months ago, they were cranking out ten to twelve thousand Mustangs every month. Things fell off with the economy and those numbers dropped sorely.

In the second month of Camaro sales (June, 2009), they almost hit the 5-digit mark at 9,320, while 1,369 Challengers and 7,632 Mustangs left for a new home. Last month, May 2010, Ford reported sales of 10,225 Mustangs, compared to 8,402 Camaros and 3,828 Dodge Challengers that were taken away by buyers.

V8 Shootout



Looking at the bigger picture, the consolidated ponycar market grew from 18,321 to 22,455 in just under a year. That's an increase of more than 22%. Compared to the years when the Mustang was your only choice, the demand for ponycars has increased by about 125%. None of the Big Three manufacturers are going to walk away from that kind of segment growth, regardless of what CAFE regulations Congress throws at them.

We are already seeing glimpses of the future that will keep the ponycar - and performance - alive in the face of government, environment and gasoline pricing pressures. New engine technologies are being brought online, both conventional ones that weren't cost effective in the past and new ones that break the old rules.

Turbochargers have not been widely used by North American manufacturers in the past, but it looks like the future is flush with them. Direct injection gasoline engines are providing more power, better emissions and improved fuel economy at the same time. Even more computer control could be brought to bear if camshafts are replaced entirely by individual solenoids on the intake and exhaust valves.

V6 Shootout



You think that will never come to be? What just happened to the steering rack on the 2011 Shelby GT500? All the hydraulics disappeared and it got electric assist. The rules may be changing, but the goal remains the same. As long as the ponycar segment continues to generate something more than a quarter million sales every year, manufacturers cannot afford to ignore it.

That also includes the offshore folks. Last year's arrival of the Hyundai Genesis coupe is an acknowledgement that the world is watching. You might dismiss this first Korean challenger out of hand, but you may not be able to do that so easily for the next one, or the one after that. In the same way that the Camaro's V6 opened up a new chapter in engine performance, the 3,389-pound weight of the Genesis coupe must challenge the rest to get their anti-bloat technologies in top gear. Check out the V6 shootout video below. You might be surprised at the results.

Dang... these are the best of times.




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