Searching for Internet images of 1970 second-generation Chevrolet Camaros, I found almost no examples that weren't high-performance-appearing. That is, nearly all cars up for auction or direct sale featured elaborate wheels, often sporting large tires. Plus fancy two-tone paint schemes. Also aft-end aerodynamic spoilers. Putting this another way, I found almost no conventional Camaros such as a close lady friend of mine bought in 1971. And from a styling blog standpoint, all those spoilers, paint-jobs and monster wheels obscured the basic design. The two images above were among the best I could find showing "pure" Camaros (yes, the blue car has big wheels and tires, but no extra trim).
For an overview of early Camaro generations, see my post "Fifth-Series Chevrolet Camaros -- Searching for a Theme."
Today's post presents facelifts of the second-generation Camaro over its 12-year (1970-1981) production run. The suggestion is offered that the basic design could be seen as a modernized classic 1953 Studebaker Starliner.
Unless noted, photos are of cars listed for sale.
This car has a full-width grille, but a two-segment grille was on some cars.
A large, federally mandated front bumper appeared for 1974. This entailed a redesign of the front end, including the grille and headlight assemblies.
The big bumper is now clothed in urethane and the grille is modified. This was an important improvement over the 1974-78 frontal design.
Compare this '79 Camaro to the Studebaker below.
A classic design. The Camaro strikes me as having the same "feel" even though details are almost entirely different.
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