(EXPANDED FROM 9/16/2021)
The failure of the fourth-generation Chevrolet Camaro and Firebird wasn’t supposed to happen. General Motors’ F-body siblings had a much more modern — and arguably more stylish — design than their sole competitor, the Ford Mustang. Yet the Mustang sold so much better that both of GM’s pony cars were discontinued in 2002 (although the Camaro would return eight years later).
How badly did Ford beat GM? In 2001 the Mustang sold more than 169,000 units whereas the Camaro sank to around 29,000 units and the Firebird to under 12,000. That’s not just a comfortable lead — that’s a route.
What was particularly striking about the fourth-generation F-body was that it had initially sold okay. In 1995 the Camaro peaked at roughly 123,000 units and the Firebird tallied another 51,000 units. Together the two surpassed the Mustang’s 137,000 units.
How could Camaro and Firebird sales have collapsed when the Mustang’s increased? After all, the Ford looked positively ancient in comparison with its much more upright fascia, windshield and tumblehome. In addition, a 1999 reskinning gave the car some rather chunky stylistic details. And while the Firebird’s front end was pretty outrageous, one could instead opt for the more understated Camaro.
Ford declares victory by subsequently copying GM
I would argue that whatever advantages the Camaro and Firebird held over the Mustang in stylistic details were overshadowed by the cars having grown too big and heavy. The F-body was around 194 inches long, 74 inches wide and weighed around 3,400 pounds. In contrast, the Mustang was roughly 10 inches shorter, two inches narrower and a few hundred pounds lighter.
Whatever else one could say about the Mustang, its size was more in keeping with how people viewed pony cars (go here for further discussion). Yet once Ford finally gave the Mustang a complete redesign in 2005, it ballooned to almost the same size and weight as its vanquished rivals.
Although the 2005 Mustang was around six inches shorter, it was about as wide and just as heavy as the departed Camaro/Firebird. And in more recent reskinnings the Ford has further inched up in size and weight. The car has also been given increasingly overamped stylistic details that emulate the bloated, final Trans Am.
I don’t think it is any surprise that the Mustang’s sales have usually declined as it has become more obese. After an uptick in sales that resulted in 2006 models selling almost 167,000 units, the nameplate has steadily declined to only 44,000 units in 2024.
This is a classic example of the groupthink that has long pervaded the American auto industry. Bigger, glitzier and more powerful are almost always considered better — even when the market signals otherwise.
NOTES:
This story was originally posted on March 4, 2015 and expanded on Sept. 15, 2021 and July 23, 2025. Specifications and sales figures from Automotive Catalog (2025), Mueller (2010), Peek (2016), Trans Am World (2025) and Wikipedia pages for each nameplate (see below).
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RE:SOURCES
- Automobile Catalog; 2025. “Specifications.” Accessed July 23.
- Mueller, Mike; 2010. The Complete Book of Mustang: Every Model Since 1964 1/2. Motorbooks, Minneapolis, MN.
- Peek, Jeff; 2016. “What killed the Camaro? Let’s push past the obvious.” Hagerty. Posted Nov. 4.
- Trans Am World; 2025. “Pontiac Firebird History: 4th Generation 1993-2002.” Accessed July 23.
- Wikipedia; 2025. “Chevrolet Camaro,” “Ford Mustang” and “Pontiac Firebird.”
PHOTOGRAPHY:
- 1999 Pontiac Firebird 30th Anniversary Trans Am: By Jessica Lynn via Wikipedia public domain. Photo edited to lighten tone.
- 2000 Ford Mustang GT convertible: By MercurySable99 via Wikipedia Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Photo edited to lighten tone.
- 2001 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Firehawk: By Brian Lynch via Wikipedia Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
- 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse: By UltraTech66 via Wikipedia Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Yes, the 1993-2003 G.M. F-bodies (Camaro / Firebird) grew larger, but a part of that was building a car that would meet the 1998 crash standards. Further, G.M. was in a quandary about future styling directions, complicated by the corporate mess that was unfolding as the Roger B. Smith-era was ending: Can anybody call the 1991 rear-drive full-size cars a styling success, with G.M. making down-sized wheelbase cars look like rounded versions of the 1974-1976 land yachts ? The Camaro was simply a rounded version of the previous generation Camaro with even more front overhang, in my jaundiced opinion.
I’ve read a rumor that the ’90s F-body design was adapted from the intended styling of the cancelled FWD F-body. I dunno if it’s true or just an apocryphal attempt at finding a reason for a RWD car to have so much front overhang. Either way the dimensions of the F-body were the same for the 3rd and 4th gens (1982+). As of 2002 the problem with the F-body was that it was an aging design with roots in circa 1980 GM. Sleek styling and brilliant powertrains obscured the desperate need for a modern RWD platform. Something turn of the millennium Truck/SUV crazed GM had little desire to spend money on.
Automobile styling nowadays is characterised by the same “horror vacui” (fear of blank spaces) that was the hallmark of much of the Longobardian art production circa VII century CE
The Mustang is even relatively clean I would say, but for example some of the latest BMWs are outrageous