The Future of Dale Jr.'s Camaro?

General Motors recently announced that it would be delaying the start of production of the 2010 Chevy Camaro by one month. The start date is now scheduled for March 16 and GM expects the first cars to be ready by late spring. The completely redesigned Camaro was a big hit at auto shows last year, and it's been reported that more than 10,000 people are on the waiting list to purchase them once they begin arriving at dealerships. It's presumable that the terrible state the U.S. car companies are in, in this case GM, is what's caused the delay.

But GM needs to get the Camaro out as soon as possible. This is a car they have that people actually want to buy, and a Chevy at that. I'm sure it'll debut eventually, but I'm now wondering what will come of the Chevrolet Camaro Dale Earnhardt Jr. Concept car that premiered at the SEMA Show last fall. The popular NASCAR driver, who is known for driving his own 1972 Camaro around Kannapolis and Mooresville, partnered with GM on the design and tricked out the new Camaro by lowering it, putting on bigger tires and custom rims (21 inches), flipping the paint scheme, and customizing the interior including upgrading the sound system. And under the hood there's added horsepower.

If Dale Jr. is nothing else, he's an iconic brand. I bet GM would sell thousands of this model just off his name. They need to put one on display outside Whisky River and let the young guys get a look at it.