Chevrolet aficionados take note: five new Chevrolet concept muscle cars will be featured in the upcoming “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” scheduled to hit theaters on June 24, 2009.
The Autobots – Bumblebee, Sideswipe, Jolt, Skids and Mudflap – were unveiled at the highly anticipated 2009 Chicago Auto Show. The feature highlight was the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro, represented as Bumblebee in the movie. The new version is different from the last in that it is based on the production model, but has the signature black and yellow paint, different wheels and more aggressive hood scoop and front fascia.
Sideswipe, originally designed as an inspirational model for Chevrolet’s design team, is a futuristic version of the Stingray and has wide shoulders, a swoopy fender and even a badge that looks like the top view of a sleek sea creature. Early photos have already generated inquires among Detroit Chevy dealers, from customers wanting to know if such a vehicle will officially enter production.
The other characters, Jolt, is a stylized version of the Chevrolet Volt; Skids, a slightly customized version of the Chevrolet Trax concept car and Mudflap, an electric green version of the Chevrolet Beat. Louisville Chevy believes that highlighting Chevy’s upcoming fuel-efficient vehicles will go a long way to help boost the brand’s eco-friendly image. Even Louisville Cadillac car buyers are increasingly craving fuel efficiency, which is exactly why promoting the vehicles heading down the pipeline is so vital to Chevy’s dealer network.
All of these cars were built by Paramount Pictures using the production math data provided by GM. In addition, GM says it did not pay a placement fee to get its cars in the new movie. However, GM and Chevy dealers, including Cleveland Chevrolet dealers, delight in knowing that since the release of the original “Transformers” movie, awareness of the new Camaro has jumped 97 percent. Movie and subsequent DVD sales also helped Chevrolet to identify 500,000 people who expressed interest in buying a new Camaro.
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As Chevrolet focuses on product innovations, expect more mainstream Chevy product placement.