Camaro creators saw how well a new body style does with the public and 12 years had gone by without a totally new design, so they thought it was time to produce a new body style.
One of the changes that Chevrolet considered due to the influence of the Chevrolet Citation was the idea of making Camaros front-wheel drive. The designers of the Camaro refused because it would take away from the integrity and origin of the car.
The third-generation Camaro was born and released into the concrete jungle in 1983, and would go nine years without a totally new body design.
This newly designed Camaro was totally different than its predecessors. Not only was it 10 inches shorter in length, but it was 7 inches narrower in width, which made the car look compact and easier to handle. Only three models were available for the 1983 Camaro, the Sport Coupe, the Berlinetta, and the Z28. The addition of the large rear window reduced the Camaro’s blind spots and a new hatchback look.
Gas conservation was a large issue in the ‘80s so the four-cylinder Camaro was released. In 1983, Chevrolet introduced the first four-cylinder engine, the Iron Duke, a 151-cubic-inch pushing a meager 90 horsepower to the tires. The largest engine provided at the time for the Camaro was the Z28 305-cubic-inch V8 which allowed 165 horses free.
Although the Camaro’s performance was not the best and usually was under the Mustang in tests, it didn’t stop the nation from purchasing the redesigned car. In fact, the Z28 was chosen to be the pace car in the Indy 500 and Motor Trend named it the Car of the Year. Throughout the year, Chevrolet tuned up the engine of the Z28 with a Corvette camshaft, a Rochester 4-barrel carburetor, a new 5-speed transmission, and the release of the 5.0 HO version of the small block, which allowed 190 horsepower to hit the pavement.
Car and Driver made a comment about the handling of the Camaro that was uplifting to the Camaro builders: “As speeds increase the Mustang gets worse and the Camaro gets better[…] The Z28 is the closest thing to a race car built on an American assembly line, closer even than the Corvette.”
In 1984, Chevrolet spent majority of its time redesigning the Berlinetta by adding a new instrument panel with digital readouts; newly designed door panels; an overhead console; and new seat covers.