DETROIT — General Motors is adding an automatic transmission to its top-end track edition of the Chevrolet Camaro for the first time in nearly three decades.
Chevrolet on Tuesday said the 2019 Camaro ZL1 1LE — which the brand calls “the fastest, most track-capable Camaro ever” — will offer a 10-speed automatic transmission beginning in late February.
The optional gearbox will cost $1,595, pushing the starting price of the car to $73,790, including $995 shipping and $1,700 gas guzzler tax.
An automatic transmission has been offered on the current ZL1 model, but it’s rare on the 1LE package. The last time it was offered on the track package was in 1992, a Chevrolet spokesman said.
Automatic transmissions, which dominate sales, have been slowly making their way into even the most performance-oriented American muscle cars.
The 840-hp 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon was offered exclusively with an eight-speed automatic transmission and Ford this month confirmed the 700-plus-hp 2020 Mustang Shelby GT500 would also be offered only with a seven-speed automatic transmission.
Steve Majoros, director of Chevrolet passenger car and crossover marketing, said the bow-tie brand’s decision to offer the automatic was because of customer demand, according to a release.
About 80 percent of Camaros sold have automatic transmissions, Chevrolet said.
The automatic transmission also can make the car quicker on the track, the company said. Chevy engineers, according to the release, “pushed the limits” of the automatic transmission to be more than one half second faster than the standard manual on GM’s 2.9-mile Milford Road Course.
The automatic offering is the latest in Chevrolet’s plans to make the Camaro more appealing to buyers. U.S. sales of the car fell 25 percent last year from 2017 — marking its fourth straight annual decline.
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