Bumblebee Camaro returns to Chevrolet showrooms to mark third Transformers film

Bumblebee is back.

The third Transformers movie opens this week. And Chevrolet says it will offer a Bumblebee edition of the 2012 Camaro to celebrate.

The Transformers Special Edition Camaro will be a $3,000 option on the 2LT and 2SS versions of the Chevy pony car. But you have to take it in Rally Yellow. Dealers will start taking orders in July.

This is the second time Chevy has offered a Bumblebee Camaro. About 1,500 copies of the 2010 Camaro Bumblebee were built, which added about $1,000 to the sticker price.

Here's the press release:


PRESS RELEASE: Chevrolet Camaro Bumblebee: The Buzz is Back

Camaro returns in Transformers: Dark of the Moon, new special edition planned

-- Two previous Transformers films helped make Camaro America's best-selling sports car for 2010 and 2011

-- 2012 Transformers Special Edition Camaro Coupe allows fans around the world to get behind the wheel of Bumblebee


DETROIT - The Chevrolet Camaro returns as the Autobot "Bumblebee" in Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which opens exclusively in 3D Tuesday and worldwide Wednesday. To celebrate, Chevrolet will offer a 2012 Transformers Special Edition Camaro Coupe to Bumblebee fans in the United States, Canada, China, Japan, Europe, South America, and the Middle East.

"The Transformers franchise has helped introduce Camaro - and Chevrolet - to a whole new generation of fans," said Rick Scheidt, vice president of Chevrolet marketing. "Its role in the films helped make the Camaro the best-selling sports car in America, and one of the best-known cars of any kind around the world."

The fifth-generation Camaro previously played Bumblebee in the 2007 film Transformers and in the 2009 film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The films generated $1.5 billion in global box-office sales, and helped reintroduce the Camaro to consumers after a seven-year hiatus from dealerships.

In 2009, the Camaro was the most-searched-for car on the web, according to Yahoo!Autos, even though the first models didn't arrive at dealers until late that year. In 2010, the Camaro assumed leadership of the U.S. sports car market from the Ford Mustang for the first time in 24 years. This year, the Camaro continues to lead the segment, fueled by the introduction of the Camaro Convertible. Chevrolet has sold 40,275 Camaros this year, compared to the Mustang sales of 30,206.

That momentum is expected to accelerate early next year with the introduction of the 550-hp (405 kW) 2012 Camaro ZL1, as well as limited-edition models such as the Transformers Special Edition.

The 2012 Transformers Special Edition will be offered as a $3,000 package on 2LT and 2SS Camaro Coupes with Rally Yellow paint. In addition to the content offered in the popular RS appearance package, the Transformers edition will feature black rally stripes that stretch over the hood, roof, decklid and unique high-wing rear spoiler; 20-inch, black-painted wheels wrapped in high-performance summer tires; and Autobot Shield logos on the center caps and front quarter panels.

Inside, the Transformers Camaro has a black leather interior accented with yellow stitching on the instrument panel, center console, armrests and seats. Autobot Shield logos are embroidered on the front headrests, as well as the center console lid.

Two dealer-installed options are also available: exclusive, 21-inch, black-painted wheels and a black ground-effects package.

Customers may begin ordering the 2012 Transformers Special Edition Camaro in July, with vehicles arriving at dealers in the U.S. and Canada in September.