CHEVROLET HAWKS 'BUMBLEBEE' CAMARO FROM 'TRANSFORMERS 3'

By Chris Woodyard, USA Today - As a Chevrolet Camaro returns to star as the autobot "Bumblebee" in Transformers: Dark of the Moon opening nationwide today, along comes another special edition to showrooms.

Chevrolet says its celebrating another turn in the latest of the Transformers movies with the Special Edition Camaro Coupe around the world -- the U.S., 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 re-introduce the Camaro to consumers after a seven-year hiatus from dealerships. When it showed up in the first movie, Camaro was still far from being offered to customers at dealers.

The 2012 Transformers Special Edition will be offered as a $3,000 package on 2LT and 2SS Camaro Coupes with Rally Yellow paint. It comes with features galore:

This Bumblebee pretender 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.