Camaro Tour de Suisse April/May 1967

[SMKZ28]

Recently, Thomas Suter reached out to me and sent me some interesting pictures from an article detailing one of the weekend promotional trips through Switzerland made by five Camaros during the Camaro Tour de Swisse, which took place for nine successive weekends starting on April 1, 1967.  The article appears on page 21 of the July 1967 issue of Spotlight.  This publication was the "House Organ of General Motors Suisse S.A. Bienne," and it was "published by the Personnel Department."  The article is provided in both the French language and the German language.  Thankfully, Thomas provided a translation from German for the entire article:

"It is Good!
Heinz Dähler, Sales Promotion
Jean-Claude Villard, Public Relations

That was the spontaneous verdict of admirers of the five smart Camaros sent by the sales department on a test drive to the Valais.  Starting from Biel via Fribourg and Bulle to Lausanne, where the five speedsters caused quite a stir, both during the city tour and while parked in Ouchy.

Vevey was the next stop, then the group drove in a disciplined manner through the busy Saturday traffic to St-Maurice, where Mr. Casanova warmly welcomed the Camaro drivers and, after a tour of the city, directed them to Martigny, where the cars were parked on the Place Centrale during lunchtime and attracted an astonishing crowd of spectators. Mr. Casanova personally led the Tour de Martigny.

The Valais presented itself in its most beautiful spring attire as the convoy set off for Sion.  Sion was reached shortly before closing time, and here too the parked Camaros attracted a great deal of interest.

Mr. Revaz Jr. accompanied us on the tour to Sierre.  In Sion, the Camaros were parked in front of the Revaz garage, and the drivers were invited by Mr. Revaz, accompanied by his charming wife, for an aperitif, where the warming effect of the Valais sun was also felt pleasantly from within.

Early on Sunday morning, the Camaros surprised churchgoers in Sion on another tour of the city, and when the service ended in Martigny, the colorful convoy was there again.

After a quick drive, they reached Vevey, where, after a long search, they found strategically located parking spaces near the circuit of the Karting World Championships.

It goes without saying that the Camaros also took the hearts of the large audience in Vevey by storm.

On the drive to Lausanne, the five Camaros took in the parade of oncoming traffic, and even while driving through Ouchy-Lausanne, the numerous Sunday strollers were surprised by the sporty elegance of the cars.

Chalet-a-Gobet was another highlight of the trip.

Conclusion of the trip: Mission accomplished, sales promotion par excellence.

The Camaro is indeed impressive!"

Breaking down the article it seems that on this particular weekend the 5 Camaros traveled throughout the Canton of Valais, which is located in the southwestern part of the country.  On Saturday they went through the towns/cities of Beil, Fribourg, Bulle, Lausanne, Vevey, St. Maurice, Martigny, Sion, and Sierre.  On Sunday it seems they made the reverse trip stopping to show off the Camaros at the Karting World Championships in Vevey and the Chalet-a-Gobet near Lausanne.  While I have been able to establish that the Karting race in Vevey was the first of three events that made up the Karting World Championship for 1967, I haven't been able to pin down the exact Sunday this event took place.  I am unsure who "Mr. Casanova" was or who the members of the "Revaz" family were.  The Revaz family might have owned a gas station/repair shop in Sion.  I believe the second picture shows the Camaros "parked in front of the Revaz garage."  There is still a Recycling center in Dorénaz, Switzerland called Revaz Autos SA.  I wonder if it is the same family company?

Thanks go out to Thomas Suter for providing this information for me to post!


     

[SMKZ28]

Here is the two-page article on the Camaro Tour de Suisse that appeared in the July/August 1967 issue of General Motors World.

1st picture: 1st page of article: (courtesy of CRG Coordinator "KurtS" http://www.camaros.org/forum/index.php?topic=7910.0)

2nd picture: 2nd page of article: (courtesy of CRG Coordinator "KurtS" http://www.camaros.org/forum/index.php?topic=7910.0)

[boomer632]

Its amazing to me the lengths GM went to and the money spent to promote the Camaro, especially in Europe. For what the projected sales of the car was in Europe, I have to wonder what the profit margin actually was after figuring in all money and time spent promoting vs actual limited number of Camaros sold over there. I guess it proves you have to spend money to make money