German Car Zone

Times Have Changed...but Not That Much


The last thing General Motors needs right now is to appear as if it's stuck in the past, creating gas-guzzling cars that are out of step with what the federal government thinks is the future.

So even when Chevrolet steps into the way-back machine to unveil the 426-horsepower retro-inflected 2010 Chevy Camaro SS, it's careful to mention that this muscle/pony car is the "sports car for the 21st century" and emphasizes the Camaro's fuel economy ratings more than its 0-60-mph performance.

So we did what had to be done. We dropped an asphalt-melting burnout in the parking lot of a former seminary that was of such destructive length that the guys hired by Chevy to prep and clean the Camaros had time to wander over and say, "Stop. You're done."

Had a Dairy Queen been available we would have laid a patch in front of that, too. Look, man. We've been waiting for years for the arrival of this car; there will be time to talk about balance and the quality of the interior materials later.

No Smoking

That rite of Camaro passage accomplished, we strapped on our Racelogic VBOX III GPS-based testing equipment to get the measure of the new Camaro's less juvenile performance characteristics.

Our test vehicle is the hottest available setup for the 2010 Chevy Camaro, an SS manual. When you choose the Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual as your gearbox of choice you get an LS3 6.2-liter V8 in the deal. That's the same motor that powers the base Corvette.

In the Camaro it makes 426 hp at 5,900 rpm and 420 pound-feet of torque at 4,600 rpm. Order the six-speed automatic and Chevy will fill your engine bay with a 400-hp, lower-revving, lower-compression L99 6.2-liter V8 that comes with cylinder deactivation. It'll deliver 25 mpg on the highway. But the manual will do 24 mpg highway and costs $995 less than the automatic model, so we'll take the extra power, thank you very much.

The SS manual also comes with a 3.45 rear end (compared to the 3.27 in all other Camaros). The combination is good for drama-free 0-60-mph sprints of 5 seconds (or 4.7 seconds with a 1-foot rollout like on a drag strip). Easy. Get the 275/40ZR20 Pirelli P Zero summer tires slipping a little at launch, modulate the throttle, and off the Camaro goes, pouring its bass-heavy exhaust note down the road. It reaches the quarter-mile mark in 13 seconds at 110.9 mph.

Predictably, one of the Camaro's obvious rivals, the big-'n-brawny Dodge Challenger R/T can't keep pace. It takes 5.5 seconds for the Mopar to reach 60 mph (5.3 with 1 foot of rollout) and 13.9 seconds to reach the quarter-mile, at which point it's steaming along at 103.2 mph. In fact, the Camaro SS is slightly quicker in both measures than the similarly powered Challenger SRT8. The 2010 Mustang makes up for much of its 111-hp power deficit with about a 500-pound weight advantage on the hefty Camaro. The Mustang with a Track Pack will do zero to 60 mph in 5.2 seconds (4.9 with rollout) and get through the quarter-mile in 13.5 seconds at 102.9 mph. The Camaro is quicker through the quarter by half-a-second than the Nissan 370Z, which Chevy also considers a Camaro competitor.

The 2010 Chevy Camaro SS manual is the one Camaro that comes with a launch control system. It's foolproof and easy to initiate (punch Competition mode on the traction/stability control system, mat the accelerator and sidestep the clutch) but we found that we were quicker just shutting off all traction and stability control systems and doing it ourselves.


Full Story and Video: Edmunds Inside Line - 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS Full Test and Video


I think I love the design but the interior felt as cheap as it looks.


M

Thanks a lot man. I'm actually looking forward to this car.

True, but I don't think that the demographic the car is targeting won't mind that much about the interior quality. Just like the Chrysler 300C, coolness factor is what will make this car sell.

Is it me or the red car has projector xenons in some pics and normal halogen ones in others?

That's the highbeam. Since they are not using bi-xenon, right behind the projector (surrounding it) is the reflector I believe.