Thoughts on the Camaro V6 1LE?

[NoHaveMSG]

Originally Posted by hpde_addict

Is that the SS? Did a quick estimate for the V6 1LE:

4x 275/40ZR18 Hankook RS4 $870

4x 18x9.5" Enkei RPF1 $1200 (just for sake of comparison to common 86 wheel, I will likely get Apex wheels)

4x G-Loc R10 $400

4x TireRack plain rotors $360

Not too bad assuming the V6 1LE has adequately sized brakes and tires for track longevity. It will not do as much braking compared to cars like the SS and M2. I think tires and brake pads are a bit under half of my total track costs.

That is cheaper when I compared before, but that was also two years ago.

[hpde_addict]

Thoughts after just over a month of ownership...

Paid $28k + doc fee + reg + tax. for blue Camaro V6 with 1LE and tech packages.

Pic: https://photos.smugmug.com/SpeedSF-T...ACK-662-X3.jpg

On the track... I think I prefer the BRZ more. Take these impressions with a grain of salt, I didn't push the car hard. The Camaro is faster, but you wouldn't be able to tell from the driver seat. I could not really tell a difference between the handling capabilities of the Camaro and BRZ. The BRZ was more tail happy, but that's just the shorter wheelbase the alignment setting that I had. It's hard to describe, but the Camaro just turned. Stock suspension has mild understeer, but it's easy to use the throttle to rotate the car. It feels very composed over bumps on the street. I miss the BRZ quick steering ratio and leather grip. The shifter is not that great. I had to hold it at the gate for 0.5s to downshift into 2nd. It's annoying, but not something that can't be worked around. Just have to start the shift much earlier. My BRZ had a similar issue upshifting to 4th. The traction/stability control on the Camaro does not feel invasive, whereas the BRZ's was so bad and potentially dangerous that you had to turn it off.

Visibility is really bad. I have difficulty seeing apexes and the car takes up a ton of space on the narrower/tighter portions of the track. Uphill blind turns are really sketchy. The seats are about the same as the BRZ, both are adequate enough to start track days with. It still feels like you are sitting in the car, rather than on top of it, I think the ridiculously tall doors and hood contribute to that feeling. The exhaust is more than loud enough for you to clearly hear the car with a helmet on... I was surprised to hear it clearly in my interior GoPro footage. I didn't have any issues with the stock brakes, but the track I was on didn't have much braking (front caliper 300 degrees, front rotor 600 degrees after session). The Camaro is explicitly covered for track use as long as you used approved fluids and don't modify the car. I think extreme performance summer tires and some more camber will be fine, but they likely won't cover fuel starvation issues. I would be scared to even utter the word "track" at any Subaru dealer.

Daily driving in SF Bay Area traffic... strong win for the Camaro. I barely have to use any effort to accelerate, whereas half throttle in the BRZ barely kept up with Corollas. The exhaust sounds way better, which helps a ton to "spice" up a boring commute. I can't not full throttle under any tunnel/bridge. Exterior is pre-riced from the factory, I have no urge to do any aesthetic modifications. Apple Car Play is a game changer, I'll pay to have this in any of my future cars.

Long highway drives... strong win for the Camaro. Due to the long gearing, you still have to shift a lot to pass cars, but it accelerates a lot faster. There's this long hill climb north of Los Angeles that I struggled a bit with my BRZ, but the Camaro had no issues. Seats are more comfortable, cabin noise is lower. The dual mode exhaust is quiet at 2k RPM, whereas the BRZ is at 3.5-4k RPM. The sound system is way better (I'm audiophile). I can't say much about ride quality due to using non-stock dampers on the BRZ, but it's really comfortable. I was very impressed by the ride quality on the new BRZ though, test drove one on shitty SF Peninsula roads.

Didn't try any winding roads. Didn't like them in my BRZ and probably won't like them in my Camaro.

In summary, I like the Camaro a lot more for commuting and long highway drives, and the BRZ slightly more on the track. No doubt I would enjoy the BRZ a lot more for autocross.

[bfrank1972]

Originally Posted by hpde_addict

I barely have to use any effort to accelerate, whereas half throttle in the BRZ barely kept up with Corollas.

Nice review - I know these cars are not power beasts, but sometimes I feel like I'm driving a different car than everyone else lol. Or maybe it's people talking about driving on the highway vs. what I do (back roads, in town etc). But I *never* have trouble 'keeping up' with anything in normal driving. That includes a very occasional & brief tangle with something like an S4, on the back/local roads I have no problems for some reason? If anything, if I drive aggressively I'm way over most of the local speed limits here pretty quickly - I guess it's down to where you drive? I also have a header/tune + decent suspension, so I guess that helps a little bit. Definitely wouldn't classify my car "corolla" slow

[hpde_addict]

Should have clarified, I meant when accelerating "normally" from stop lights.

[bfrank1972]

Originally Posted by hpde_addict

Should have clarified, I meant when accelerating "normally" from stop lights.

No worries, and not trying to single you out - just a thought that crossed my mind. Lots of people call these cars slow, and on the grand scale they surely are, but I can't imagine how I'd need any more power during 90% of my usual driving. That's mostly back roads - I imagine lots of straight highways would be differet. If we were back in the 80's our cars would be 'reasonably fast', and if we were in the 60's our cars would keep up with most of the muscle cars back then Anyways sorry to be OT, great no bs review on your Camaro, enjoy it!