A week in paradise with an American icon : 2010 Camaro SS review
04-23-10, 02:08 AM
#1
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
A week in paradise with an American icon : 2010 Camaro SS review
I am currently on vacation and had the chance to rent a Camro SS instead of the boring V6 Mustang convertible that I usually rent ( like most people do when here). I went up to the front desk at the car rental office and was doing my paper work when I briefly glanced behind me and saw this huge gray beast staring at me. I asked the lady how much more the Camaro SS would be over the Mustang and it was only a $400 difference for the week so I went for it.
My intentions in this write up are to describe what the car is like but without getting to technical. First off is the appearance of the vehicle. Its just bad *** in every sense. The car is very wide and has a low roof line that gives it a more menacing look . The huge 20" wheels look amazing and make the car look sporty and special to say the least. As soon as I got into the car I could tell where they skimped immediately. The interior material, although better than the last generation Mustang, looked very cheap and plain. The rental had a leather interior which was nice and because it only has 1200 miles on the odometer the interior still reeked of new car smell ( nice change from the damp moldy smell that usually accompanies the interior of most rental cars in Hawaii). After we got settled in the car I started it and the growl of the LS3 motor in this thing sounded amazing. We left the lot and headed to the freeway. Just leaving the lot I could already tell there was some serious torque waiting for me when I get on the H1 and head to Waikiki. Let me tell you that the power was amazing. A tsunami of power was available under my right foot like I have not experienced since I drove an older 911 turbo back in the day or some of the AMG Benzs I have experienced. I have to use tsunami to describe the power band of the LS3 because it does not need to rev or swell to higher rpms , like most smaller import motors do, to create that feeling that will push you back in your chair. The power is available at 1500 rpm all the way up to red line.The sound of the motor gets everyones attention while getting the heart to pound. Every time I got on it and then backed off it was instantly accompanied by "GOD DA$%" and a huge smile. I am starting to see the appeal in muscle cars.
HANDLING:
The handling of the car was also taught and relatively flat for a car that weighs in at pretty much 2 tons. I would say this is the best handling American car I have ever driven ( I have never driven a vette or Viper though). The steering is direct and weighted quite well. It feels like heavier steering feel that you get with a G35 or BMW series. Turning radius was pretty impressive for a car of its size although not as good as my GS350. I have to say that the ride quality in this car has to be the worst of any stock car I have ever been in..... ever. My wife is pregnant right now and it has shaken her and the baby dizzy . We hit bumps in the road and its as if the car was trying to bruise my kidneys and spleen. There is no bump steer or loss of traction over bumpy surfaces but I wasn't doing over 40 mph on these roads. I pushed the car a bit and did detect some understeer at the limit but the Pirelli tires that come with the car do a great job of maintaing grip until you just get plain crazy in this thing.
INTERIOR:
The interior is better than the American muscle cars of the last 10-15 years but still uses way to much low rent materials . What disturbed me more than the low rent materials was the fact that the dash board was not fitted evenly in the car. There were uneven gaps where the dash should fit in evenly. The leather was not to thin but you could still tell the leather will wrinkle much sooner than later. The visibility in this car is an absolute problem. The windshield is very small, the B and C pillars are very thick ( especially the C pillar) not to mention a very short A pillar secondary to the low cut roof line. It makes it down right dangerous while trying to back up. The car does have park assist but that still doesn't get rid of the issue of backing your car up and trying to see if a car is coming towards you from the side. The car also lacks an "oh ****" handle that allows passengers to hold on for dear life or to just help a passenger out of the car. The trunk space was adequate enough to hold 2 large suitcases and a duffle bag and a lap top bag. This was refreshing after dealing with my Lexus GS350 for the last 2 years.
The dials used are obviously retro in design (including the digital stereo that looks like an old stereo with a needle that moves across the dial) but the material used could be much better. The dials that indicate oil temp, transmission temp, engine temp, and battery charge look cool but are set way to low for them to make any kind of sense . There is a silver plastic piece that surrounds the shifter and it looked cheaper than most silver trim you get in most cars todays . Not so much because it looked like it would scratch easily but because it looked like the edges of the piece weren't even. Almost like it was taken out of a mold with to much force while the plastic was still hot. There was a cool blue accent light that went down the center of both doors at an angle. Seemed unique but not very useful. I didn't get a chance to take a picture of that though.
ENGINE/ TRANS/ CHASSIS :
The LS3 motor in this vehicle is just amazing. The motor is a 6.2 liter V8 with over 400 hp ( the manual get 426 hp and the automatic with the paddle shifter gets 410 I think) The power and torque of this engine is sitting on the floor. There is usually no need to down shift to get solid power to pass unless you want to make a spectacle of yourself or just want to trigger more driving expletives . The car I had was fitted with a 6 speed paddle shifter set up that allowed you to drop a couple of gears quickly for insane pull. I did like the fact that the transmission will not shift without you manually shifting it up or down while driving wether at red line or even at lower speeds. There is a slight delay in downshifts but nothing that seems abnormal. The transmission does rev match which I enjoyed. It keeps the chassis stable when dropping multiple gears and creates an awesome rev up growl from the motor. I did not like the fact that the paddle shifter were fake. They had fixed paddles with buttons on the back of them to press so the entire unit doesn't retract when shifting. The motor sounds so good I found myself repeatedly dropping the car into neutral while at a light or just rolling in traffic just to rev it up just to hear it ( or to harass the slow poke looking for parking and holding traffic up LOL). The motor makes a sound that I would describe as automotive thunder. When this thing is near red line the only thing I was thinking is I can not believe how fast this thing is, how loud it is, and amazing it feels to be able to do that. Fuel economy in this car during the week came to 14 mpg but we did mostly city driving and I was beating the crap out of it. Definetly not something I would be able to live with but more than acceptable for just a week of driving pleasure. The suspension is very very stiff but the chassis in this car soaks it up pretty well but it does make me wonder as what the car will feel like when 10 years old.
BRAKING:
The brakes on the car are courtesy of Brembo so they stop on a dime ( great with the 245/45/20 and 275/40/20 sticky Pirelli tires ). The modulation is not to aggressive, although it could have a slightly better initial bite. I thought it was pretty cool that the calipers actually say Brembo on them. I can not comment on brakes more than that because of the relatively mellow nature of driving ( between the huge bursts of acceleration )
AROUND TOWN:
Although the car is a pleasure to drive sporty it is a bit harsh for day to day driving in a place with poor roads. The seating position in the car is solid and was comfortable even for a guy at 6'5" and 320 lbs and the seats never caused discomfort even after 7 days of driving and close to 400 miles. The Camaro actually had more head room in it than my Lexus GS350 sedan. Leg room was adequate for me. The stereo was nice and had XM and ipod connection which is a bonus on long drives along the coast. Where ever we went with this car we got thumbs up, " nice car" comments, and looks. I even overheard a kid in a passing jeep say " Camaro SS....now thats how I would do Hawaii". If you drive this thing you will notice a lot of pointing from older or younger car guys. Even guys is dropped civics and accords would give thumbs up. I feel like some kind of local celebrity in this thing.
The car did have some design and quality issues that my wife and I noticed though. There is a whistling noise that you get from the C pillars while driving with the windows open. There was some strange pinging noise while driving at low speeds or parked. It sounded like the pinging noise you get when your exhaust system is cooling after a long drive . There was a clicking coming from the passenger floor board , and the headlights on this thing seem like candles compared to my Lexus. Also there is an issue with the position of the seat belt. The connection point for the seat belt harness is set so far back that it causes the seat belt to ride a bit high on the neck resulting in a irritating feeling while driving that can be remedied only by pulling your shirt higher up to protect your neck from the belt chaffing your skin. My wife had the same issue on her side so I am pretty sure this issue is not related to my height.
All in all I would say the Camaro is great fun to drive and holds true to its muscle car roots ( good and bad ). It gives the driver pride in feeling the heritage of the car as well as the feeling of massive power and torque if you feel the need to summon all 426 HP but it does have that "American " feel to it where you know there will be visits to the dealership for quality issues, noises, and rattles. I have to give GM credit for creating a car that inspires the driver in a straight line as well as through the corners. Like most American muscle cars they are examples of insane performance values but still come at a price in other categories, mainly fit and finish. I think that the next generation Camaro will be the ticket for muscle car buyers but for me its a little to ruff around the edges, but it did open my eyes to the appeal of the muscle car and has taught me why so many older car guys stick to their V8s and love them so passionately .
My intentions in this write up are to describe what the car is like but without getting to technical. First off is the appearance of the vehicle. Its just bad *** in every sense. The car is very wide and has a low roof line that gives it a more menacing look . The huge 20" wheels look amazing and make the car look sporty and special to say the least. As soon as I got into the car I could tell where they skimped immediately. The interior material, although better than the last generation Mustang, looked very cheap and plain. The rental had a leather interior which was nice and because it only has 1200 miles on the odometer the interior still reeked of new car smell ( nice change from the damp moldy smell that usually accompanies the interior of most rental cars in Hawaii). After we got settled in the car I started it and the growl of the LS3 motor in this thing sounded amazing. We left the lot and headed to the freeway. Just leaving the lot I could already tell there was some serious torque waiting for me when I get on the H1 and head to Waikiki. Let me tell you that the power was amazing. A tsunami of power was available under my right foot like I have not experienced since I drove an older 911 turbo back in the day or some of the AMG Benzs I have experienced. I have to use tsunami to describe the power band of the LS3 because it does not need to rev or swell to higher rpms , like most smaller import motors do, to create that feeling that will push you back in your chair. The power is available at 1500 rpm all the way up to red line.The sound of the motor gets everyones attention while getting the heart to pound. Every time I got on it and then backed off it was instantly accompanied by "GOD DA$%" and a huge smile. I am starting to see the appeal in muscle cars.
HANDLING:
The handling of the car was also taught and relatively flat for a car that weighs in at pretty much 2 tons. I would say this is the best handling American car I have ever driven ( I have never driven a vette or Viper though). The steering is direct and weighted quite well. It feels like heavier steering feel that you get with a G35 or BMW series. Turning radius was pretty impressive for a car of its size although not as good as my GS350. I have to say that the ride quality in this car has to be the worst of any stock car I have ever been in..... ever. My wife is pregnant right now and it has shaken her and the baby dizzy . We hit bumps in the road and its as if the car was trying to bruise my kidneys and spleen. There is no bump steer or loss of traction over bumpy surfaces but I wasn't doing over 40 mph on these roads. I pushed the car a bit and did detect some understeer at the limit but the Pirelli tires that come with the car do a great job of maintaing grip until you just get plain crazy in this thing.
INTERIOR:
The interior is better than the American muscle cars of the last 10-15 years but still uses way to much low rent materials . What disturbed me more than the low rent materials was the fact that the dash board was not fitted evenly in the car. There were uneven gaps where the dash should fit in evenly. The leather was not to thin but you could still tell the leather will wrinkle much sooner than later. The visibility in this car is an absolute problem. The windshield is very small, the B and C pillars are very thick ( especially the C pillar) not to mention a very short A pillar secondary to the low cut roof line. It makes it down right dangerous while trying to back up. The car does have park assist but that still doesn't get rid of the issue of backing your car up and trying to see if a car is coming towards you from the side. The car also lacks an "oh ****" handle that allows passengers to hold on for dear life or to just help a passenger out of the car. The trunk space was adequate enough to hold 2 large suitcases and a duffle bag and a lap top bag. This was refreshing after dealing with my Lexus GS350 for the last 2 years.
The dials used are obviously retro in design (including the digital stereo that looks like an old stereo with a needle that moves across the dial) but the material used could be much better. The dials that indicate oil temp, transmission temp, engine temp, and battery charge look cool but are set way to low for them to make any kind of sense . There is a silver plastic piece that surrounds the shifter and it looked cheaper than most silver trim you get in most cars todays . Not so much because it looked like it would scratch easily but because it looked like the edges of the piece weren't even. Almost like it was taken out of a mold with to much force while the plastic was still hot. There was a cool blue accent light that went down the center of both doors at an angle. Seemed unique but not very useful. I didn't get a chance to take a picture of that though.
ENGINE/ TRANS/ CHASSIS :
The LS3 motor in this vehicle is just amazing. The motor is a 6.2 liter V8 with over 400 hp ( the manual get 426 hp and the automatic with the paddle shifter gets 410 I think) The power and torque of this engine is sitting on the floor. There is usually no need to down shift to get solid power to pass unless you want to make a spectacle of yourself or just want to trigger more driving expletives . The car I had was fitted with a 6 speed paddle shifter set up that allowed you to drop a couple of gears quickly for insane pull. I did like the fact that the transmission will not shift without you manually shifting it up or down while driving wether at red line or even at lower speeds. There is a slight delay in downshifts but nothing that seems abnormal. The transmission does rev match which I enjoyed. It keeps the chassis stable when dropping multiple gears and creates an awesome rev up growl from the motor. I did not like the fact that the paddle shifter were fake. They had fixed paddles with buttons on the back of them to press so the entire unit doesn't retract when shifting. The motor sounds so good I found myself repeatedly dropping the car into neutral while at a light or just rolling in traffic just to rev it up just to hear it ( or to harass the slow poke looking for parking and holding traffic up LOL). The motor makes a sound that I would describe as automotive thunder. When this thing is near red line the only thing I was thinking is I can not believe how fast this thing is, how loud it is, and amazing it feels to be able to do that. Fuel economy in this car during the week came to 14 mpg but we did mostly city driving and I was beating the crap out of it. Definetly not something I would be able to live with but more than acceptable for just a week of driving pleasure. The suspension is very very stiff but the chassis in this car soaks it up pretty well but it does make me wonder as what the car will feel like when 10 years old.
BRAKING:
The brakes on the car are courtesy of Brembo so they stop on a dime ( great with the 245/45/20 and 275/40/20 sticky Pirelli tires ). The modulation is not to aggressive, although it could have a slightly better initial bite. I thought it was pretty cool that the calipers actually say Brembo on them. I can not comment on brakes more than that because of the relatively mellow nature of driving ( between the huge bursts of acceleration )
AROUND TOWN:
Although the car is a pleasure to drive sporty it is a bit harsh for day to day driving in a place with poor roads. The seating position in the car is solid and was comfortable even for a guy at 6'5" and 320 lbs and the seats never caused discomfort even after 7 days of driving and close to 400 miles. The Camaro actually had more head room in it than my Lexus GS350 sedan. Leg room was adequate for me. The stereo was nice and had XM and ipod connection which is a bonus on long drives along the coast. Where ever we went with this car we got thumbs up, " nice car" comments, and looks. I even overheard a kid in a passing jeep say " Camaro SS....now thats how I would do Hawaii". If you drive this thing you will notice a lot of pointing from older or younger car guys. Even guys is dropped civics and accords would give thumbs up. I feel like some kind of local celebrity in this thing.
The car did have some design and quality issues that my wife and I noticed though. There is a whistling noise that you get from the C pillars while driving with the windows open. There was some strange pinging noise while driving at low speeds or parked. It sounded like the pinging noise you get when your exhaust system is cooling after a long drive . There was a clicking coming from the passenger floor board , and the headlights on this thing seem like candles compared to my Lexus. Also there is an issue with the position of the seat belt. The connection point for the seat belt harness is set so far back that it causes the seat belt to ride a bit high on the neck resulting in a irritating feeling while driving that can be remedied only by pulling your shirt higher up to protect your neck from the belt chaffing your skin. My wife had the same issue on her side so I am pretty sure this issue is not related to my height.
All in all I would say the Camaro is great fun to drive and holds true to its muscle car roots ( good and bad ). It gives the driver pride in feeling the heritage of the car as well as the feeling of massive power and torque if you feel the need to summon all 426 HP but it does have that "American " feel to it where you know there will be visits to the dealership for quality issues, noises, and rattles. I have to give GM credit for creating a car that inspires the driver in a straight line as well as through the corners. Like most American muscle cars they are examples of insane performance values but still come at a price in other categories, mainly fit and finish. I think that the next generation Camaro will be the ticket for muscle car buyers but for me its a little to ruff around the edges, but it did open my eyes to the appeal of the muscle car and has taught me why so many older car guys stick to their V8s and love them so passionately .
Last edited by I8ABMR; 04-24-10 at 04:30 PM.
04-23-10, 02:13 AM
#2
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
here are the rest of the interior shots. I think you will see what I am talking about in terms of visibility and interior quality
Last edited by I8ABMR; 04-26-10 at 12:35 AM.
04-23-10, 02:21 AM
#3
Lexus Fanatic
haha that pic by the showers, thats kailua beach park, what we locals call 'middle park' 
i live on the other side of that mountain to the right of the showers 
if your still here on sat nite, we do have a vip meet check in the regional CL of hawaii forum for details.
i live on the other side of that mountain to the right of the showers if your still here on sat nite, we do have a vip meet check in the regional CL of hawaii forum for details.
Last edited by llamaboiz; 04-23-10 at 02:25 AM.
04-23-10, 05:50 AM
#6
Lexus Champion
great review!
wow $400 MORE per week is pretty hefty...what was the total "per day" price if you include all taxes?
RE "the headlights on this thing seem like candles compared to my Lexus"
that's because the camaro you rented didn't have xenon (and the cool halos)
wow $400 MORE per week is pretty hefty...what was the total "per day" price if you include all taxes?
RE "the headlights on this thing seem like candles compared to my Lexus"
that's because the camaro you rented didn't have xenon (and the cool halos)
Last edited by bagwell; 04-23-10 at 06:02 AM.
04-23-10, 09:01 AM
#7
Lexus Fanatic
Nice write-up, I8ABMR. 
From what little experience I have with the new Camaro (and it's not much), I agree with most of your comments. And much of what you describe of the new Camaro can also be said for the new Challenger, though not quite so much for the new Mustang.
And congragulations on your wife's pregnancy.....can't wait to see the result, when it's time.
From what little experience I have with the new Camaro (and it's not much), I agree with most of your comments. And much of what you describe of the new Camaro can also be said for the new Challenger, though not quite so much for the new Mustang.
And congragulations on your wife's pregnancy.....can't wait to see the result, when it's time.
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04-23-10, 02:28 PM
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04-23-10, 11:51 PM
#13
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Thread Starter
04-24-10, 12:28 AM
#14
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
haha....most likely
Thanks buddy! I agree 100% but I am still very happy to have this experience
I wonder if you can pay extra to get them upgraded?
or is that aftermarket.
me too. I was so sick of the Mustang convertible on these trips
Thanks buddy thats a great compliment coming from the person who does the best automotive reviews on CL hands down.
I have not driven a new Mustang yet. I am sure the Mustang is pretty solid as well. I think some magazines have even ranked the Mustang GT over the Camaro SS.
I agree that the 20's makes this thing look amazing.
I can totally imagine people buying this car impulsively after a test drive, but in the end you have to stand back and think rationally .
Its worth dealing with the interior for a week.......but just a week
Thanks buddy! I agree 100% but I am still very happy to have this experience
or is that aftermarket. I was so sick of the Mustang convertible on these tripsNice write-up, I8ABMR.
From what little experience I have with the new Camaro (and it's not much), I agree with most of your comments. And much of what you describe of the new Camaro can also be said for the new Challenger, though not quite so much for the new Mustang.
And congragulations on your wife's pregnancy.....can't wait to see the result, when it's time.
From what little experience I have with the new Camaro (and it's not much), I agree with most of your comments. And much of what you describe of the new Camaro can also be said for the new Challenger, though not quite so much for the new Mustang.
And congragulations on your wife's pregnancy.....can't wait to see the result, when it's time.
.
04-24-10, 12:47 AM
#15
Hacked CL to become a Mod
I'm quite surprised with the ride comfort you mentioned...I would have thought it would have a more comfy ride knowing that it's a more GT car. But great writeup, I have always wondered how this car feels like. One of the cheapest 400hp car you can get anywhere.