The 2010 Chevrolet Camaro is easily the most-anticipated new car of the 2010 model year, with head-turning styling, gobs of power, and an amazingly reasonable price. Does the all-new 2010 Camaro live up to the hype? Read on. Price range $22,995 – $38,905, EPA fuel economy estimates 16-18 MPG city, 25-29 MPG highway.
Imagine you meet the girl — or guy — of your dreams. She, or he, is everything you ever wanted in a mate: Gorgeous looks, fantastic body, reasonable price, choice of 304 horsepower V6 or 426 hp V8. (I realize I’m pushing the metaphor a bit here, but bear with me.) She’s/he’s perfect! So you go out for a long drive on a twisty road… and to your complete disbelief, you find that the two of you aren’t really hitting it off.
That’s how it went with my 2010 Chevrolet Camaro test drive.
Let’s start with the looks. Chevrolet’s goal wasn’t to re-create the original Camaro, as Chrysler did with the Dodge Challenger; rather they seem to want to tap into the broad appeal of the Ford Mustang. Chevy figures that about one-third of Camaro buyers will be nostalgia-seekers, and the rest will buy the Camaro because it’s cool in the here-and-now — “21st century sports car” is their term. (We’ll debate that later.) There are cues from Camaros of the late 60s, but it’s a thoroughly modern design, and if you think it looks cool in pictures, you should see it in person. Some cars look like they’re going fast when they’re standing still. The Camaro looks like it’s going to beat you unconscious, strap a silly hat to your head, invite a couple of other Camaros over to take photos of you, then e-mail them to all your friends and co-workers. Call me crazy, but I like that in a car.
he Camaro’s base engine is a 3.6 liter V6 that delivers a healthy 304 horsepower, 96 more than a Mustang V6 and only 15 less than a Mustang V8. Thanks to direct fuel injection, it delivers respectable fuel economy on 87-octane gas. The SS gets a Corvette-sourced 6.2 liter V8 good for 426 hp — one more than the Challenger SRT8 — with the manual trans, but only 400 with the automatic. The manual’s clutch is difficult to modulate and the shifter is sized for people with Hulk hands, but the automatic is top notch, with a Sport mode that always knows which gear to pick and does so with firm, solid shifts, just like an old-time muscle car.
Personally, I like both engines. The V6 delivers lots of punch with reasonable decorum and the V8 makes marvelous noises, though if you opt for the stick-shift you have to rev it up to 3 or 4 grand before it really starts to haul the mail.
What about handling? The Camaro certainly grips the road well, but it goes through the corners with a slightly disconnected feel, as if the chassis isn’t 100% fluent in whatever language the steering wheel is speaking. V8 models have a stiffer suspension (plus huge brakes) and drive a bit better, and both versions ride comfortably. But the Camaro’s width — exaggerated by the slit-shaped windshield and broad hood — is intimidating on narrow roads. Chevy wants the Camaro to take on proper sports cars like the Nissan 370Z, and while the Camaro delivers a 426 hp V8 for about the same price ($30,995) as the Z’s 330 hp V6, there’s more to a sports car than power. The Camaro just isn’t in the same league.
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