Ah, the Camero. Muscular lines and curves and a ridiculously low roof. The Bumblebee. Now with the French flag!
(Full Disclosure: Chevy wanted me to drive this Camaro so badly that they sabotaged my CR-V and had an interesting rental price on this car.)
The Camaro RS is a mid-trim version of the nameplate featuring an LT V6 with 335 horsepower/284 lb-ft torque. It is available with a 6-speed manual or an 8-speed automatic, the latter equipped on this example. The RS package is available on the 1LT and 2LT trim and features 20-inch aluminum wheels, HID headlamps, LED taillamps, RS-specific upper and lower grilles and a rear spoiler for $1,950. This one equipped as it is has a price of around $32,000. (Ballpark guess, didn’t get the exact figure)
Exterior: 9/10
The Camaro was redesigned for 2016, with minor updates for the years leading up to now, with the next major and controversial redesign coming in 2019. No. We don’t discuss that 2019 SS’s face. Never.
The lines here and clean and sleek, and it looks like a bigly muscular boi. My only issue is the crazy low roof. It looks like it’s fat with a tiny head. But if it had a higher roof and better visibility, as do other competitors (kinda) then it’s drivers would be able to see the crowds. (Cue dry laugh track) Otherwise, it looks good. Muscle cars are good looking at the moment, so there’s that.
Interior: 6/10
Well, it’s certainly a 2018 car interior from GM. More than Fair share of Fisher Price plastics, touchscreen that...works, and seats that aren’t too bad. Rear legroom is a joke, as it is with most coupes. It doesn’t help that the roof is low and that my passengers’ big heads would block the entirety of the rear window. But still, an ok interior. Better than previous GM interiors, for sure. I still have nightmares about my uncle’s old Fiero.
Driving Dynamics: 9/10
I love how it drives. Pulls fast and although turning feels a bit stiff, it’s not bad. Probably because I’m not the strongest person in the world. Don’t trust me with that though, because like I said I haven’t driven anything except a CR-V. If there’s one thing can provide though, it’s a 0-60 time with my expertise in that field. After very accurately timing it on my phone timer, I got this:
Do with that as you will.
Audio: 7/10
This example has the Bose Premium Audio system, which sounds pretty good. It has good bass and the treble/higher pitched components don’t drill into your brain. Tested using the trap music that you all love so much. But the reason this gets a 6 instead of anything higher is because audio also includes exhaust note, and that is less than stellar. It doesn’t have the sound you’d expect from a muscular Camaro, the V6 only having a little growl to it even when revved hard. While driving or passing someone, it sounds ok but the V6 in my mom’s Odyssey sounds better, more rumbly. I had a video but Kinja refuses to let me upload it. Oh well.
Capacity: 8/10
It actually has decent trunk space, I was able to fit 2 bigly suitcases and a couple backpacks in it. Not bad at all for a muscle car. If you don’t have any extra passengers you could stuff more of your things in the seats. If AestheticsInMotion can fit damn near anything in his Miata then you can definitely fit stuff in a Camaro. What, the Miata has more room because the top comes down so you can fit taller stuff? Bah. It’ll buff out.
Total: 39/50; 78%
Overall, I liked the Camaro. The RS package adds some nice touches, and it was certainly an upgrade over the CR-V. It’s very accurately calculated 0-60 time unfortunately bests the time of my car. At around $32,000, it’s a decent value for someone who wants a fun muscle car. You could shave some off that price if you go with the manual transmission, which mine unfortunately wasn’t equipped with. If you can see past, or rather through, it’s tiny windows then this would be a good car for you to own.
Edit with disclaimer 06/16/18: I started writing this post on June 2nd and kinda slacked my way through the month (welp), so I only have pics from that first day.