2010 Chevrolet Camaro

I was visiting Toronto, Ontario recently and had the opportunity to drive the 2010 Camaro during my stay. I'm generally not the type of person who wants to draw too much attention to myself, but it was pretty hard to remain inconspicuous while driving a brand new Camaro painted bright yellow with black racing stripes.

Starting with the cashier at the airport park-n-fly where I was picking up the vehicle, everybody had something to say or ask about the Camaro. She had been looking at the car sitting on the lot all day, and had come up with a dozen questions to ask me. I hadn't driven nor even seen the Camaro yet, so I didn't have much to say about the car at that point. As the valet pulled the car up and handed me the keys, he immediately started asking about the car's performance, though he had driven the car more than I had (all the way across the parking lot). It had been a long time since I saw so much interest and curiosity about a new vehicle...I was excited.

My first impression of the exterior styling of the Camaro was that it was a great looking car. It looks retro, yet still new and modern. With the 20 inch wheels on the SS version (optional on the 1LT) and the big hood bulge, it has very aggressive styling to show off it's muscle car intentions. From almost any angle, it looks unique and won't be confused for another car on the road. The Camaro definitely has presence.

I was driving a 6-speed manual transmission version of the Camaro SS, though I didn't know it from looking at the size of the shift knob. It's larger than many automatic transmission gear leavers I've seen, as if they had stitched a baseball onto the end of the shifter shaft. As I was getting settled into the car, I was pleasantly surprised by the overall quality of the materials, as well as the fit and finish of the interior. The leather front seats were supportive and comfortable, and the door panels emitted blue ambient lighting at night, which was a nice touch.

With a good mix of highway and local roads throughout the week, I found the Camaro to be comfortable enough to be an everyday driver. The suspension wasn't overly firm, as you might expect from a sports car. The interior had sufficient noise isolation so that you can hear just enough of the engine and exhaust note. When cruising on the highway in 6th gear, the engine was revving at under 1500 RPM, which was great for keeping both the noise and gas consumption down.

There were some major drawbacks that I saw with the car. Though the doors are large, getting into the rear seats was difficult due to the narrow openings and the seats not sliding forward. The rear seats may be fine for small children, but adults will find both legroom and headroom to be rather limited. The trunk itself is a descent size, but the opening is small so getting larger items in and out of the trunk (like a couple set of golf clubs, as in my case) can be challenging.

The Camaro may not be for everybody, but I had a lot of fun driving it for the week and considering the amount of bang for the buck you get, this car will be attractive to a lot of people.

UPDATE: I had a chance to take the 2010 Chevy Camaro 1LT with the V6 engine and automatic transmission for a quick spin and though it doesn't have the mean growl of the V8, it had more than enough power. The 1LT may give you similar bang for even less buck, which is impressive.

PROS - Looks great - Plenty of power, even with the V6 - Well isolated interior - Ride is comfortable enough for everyday use - Quality fit and finish of interior - Lots of performance for the price

CONS - Small trunk opening - Poor visibility - Limited leg and headroom in the back