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2010 Chevrolet Camaro 2LT RS Review
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Since General Motors stopped production of the Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird in 2002, GM fans have been demanding a new muscle car. The Corvette has continued to flourish, especially with the demise of the Dodge Viper, but the last 8 years have been packed full of internet rumors and artists renderings of ‘what could be’ the next Camaro. After nearly two years of discussions about the debut of the new Camaro the wait is over, as Chevrolet has been delivering 2010 Camaros to dealerships for the past few weeks. One dealership who has taken delivery of some of the new Camaros is Heidebreicht Chevrolet in Washington, Michigan; and they let me take their 2010 2LT RS out for a test drive last week.
The 2010 Camaro comes in two basic forms; those powered by the 3.6L, 304hp V6 (LS, 1LT, 2LT) and those powered by the 6.2L, 426 hp V8 (1SS, 2SS). I tested a 2LT model, which features foglights, a 6-way power driver’s seat, leather upholstery, and a premium Boston Acoustic sound system. This 2LT Camaro was also equipped with the RS package, which adds HID headlights, a rear spoiler (standard on the SS models), 20 inch wheels, RS-specific tail lights, body-colored roof ditch moldings, and RS front and rear badging. Basically, this package gives you most of the luxury and dress up items available on the Camaro, with the more fuel efficient V6 engine.
The Drive
I wasn’t sure what to expect from the 2010 Camaro 2LT as the V6 is intended to be an economy motor, but with 304 horsepower it packs plenty of punch, even when backed by the an automatic transmission. The paddle shifters are a very cool innovation, but for someone who hasn’t dealt with them before, they may take some getting used to. I also found that while driving on winding roads, the driver has to move his hands around the wheel and away from the shift buttons, often making for awkward, rushed shifts. Had GM added the option to shift both on the steering wheel AND with the shift level, it would make the system much better for spirited driving, but that’s why they offer manual transmissions.
The 3.6L engine is incredibly quiet around town, offering very little sound at all when sitting at idle and offering quiet, smooth acceleration under normal stop and go driving conditions. However, as soon as you ask the 2LT for some power and climb into the 3300-3500 rpm range, the car sits you back in your seat with a throaty yet fairly high pitched exhaust tone. I didn’t mind the sound of the exhaust, but I think that some more traditional muscle car owners might not care for it, as it has a tone similar to some performance import models.
Sound aside, the 2LT Camaro offers impressive acceleration, especially in the mid range, but even from a stop the V6 engine brings the Camaro up to speed very quickly. It did not feel as quick as the 2010 Mustang GT which has only 11 more advertised horsepower, but I think that much of that was due to the automatic transmission in the Camaro compared to the manual transmission in the Mustang. One place where I did notice a clear advantage was when coming from a dead stop. Even with the traction control turned off, the Camaro gets off the line quickly and very quietly with very little wheel spin; but again, the transmission in the Camaro makes for an easier launch. The Camaro did seem a little “flat” on the bottom end compared to the Mustang which could have been due to the transmission, the weight, or the fact that the Camaro V6 makes quite a bit less torque than the Mustang, but for an ‘entry level engine’, I was very impressed by the Camaro.
The 20” tire option does a great job of making use of all 304 horsepower, but more importantly the 2010 Camaro offers a very comfortable ride. The small bumps and road debris were hardly noticeable around town and on the highway, offering a slightly smoother ride than the Mustang GT, as well as less noise inside the car at highway speeds. Even though it is heavier, the Camaro seemed to handle tight turns better than the Mustang at a variety of speeds, but on the highway the Camaro seemed a little unstable when driving into what was a very heavy headwind. When I drove the Mustang on the highway, I had a perfectly calm day, but the day that I spent with the Camaro was very windy and I thought that contributed to the unsteadiness on the highway at speeds over 70mph.
Overall, I thought that the Camaro was a more comfortable ride around town and on the backroads, although the Mustang had the advantage in acceleration, but I have to remind myself – this is not the performance option Camaro, although it feels like it would do a fine job of keeping up with the current Mustang GT.
The Interior
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The 2010 Camaro that I tested was a 2LT, so it comes with all of the comfort items such as leather trimmed seats and steering wheel, as well as a premium sound system. The seats were comfortable, and it seemed to me that the Camaro offered similar leg room to me as the Mustang. General Motors clearly wanted the interior of the Camaro to be very clean and they succeeded…but they may have taken it a bit too far. The gauge cluster has a massive speedometer and tachometer, with a temperature gauge and gas tucked at the bottom of the two large gauges. In the middle of the two is the driver’s information center which is packed full of good information; if you can figure out how to work the display. You would typically expect the buttons to control the display to be on the cluster, but there are no buttons there. I then checked the radio controls, as I’ve been in some GM vehicles which used the radio controls to change the cluster display, but it didn’t seem to be the case either. After a few minutes of looking (I didn’t have an owner’s manual), I found that the controls for the display are on the turn signal arm to the left of the steering wheel. Once I discovered that, it was very easy to change through the modes while driving, but I left it on the somewhat redundant digital speedometer shown in the picture.
The center stack incorporates the stereo, HVAC controls, shifter, and four additional gauges into a very small area. This adds to the super clean layout of the interior, but the gauges would be better suited closer to the driver’s line of sight, as I don’t find myself looking under the radio to check the oil pressure or charging voltage. However, from the dash to the door panels, the 2010 Camaro is wonderfully uncluttered unlike many new vehicles…but it’s a fine line between offering a clean interior and offering an interior that is too refined and that aspect comes down to the driver’s preference. My only real complaint about the interior relates to the shifter, as I mentioned above. The ‘autostick’ is a fun feature and the idea of the race-inspired paddle shifters is a cool addition, but when making hard turns and crossing hand over hand, you are forced to move your hands away from the shift buttons. I found myself rushing through turns and searching for the buttons along the back of the steering wheel, often making shifts at points a little later than I would typically want to, but other than that I was impressed with the comfort and quality of finish to the interior of the 2010 Camaro.
The Exterior
Dodge and Ford went all-out-retro with the Challenger and newer Mustang, and while there are cues to the vintage Camaro, the 2010 Camaro takes a much more aggressive approach in styling. It looks nothing like the previous generation, and the sharp, angular lines give the car a far more futuristic look than its rivals.
If you love the retro look of the Mustang and Challenger, you probably don’t like the new Camaro. If you think that the retro look is played out then the styling of the Camaro, only calling lightly on the old school styling cues like the side “gills” and the overall shape of the front end should make for a good answer to the obvious styling aim from the cross town competition at Ford and Dodge. Like the interior, the exterior carries the clean look, with almost everything on this model being body-colored and I love the fact that there is very little chrome. It’s just my opinion, but chrome belongs on Cadillacs, not muscle cars…good for GM for getting that part 100% right.
The 2010 Camaro offers an aggressive look with an angry scowl across the front end and a low, wide stance gives this car a great muscle car feel. The bold styling of the Camaro is still up for debate, but with sales numbers increasing each day, it seems that the look of the 2010 Camaro has proven to be a popular one. Love it or hate it, variety is the spice of life and the Camaro exterior offers a ton of attitude, as well as a change from what has become “the norm” for the muscle car scene.
The Last Word
The model that I tested has an MSRP around $30,000 (per the Chevrolet website), but the Camaro LS, offering the same performance as the 2LT, starts around $23,000 – about $5,000 less than the lowest price Mustang GT. This makes the Camaro V6 model not only competitive with the Mustang GT in performance, but the price of the V6 models could offer a great deal to someone who is looking for a car in that performance range. I hope in the coming weeks to spend some time with a Camaro SS to see what the Camaro REALLY has to offer, but the 2LT model shows that Chevy has done their homework and the new Camaro deserves the positive attention over the past two years.
Ford fans weren’t happy to hear that the 2010 Mustang GT would only have 315 horsepower, with the Camaro offering 304, 400, and 426 depending on how its equipped, but the Camaro crowd can only rest comfortably for so long as the rumors about the return of the 5.0L to the Mustang have began to gather credibility based on comments from Ford management. There is no clear time table as to when the Mustang GT will get that new engine, but for the time being the Chevrolet Camaro has a great chance to take back some of the muscle car market from the Mustang.
A special thanks to Kurt Heidebreicht of Heidebreicht Chevrolet for the use of their 2010 Chevrolet Camaro 2LT RS. Along with the 2010 Camaro, Heidebreicht offers a huge variety of new and used Chevrolets - including a huge spread of new Corvettes. For more information stop in to Heidebreicht Chevrolet or call them at 586- 331-2539.
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