One year with my Camaro: A Review.

[iLLcoolZ]

Hey guys,

As of two days ago (April 24) I have had my Camaro for one year! This one year that past by has been a great one, and the fact that my Camaro plays an important role in my life, I couldn't be happier.

Before I go into all the details, I wanna first talk about how and why I chose the Camaro SS as being my first car. I remember a few years back when the concept Camaro first came I out, and I was 17 back then. When I first saw it, I absolutely fell in love. It looked (and still looks) so amazing, and way ahead of its time. It's like nothing I have seen before! At the age of 17, I thought to myself, that would be a car I would love to drive someday. Anyways, around two or three years later I think, Transformers came out. Went to the Cinema, watched the movie, and I remember seeing the Camaro drive in the tunnel for the first time. My jaw dropped on how beautiful that thing is. Fast forward to the fourth quarter of 2009, and I start to see the first few Camaros in Kuwait. I fell more in love, and knew this is the car I want to get as my first car. From that time to 2012, the Camaro was my top choice. But I also had an interest towards the Jeep Wrangler, and the Challenger which I think is an ok car as well. Shuffling between these three choice, I always keep going back to the Camaro as my top choice. The way things work in Kuwait, is that the dad buys his son his first car, its just the tradition here. So I told my dad, I want a Camaro. He told me ok, but wait for a while. I waited for a year, and I really wanted the Ashen Metallic grey SS. But for several months, that color was not available in Kuwait for some reason. When my dad gave me the green light to get the car, several months after turning 21, the first Ashen Grey Metallic Camaro SS had just arrived, and I was the first to one to get it! (paitience really is a virtue). My dad also told me that the reason he got my a Camaro, was because when he was growing up, he wanted to get the first generation Camaro, but his dad didn't approve because of how fast it was. I am really grateful to have gotten one.

Performance:

When I first got the Camaro, I wasn't able to push it to the limit because I had to wait for the break in period to pass. After that passed, I really loved how responsive the car is when you hit the gas. The rush you get when the car launches and starts to pass all the other cars at high speed is just a lot of fun! I drive an automatic though, so like everyone knows, its not as fast as the manual. But using the shifters really does give you more control and it does become slightly faster which is great.
The 4 piston Brembo break are fabulous. They kick in really quick when you need them to, and the car does come to a halt real quickly, and this has helped me many time when I need to slow down in case the car is front of me suddenly slows down for whatever reason. Also, the breaks themselves just look really aggressive and powerful, which is great. When it comes to stability, the car is pretty stable and feels planted to the ground when you're speeding up. There definitely is some rear wheel spin when you press the gas pedal all the way, but the traction control helps it stay in a straight line and not go all over the place. Many people told me traction control doesn't really do much in American muscle cars, but that not true. It plays a HUGE role in keeping the car from slipping and sliding, especially in the rain.
The steering wheel being stiff is also good, because it helps you in controlling the car, and you can see that when you let go of the steering wheel when driving in a straight line, the car will keep going straight which is good as well. The suspension of the car makes the car real stable and helps you control it well, but because it's really stiff, you feel every single bump and hole in the road, and I honesty feel the car is gonna brake from how hard you feel the bumps. It's not that bad, but it can be annoying sometimes. I test drove the ZL1 though, and it's suspension was made to adapt to different roads, so they definitely did solve that problem, and the 1LE also has that same feature, but I wish it just came standard on all Camaros.
In comparison to other muscle cars, I heard many times that the 5.0 is faster then the Camaro, but it's no big deal because the Camaro looks much better. I personally did not get to test my car against other muscle cars, because we sadly have no drag strip in Kuwait, nor a track, which sucks big time. There is a plan to open both soon though, so hopefully once that happens, I can test it out.

Design:

What can I say about the cars design that has not been said many times before? The car is absolutely beautiful. The lines, it's hips, the wheels, the real tail lights, the front of the car. Everything about it is just amazing, it looks aggressive, and looks great. I can not get enough of how it looks, I always stare at other Camaros I see on the road, even when I already own one. Also, when you park the car next to more expensive, luxury cars, such as a Porsche Carrera, or even an SL, or other cars similar to those, the Camaro does not look inferior to them, and looks up to par to how those cars may look, and maybe even better. Its a scary looking car, based on how strong it looks, and how long the car is from the front. The long hood makes the car look like its cutting through the wind like a sword when you're driving either real fast or real slow.
The interior of the car looks really nice, I love the interno orange and black interior. The door panels also are really unique when it comes to how they connect to each other from one panel, through the dash, all the way to other door. I haven't seen that in any car before. I don't like the radio though, I wish I had the MyLink screen, but it's no big deal.

Other things to mention:


Blind spots: They kind of do exist, but they're not a bad as I heard before getting the car. One thing I noticed, is that I can not see the curb when I drive in between a path, either in a parking lot, or anywhere in general. I already scratched my rims several times because I hit the curb (fixed them though). You can also have a hard time looking at the cars coming in when going in reverse, but the rear view camera does help a lot.

The exhaust note is not nice. It's really low, and isn't as aggressive as it should be. Other muscle cars have much nicer sounding exhausts note. I know I can change the exhausts, but I'd prefer not to because it's against the law here to do that, and I can get fined for it.

Conclusion:

I am very glad I chose the Camaro. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who's looking to get a sports car with a reasonable price tag. Like I mentioned earlier, I test drove the ZL1, which was amazing. The plan is, in a few years time, hopefully after the 6th generation Camaro is out, I would purchase that car on my own. Chevrolet have done a tremendous job on this car, and I think the 5th gen is the model that will always be remembered as bringing the Camaro on top in the American Muscle car category, and printing its name in automobile history.

Thank you for reading.

[Scott@Bjorn3D]

Nice review my friend.

[fbodfather]

On behalf of everyone at 'Team Camaro' - thank you for choosing a new Camaro!

Great writeup - and we're delighted that you're enjoying the car so much.

Question: Does your father 'borrow' your Camaro as my father used to 'borrow' mine???

I'd be curious as to what he thinks of the car.

My father was a Chevy Dealer - and after he retired (when I'd visit) he'd 'borrow' my company cars to 'go get cigarettes' -- and he'd visit his friends and they'd go for a 'quick drive' --

....I absolutely loved to see the look on his face when he returned - he always seemed to be about 20 years younger!

....but I digress!

Again - we hope you'll have many years of driving enjoyment.

[Trailnut]

Good job!

[gmen09]

Great review!

[SabotAndHeat]

I fell in love with the Concept too.

In fact every mod I have put on my Camaro has been to make it look more like the Concept. Those thin side mirrors are next!

P.S. Where in Kuwait do you live? I've been through Kuwait city a couple times and then of course out to Ali Al Salem Air Base. Also, Camp Virginia, Buehring and Doha. Kuwait has some really beautiful locations. The cities are very attractive as well.

[iLLcoolZ]

Originally Posted by fbodfather

On behalf of everyone at 'Team Camaro' - thank you for choosing a new Camaro!

Great writeup - and we're delighted that you're enjoying the car so much.

Question: Does your father 'borrow' your Camaro as my father used to 'borrow' mine???

I'd be curious as to what he thinks of the car.

My father was a Chevy Dealer - and after he retired (when I'd visit) he'd 'borrow' my company cars to 'go get cigarettes' -- and he'd visit his friends and they'd go for a 'quick drive' --

....I absolutely loved to see the look on his face when he returned - he always seemed to be about 20 years younger!

....but I digress!

Again - we hope you'll have many years of driving enjoyment.

Hi Fbodfather! My dad actually never drove my car, and I'm not really sure why. I asked him if he'd like to, but he always prefer me to drive with him in the passenger seat. He does like it a lot though, and always asks me how the car is and how I feel about it. I'm really grateful. And thank you, and to GM for all the great work you guys have done!

Originally Posted by SabotAndHeat

I fell in love with the Concept too.

In fact every mod I have put on my Camaro has been to make it look more like the Concept. Those thin side mirrors are next!

P.S. Where in Kuwait do you live? I've been through Kuwait city a couple times and then of course out to Ali Al Salem Air Base. Also, Camp Virginia, Buehring and Doha. Kuwait has some really beautiful locations. The cities are very attractive as well.

Hi! That's really awesome man! I actually live in the AlAsimah Governate, which is the one where Kuwait City is in. There are quite a bit of army bases here, but I haven't visited any before. Kuwait is a great small country with a lot of cool places to check out. I'm glad you liked it.

[My Caroline]

I'll tell you, I definitly fell in love with the camaro as well.
Two weeks before my 12th birthday the concept was released at the North American international auto show and I fell in love. However, it was a concept and I was a kid.

My grandfather got me into Corvettes. I've had corvette toys and models for as long as I can remember. When transformers came out, as my mom say, "it's the movie that started it all". I was 13 at the time of the movie.

Well, fast forward to January 2011 and I got my first Camaro. And as you'd probably agree, there's just something special about them. I've had Caroline for 2 years now, and I still can't stop smiling!

[Nessal]

Huge props to GM for actually making the car resemble the concept.

[pincoin]

Great write up! I love mine too! Couldnt wait to get one after seeing the concept car!

[TooCool5]

Originally Posted by Scott@Bjorn3D

Nice review my friend.

X2 still feel the same about my car. Coming up on 4 yrs.

[Jordo1177]

Cool write up man. I've had mine almost a year now too and I still get a goofy grin on my face every time I look at it. These cars are amazing!

[SlickP]

I had mines for less than a year but i get the same feeling everytime i drive it as i did when i first saw it.

[DarkneZZ]

Originally Posted by iLLcoolZ

The way things work in Kuwait, is that the dad buys his son his first car, its just the tradition here.

Thank you for a nice write-up. I enjoyed reading it.

Hopefully, 5-10 years from now you will buy your dad a Ferrari as a present