[Paulie-G]

Originally Posted by TRZ06

I have friends in the medical field, they call bike riders, organ donors.

The thrill is amazing I am sure, but my experience around people who have had them is, It's not if, but when.

Medical field. What they do for a living that would be obvious to me.

Healthy people don't go to doctors

I'm 55.
I've been to a doctor once related to bikes. Dirt and street. So Cal.
I've been all over Baja. No way to duplicate the experience.
Most of the people I know have multiple bikes.

I also think people get injured or killed doing stupid stuff. Kids.


My comment was also kinda aimed at people telling the op to buy a camary or whatever. Dude is entitled to his opinion.

[DaveC113]

Originally Posted by protovack

And this is why I own a 2.0T, after previously owning an SS 1LE.
The fun part about driving is pushing your car to its limits. If you can't ever get there, it's ultimately frustrating.
Truth be told, even my 2.0T cannot reach its limits on the street. I mean hell, winding it out in 3rd gear puts you into ticket territory very easily.
Even the lowly stock 4 banger begs to be taken to the track. That's how amazing a machine it is.
So I'd say just try to appreciate it as often as you can, and maybe even consider trading for an LTG M6. Sounds crazy but I did it and do not regret it for one second.

The 4-banger 1LE got me interested in looking at Camaros but ultimately I could get an '18 SS 1LE for not a whole lot more than a '19 turbo 1LE. Also, the SLE is car that doesn't need mods at all and with the turbo I'd almost have to run E85. Knowing the SLE is covered by warranty is nice.

-----

I too understand what the OP is saying but not sure I care, the SS has great torque, has good ergonomics, good clutch feel, good steering, etc... IMO it's a nice car to drive and amazing on the highway. I don't need to feel like I'm driving fast on the street, and even if you're driving a slow car fast you still need to leave some spare traction on the table just in case shit happens, you can never drive a car to it's limit on the street with super rare occasions of turns you can see all the way through as you approach, and even so mistakes are often costly.

I like the SS because it feels like it can do anything, highway speeds are nothing for it, you have so much performance in reserve. You can also pass quickly and don't have to worry much about the jerkoffs who speed up as you pass them.

Finally, if you care about such things the SLE and ZLE in particular are beautiful cars and get a lot of positive attention.

[Joe Remi]

Originally Posted by DaveC113

The 4-banger 1LE got me interested in looking at Camaros but ultimately I could get an '18 SS 1LE for not a whole lot more than a '19 turbo 1LE. Also, the SLE is car that doesn't need mods at all and with the turbo I'd almost have to run E85. Knowing the SLE is covered by warranty is nice.

-----

I too understand what the OP is saying but not sure I care, the SS has great torque, has good ergonomics, good clutch feel, good steering, etc... IMO it's a nice car to drive and amazing on the highway. I don't need to feel like I'm driving fast on the street, and even if you're driving a slow car fast you still need to leave some spare traction on the table just in case shit happens, you can never drive a car to it's limit on the street with super rare occasions of turns you can see all the way through as you approach, and even so mistakes are often costly.

I like the SS because it feels like it can do anything, highway speeds are nothing for it, you have so much performance in reserve. You can also pass quickly and don't have to worry much about the jerkoffs who speed up as you pass them.

Finally, if you care about such things the SLE and ZLE in particular are beautiful cars and get a lot of positive attention.

THAT'S how you sell a Camaro to a skeptic!

[RobbyBeefcake87]

I kind of get where you're coming from but there's things you can do to make your ss more enjoyable. Maybe more spirited driving, taking corners harder, keeping exhaust on track mode, keeping rev match on or practicing your heel/toe technique as well as reving each gear out a little longer.

I have a 2000 miata as well and that car is super fun even though it's super slow. It's not automatically super fun though, it's the way I drive it. Pretty much everything I listed for the SS except it's a little easier with the miata.

I don't mean this as an attack, I genuinely mean this because the car is awesome imo and a ton of fun to drive, but maybe a 2019 miata would be a better choice for you if you ca live with it's small size. If I didn't need need the v8 power, sound, and speed, I'd probably have a 19 miata instead of an SS or the GS. Great car especially with the bump in power for the 19s. Plus they're cheap, gas friendly, and very livable imo.

[c4racer]

I had a Miata - very fun and agile car with great balance. No power. Which is OK in that car. I ended up realizing it wasn't as fun to drive around my area of CA because of the high percentage of freeway driving we do. It's a great car on a tight twisty road, but that is 5% of my drive time. The SS is much more comfortable on the highway and is a very decent road trip car where the Miata was a 2 hour max car - beyond that you just wanted out.

But the bigger issue for me and reason I sold mine was I was just too big for it. And I'm not a big guy - 6' with 32" inseam and 200lbs. The seats fit me fine, but didn't go far enough back to give me enough leg room. The biggest problem was even with the seat all the way down my head stuck up into the wind zone above the windshield. In the Camaro convertible I'm well below the front window line and out of the wind. I can drive with top down for a 3 hour highway drive comfortably with the windows up and the windscreen in the back. So much better as a road trip car with top up or down.

Now - the Mazda is all new, so maybe the new platform has more room for us super tall 6' folks

But maybe not - you would need to try it out and give it a long enough drive to really see if you have enough leg room and determine if your head is out of the wind path.

I still prefer a V8 anyway. I don't want to drive any car near it's limit anywhere on the street - that's just dumb. I raced wheel to wheel road racing for several years and did autox / HPDE and road racing for about 15 years and through all that realized the track is the only place I want to play around with the limits of a car. But I do appreciate the grip and power of the SS around a nice freeway on-ramp or on the occasional back country road stretch or just to pass somebody quickly. Then back to boring driving - which I would rather do in a SS than in a more boring car personally!!

[gpskinzhut]

Can't relate other than the heavy feeling, but I had a 5th gen before this one and that's even heavier feeling with much slower steering. It's plenty fun for me in every scenario except stop & go traffic, which I had the misfortune of being stuck in for 2+ hours on Saturday. To each their own though.

[DEDEDE]

Originally Posted by RobbyBeefcake87

I kind of get where you're coming from but there's things you can do to make your ss more enjoyable. Maybe more spirited driving, taking corners harder, keeping exhaust on track mode, keeping rev match on or practicing your heel/toe technique as well as reving each gear out a little longer.

I have a 2000 miata as well and that car is super fun even though it's super slow. It's not automatically super fun though, it's the way I drive it. Pretty much everything I listed for the SS except it's a little easier with the miata.

I don't mean this as an attack, I genuinely mean this because the car is awesome imo and a ton of fun to drive, but maybe a 2019 miata would be a better choice for you if you ca live with it's small size. If I didn't need need the v8 power, sound, and speed, I'd probably have a 19 miata instead of an SS or the GS. Great car especially with the bump in power for the 19s. Plus they're cheap, gas friendly, and very livable imo.

Thanks I think that is a good suggestion.

The point that I've been trying to communicate is this:

The SS "Shrinks" when driving it in a spirited manner. Have you ever noticed this. It feels nimble and toss able, it feels perfect. It does not feel special when I'm just tooling around. It feels big, heavy and boring.

I rode street bikes for years. I had to stop because I rode like a drunk teenager, I was fifty at the time.

I love my SS. I can't get over what is delivers for the money. I just drove a six cylinder Porsche Cayman. It felt like a perfect solution for me but it cost almost three times as much as my SS.

I'll keep my SS no matter what happens. It is very, very special!

[Rayvan]

Originally Posted by DEDEDE

I get it. My wife had a 2010 Mini S with a stick. I hate to say it but I loved to drive that car. It had it's faults but it was fun.

Everyone's different. I love driving my Camaro even when I'm stuck behind yet a(nother) Prius saving gas. I love, love love driving this car....

Being stuck in a front-wheel-drive car would be my own personal Hell, even if it's a peppy-zippy Mini, or a $40,000 (duh) Civic. I just really hate the way they drive.

[plus1zero]

If I barely tap on the gas and hear that engine growl, it never ceases to make me smile. Nope, I love everything about this car.

[CrazyCatGuy]

My Golf R was boring and mundane and that was an FBO stage 2 car.

My SS 1LE couldn't be further from a boring car and that's even cruising through town. I guess I just can't get enough of that 6.2L and its wonderful noises. That and it nfeels like it's literally glued to the road while turning at any speed.

I'm surprised that you would've bought a car like the SS with these gripes. Had you not test driven any, or enough?

[cbr1100xx]

Just starting up my SS gives me a chubby.

[Mighty Mouce]

Originally Posted by DEDEDE

Much respect for my 17 SS manual but I just came to a sad realization. This car is absolutely no fun to drive unless I'm on it. It comes alive when I'm driving aggressively but it goes to sleep when I'm not. It's just flat boring at the speed limit. Am I the only one that feels this way? Some cars are fun even if your just tooling around.

Ummmm...So you got a manual trans with 455 HP and you don't get fun out of that. Hell in manual just winding out a gear slowly to 35 mph before gently placing it in 2nd can be enjoyable just by the sound alone. Sometime a 4 banger ricer will pull up to me at a light and I can hear them winding out to 15 mph before they have to shift. They are about to go into 3rd while I'm still cruising in 1st about to hit 2nd.

[Wyzz Kydd]

Originally Posted by Mighty Mouce

Ummmm...So you got a manual trans with 455 HP and you don't get fun out of that. Hell in manual just winding out a gear slowly to 35 mph before gently placing it in 2nd can be enjoyable just by the sound alone. Sometime a 4 banger ricer will pull up to me at a light and I can hear them winding out to 15 mph before they have to shift. They are about to go into 3rd while I'm still cruising in 1st about to hit 2nd.

Exactly! The manual is the way to go. You can definitely enjoy this car without pushing it to its limit.

Just this morning, driving to work through a pretty twisty residential neighborhood with a 40 mph speed limit and a Charger RT behind me. Neither of us interested in doing anything stupid on a surface road, but just running low 50’s through the turns the Charger is swaying and all over the road but I’m locked in my lane with minimal body roll and leaving him behind without even trying.

[blackgloves]

Please place me in the category of:
I love driving my car every time no matter the speed.

If you have the budget, keep your 6th and add a 3rd gen into the mix. I swap back and forth between my two. Both are a lot of fun and I don't ever want to not have both available to me.