[ksa]

So I currently have a 2012 E92 M3 with DINAN upgrades. I love the car and it's awesome to drive. Recently though I came across the 2016 Camaro SS and started thinking.

Wondering if anyone made a similar switch and if you regret your decision or are happy with it? I live in Alberta and it will be driven in winter like my M3 and C63 AMG before that.

Looking to get general opinions and comparisons of the two cars as to what you guys think if I should make this switch or I am being silly to even compare these two vehicles. I don't really care about the brand (or I am trying not to) so BMW or Chevy aspect shouldn't really be a consideration. It's more about refinement, servicing down the line, reliability, fun etc.

Pic of my current car..

[jdasnt3]

I've never owned or driven a BMW, so I can't help you there, but Motortrend did a comparo between the SS and M4. I have a link to our forum discussion. Go to at least page 7 to start since the article took a while to release after Motortrend's teaser.

http://www.camaro6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=438207

[ksa]

I did watch that video. In fact, that is how I started contemplating making the switch myself. But I was more interested in hearing some real world reviews, thoughts and opinions to get a better idea. Especially if there is someone who has actually done something similar recently.

[Snowblind]

This may not be a lateral comparison for your case but I'll tell you mine. I owned a '02 CL55 for 8 years (bought it in '07) and loved everything about that car, I drove it til the wheels fell off. I thought of getting a newer model but on a whim I drove to the dealer to test out the new gen6. The rest is history because after tearing it up on a test drive, I went back the next day and bought it !! The refinement is not quite the same but that is A LOT to ask for a car that costs less than half the price. The Camaro is raw and unapologetic ( but not like a Viper) yet it is something I can live with on a daily driver basis. In all fairness to the Camaro I did not order the magnetic ride (struts for the MB were $1600 each) and I felt that the standard suspension was adequate for me. I see you live in Canada and the run-on-flat tires are like bricks in cold weather so a tire change would be a must for you. In summary, loved the Benzie, love my Camaro, no regrets here.

[Tifosi360]

I am in the same boat as you. I had 2014 Porsche 911. The lease expired about a month ago. For about a decade I have been driving Porsches and M's, I am almost 100% sure I will be getting a SS 1LE this time around. All the worthwhile German cars are all turbo now. I cannot get passed it. I drove a 2SS, I was blown away how rigid the chassis was. The manual was better than any BMW M product that I have ever driven or owned. No need to discuss the 6.2L engine. I also looked at a Stingray and a Z06, I still don't know why Chevy don't support those models with proper lease rates. Luckily the Camaro leases very well. It will be a blast and a money saving proposition compared to a German car!

[ksa]

Originally Posted by Snowblind

This may not be a lateral comparison for your case but I'll tell you mine. I owned a '02 CL55 for 8 years (bought it in '07) and loved everything about that car, I drove it til the wheels fell off. I thought of getting a newer model but on a whim I drove to the dealer to test out the new gen6. The rest is history because after tearing it up on a test drive, I went back the next day and bought it !! The refinement is not quite the same but that is A LOT to ask for a car that costs less than half the price. The Camaro is raw and unapologetic ( but not like a Viper) yet it is something I can live with on a daily driver basis. In all fairness to the Camaro I did not order the magnetic ride (struts for the MB were $1600 each) and I felt that the standard suspension was adequate for me. I see you live in Canada and the run-on-flat tires are like bricks in cold weather so a tire change would be a must for you. In summary, loved the Benzie, love my Camaro, no regrets here.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I certainly will test drive one soon and most likely will opt for magnetic ride package. In the winter I plan to throw on some studded winter tires, otherwise I doubt it'll even be workable.

Originally Posted by Tifosi360

I am in the same boat as you. I had 2014 Porsche 911. The lease expired about a month ago. For about a decade I have been driving Porsches and M's, I am almost 100% sure I will be getting a SS 1LE this time around. All the worthwhile German cars are all turbo now. I cannot get passed it. I drove a 2SS, I was blown away how rigid the chassis was. The manual was better than any BMW M product that I have ever driven or owned. No need to discuss the 6.2L engine. I also looked at a Stingray and a Z06, I still don't know why Chevy don't support those models with proper lease rates. Luckily the Camaro leases very well. It will be a blast and a money saving proposition compared to a German car!

That is certainly a closer comparison to what I have been thinking about. German powerful cars to American. Have you made up your mind on the Camaro? The 1LE won't come out until next year and while theoretically I can wait, I don't think I need the 1LE package as I indicated I plan to drive in winter and that sort of power would be just plain stupid. Would you not feel less of an 'exclusivity' or 'prestigiousness' having driven Porsche's, BMW's etc to getting into a Chevrolet? I guess that's a personal thing but good to know the thought process.

[crabman]

I personally like the E92 I had better than the M4s now. That bespoke V8 revving out past 8k was pure pleasure, I tried the M4 and couldn't warm up to it. The faithful will say it's more efficient and all that good stuff but I don't buy the M cars of the world to be efficient, I buy them to have fun. I went to a P car for a while and recently sold that. I had always wanted one but could never quite make the price/value equation work. I decided to just go ahead and do it and I don't regret it but it didn't do much but cement the fact that the value really isn't there for me. Great cars but you can have as much fun for a lot less. That's one thing about the C63, when you own that one you feel that some mad scientist had his way and somehow it slipped under the corporate radar. A fun car should have that feeling. In my M3 the DCT would shift so hard/fast aaWOT it would tweak the whole car around and every time you did it you felt like some nutcase in the backroom managed to sneak one through for the boys.

I had been thinking about getting another Vette and after my test drive I saw a Camaro sitting there and decided to take a quick due diligence spin. Quite the surprise to find that I actually prefer the Camaro. It isn't by the numbers a better car. It isn't as cool a car. But driving it around was just as fun as the Vette and the ride and ease of entry along with a few other factors made me feel like I'd be happier with it every day.

IMO BMW has lost a lot of the intangibles that used to give them value to me exactly as they state in the comparo. P cars retain those things but at great cost. AMG has all kind of fun up their sleeves but you pay a premium for it just like the P car. Meanwhile American cars have just kept getting better. I tend to agree with Lieberman, the Camaro is a no excuses excellent car in its own right and its biggest problem is the Camaro name and the Chevy badge.

For me the equation here works. I'm waiting for the ZL1 to get outted in terms of price and availability and make a choice on which way I want to go. I've private sailed my previous car and it will cover any of the choices here or a C7 but I really think I may go ZL1. A C7 as I option it would go 79k and I think the ZL1 is going to be less expensive and provide more holy crap factor out on the road.

[evanescent03]

I just sold my F80 M3 for a 1SS with manual. The F80 was a far nicer all-round car. The only reason I got rid of it was that I wanted to save some money since I'll only be driving a couple hundred miles/month and don't want to spend that much for a car to sit in a parking lot. The car was NOT perfect in every way, but it was the best of all worlds to me.. a father of two boys who like to ride along occasionally (2 & 3yrs old) and likes to go to the track and push my car and myself. The M3 was perfect for me (AMG and V competitors fell off my list due to preference but those 3 are awesome too). After moving and about to start a 4 year hospital residency, I won't be able to drive nearly as often and the car will be parked a lot. I also like to drive something new as often as possible haha. Sooo.... I miss the better radio, the better seats, better infotainment layout and overall quality of interior... the Camaro IS a lot of fun and I can't wait to track it. The M3 was a joy on the track and easy to drive at the limits (I'm an intermediate driver... nothing special, not a total noob).

Test drive the car and make sure you can live with the lack of refinement... the lack of refinement make the SS feel like a brute. It's definitely a fun way to get around but has quirks.

Get some (more) seat time in the camaro. I wanted something new so I didn't get a used e92/boxster which are great choices too

Matt

[6spdhyperblue]

just to be clear, youre calling lack of refinement the lesser quality interior? not the drivetrain, chassis, and engine, correct?

[evanescent03]

Originally Posted by Nicul15

just to be clear, youre calling lack of refinement the lesser quality interior? not the drivetrain, chassis, and engine, correct?

Are you asking me or op?

I think lack of refinement is mostly in non-mechanical stuff. The wheels, brakes themselves, engine, transmission seem quite good. The materials and build quality are awful in comparison. I have a list of multiple things that were broken or somehow screwed up at delivery. Annoying to say the least! I know I bought it for the motor but my wife is more annoyed than me bc it still wasn't cheap...

[evanescent03]

I also find the throttle and brakes easier to modulate in the M3. The Camaro is all raw sports car.

[ksa]

Hmm your post makes me think twice about it. Now we are talking the only reason of my upgrade would be something new and different and I don't want to do that if I am going to regret getting rid of my M3.

Overall, are you happy you made the switch or not? And leave out the fact that you wanted to save money aside. I guess the question is, if you didn't want to save money, would you have made the swap? Do you feel like you downgraded?

[evanescent03]

Originally Posted by ksa

Hmm your post makes me think twice about it. Now we are talking the only reason of my upgrade would be something new and different and I don't want to do that if I am going to regret getting rid of my M3.

Overall, are you happy you made the switch or not? And leave out the fact that you wanted to save money aside. I guess the question is, if you didn't want to save money, would you have made the swap? Do you feel like you downgraded?

Absolutely it feels like a downgrade. Is the Camaro a good value? You bet... and maybe one of the best right now. But if you have a high attention to detail like i do, you will notice lots of stuff that isn't great. Most of it is stuff I can and will live with. The car will feel more hard core than your e92, most likely. I've spent a little time in an e90 m3 and I owned 3 e90 335is. The interior will feels more modern but isn't as well laid out. Storage is poor.

The e92 m3 is an awesome car man. If you want something new, different, etc, I think you definitely owe yourself a couple test drives.

I couldn't justify 950/MO for how little I was driving, so I am putting the savings aside towards my next car. I don't regret the decision because I knew what I was doing. The F80 has a much more updated interior than the e92, but the e92 has a pretty sweet sounding V8.

There are some upgrades and some downgrades... but even then a lot is subjective. New cars are always fun and you can always enjoy it for what it is and get something else later! I'll probably have this for 4 years then get a 911GTS or GT3 is my plan. I may hold onto the Camaro even bc itll be mostly/entirely paid off by then. If it's fun on the track I may end up caging it and making it my track car!

Don't take my word for it... go rent one for a weekend and put miles on it. I test drove the manual and auto each for a total of like an hour before I made my mind up. That's probably minimum.

[human29]

Not sure if the helps or not. I had a deposit down on a new M3 and was going to order and go with euro delivery. They did not have any in stock so I waiting until I was able to test drive one. I was killing time one day and stopped by the local chevy dealer just to see a new camaro as the wife and I owned a few in our younger days. Was not a fan of the Gen 5's but was blown away at the Gen 6. I asked the sales guy for the keys to look inside and he came out with a plate and insisted we drove the car. Well, I now have a Camaro on order. The MT video made me go look in the first place and they were right when they said only thing wrong with the car is says "Chevy and Camaro". Other then that is blows the M3 away unless you are looking for prestige. I went back and drove the M3 once they had one in stock to be sure and it solidified my decision.