[evanescent03]

finally got the photos for you guys and here are my impressions:

Car: 1SS 6MT w/ magnetic suspension, NPP, DOT 4 fluid, Motul X-Clean 8100 5w40 (dexos2) and 91oct gas. Stock tires, stock brake pads and everything else. So basically off the showroom floor but with the fluids recommended by the manual. Track setting and stabilitrak off/competitive mode from lap #1.

being new to the Camaro and new to Sonoma raceway (my last 20-some track days were in a BMW M3) it took me a little bit of time to get used to everything ... I have a fair amount of experience but still far from being a bad@$$ out there.

that said... I reallllly enjoyed the car. more and more as the day went on (only a 1-day event). I could feel myself getting the feel of different sections of the track and I was probably cutting off seconds at a time from my lap times. the lap times were terribly consistent though, partly due to me and partly due to having to allow the brakes/tires to cool down some.

i'm coming from the F80 M3 (4 doors 425hp/tq, 3600lbs) which was a fantastic car at the track... well balanced, great seating position, fast, etc. the Camaro, on first day impressions, was JUST as much fun and actually felt quite similar to the M3. I drove it in a very similar fashion and it seemed to do pretty well. Remember, I have a lot of honing to do, both on myself and the car, but I was pleasantly surprised at this. Steering, acceleration, balance, predictability on oversteer/tail-out... all very good. The driving position is *good* but I don't feel it's as good as it was in the M3. The seats also are squishier and supportive seats will definitely be a welcomed upgrade once I decide i'm going to keep this thing as a track car.

The only real adjustments to my driving I had to make were because of brake fade (I blame pads... CT1001/1718 coming XP10/8 coming) and greasy tires. I didn't notice this significantly until late in the first session and midway into the other sessions (first session was pretty slow, getting stuck in trains and whatnot despite this group being "solid solo" drivers... yeah, okay... learn to point cars by, guys & gals...). When the fade/grease came on it was very manageable and after a lap or so I could go harder again. I'd love to have the fade resistance and grip of the Pagid RS29/ Nitto NT01 combo I had before.

No error codes, temps seemed to be completely steady, never going up at all which was impressive (80deg day, light breeze). The car did great.

Another note about the brakes... I got a nice blue sheen to the rotors but I think the pads still got overheated and the surfaces is rather pitted. Zero brake judder and no obvious pad deposits on the rotors (thankfully). I'm not sure if the pads chunking is due to just being over heated or if it had something to do with me not doin the 50mile break-in routine recommended by the manual. heh. looking forward to the carbotechs! goodbye tires!

Summed up:

Pros:
Steering, Power, Sound, Predictability, Braking power before too hot

Cons:
Seating position (maybe i'm just not used to coupes) ... and that's really about it aside from brake fade/tires which isn't really the "car's" fault.

I'm not used to putting these together so if someone has specific questions, let me know!

https://youtu.be/voWk4LG2ZmA

finally getting some pics up:

[Thor142]

That NPP sounds heavenly......

[evanescent03]

updated with review and photos!

[MiamiBlueCamaro]

Thanks for the post and nice video!

[Tr6]

Thanks a lot for the AWESOME post!!! Just watched the video too! Are you rocking the 4 piston or the 6 piston?

[mbar]

Thank you for the post!
Did you install the brake cooling "ducts"

[LSxWittles]

Very nice! I'm still shocked at how loud the stock NPP is (love the fact that it is lol). That track looks like a lot of fun. I'll mainly be doing track and auto x so I'm on the fence of getting the 6 piston fronts or not. Nice review and nice driving Thanks for the post! And I noticed a couple of the non point bys lol

[evanescent03]

Originally Posted by LSxWittles

Very nice! I'm still shocked at how loud the stock NPP is (love the fact that it is lol). That track looks like a lot of fun. I'll mainly be doing track and auto x so I'm on the fence of getting the 6 piston fronts or not. Nice review and nice driving Thanks for the post! And I noticed a couple of the non point bys lol

i'm fairly certain everything was via point-by.... it may not have shown in the video.

I bet the 4-pistons will hold up just fine with proper pads. the 6 pistons are sexier, for sure, but may not be necessary. if you are really hard on brakes, run hoosiers, etc, etc... i'm sure they help, but i'm hoping the proper pads will help with the fade I was experiencing. i'll be able to tell next weekend at laguna seca!

yeah the NPP is LOUD... i'm glad I can tone it down a little although usually I turn it back up again. I don't like being "that guy" making tons of noise everywhere but it's definitely enjoyable amongst enthusiasts. the adjustability is great, and so is the adjustability in the suspension. i'm very impressed by it!

[mjk3888]

Great post!!! Seeing more videos of these 6th gen's on the track is definitely making it harder for me to wait for the 1LE.

A few questions for you.

Did you use the Rev Match system? How did you like it? Any complaints?

How was the car behaving in Track Mode with Stabilitrak off and Competitive mode on. Does traction control still assist at times?

Are you planning on doing the diff fluid change?

[evanescent03]

Originally Posted by mbar

Thank you for the post!
Did you install the brake cooling "ducts"

you're welcome, and yes, I had the air-deflectors and smaller brake dust shields put on by the dealership while they were doing my DOT 4 fluid.

Originally Posted by mjk3888

Great post!!! Seeing more videos of these 6th gen's on the track is definitely making it harder for me to wait for the 1LE.

A few questions for you.

Did you use the Rev Match system? How did you like it? Any complaints?

How was the car behaving in Track Mode with Stabilitrak off and Competitive mode on. Does traction control still assist at times?

Are you planning on doing the diff fluid change?

I did use the rev match system... I've never had an appropriate time to practice/master heel-toe and I don't like wasting precious track time since I only go a few days/year. rev-match worked just as well as it did in my 2016 BMW M3 ... zero complaints with either EXCEPT I forgot to turn it on once or twice and got a little surprise hehe.

I did not notice any nannies on with competitive mode. it did seem like the car was VERY well behaved and even as I got a little more aggressive with throttle coming out of turns, I thought it was really stable. a couple times I was testing it a little and was definitely able to get the back end to come out more, but they were easy corrections and it didn't come TOO far out.. just enough to need some countersteering and then I was back on the throttle. they had just moved me up to the higher run group (C with Hooked on Driving) and since I just started doing events with this group I was trying to behave a little bit too and not get a reputation for a drifter, lol. I have a two day event coming up so i'll probably be playing a little more but i'm still not one to be sliding all over the place on purpose.

diff fluid changes has been done after day 1, per manual direction. $190 at the dealership. my time right now is really valuable so i'm letting the dealership do a lot of this stuff. Only thin I did was change my own oil and i'll do my brake pads as well. Watch that oil, the plug is almost completely sideways and it SHOOTS out at a crazy trajectory haha!

Let me know if this didn't answer your questions or if you have more!

Matt

[LSxWittles]

Originally Posted by evanescent03

i'm fairly certain everything was via point-by.... it may not have shown in the video.

I bet the 4-pistons will hold up just fine with proper pads. the 6 pistons are sexier, for sure, but may not be necessary. if you are really hard on brakes, run hoosiers, etc, etc... i'm sure they help, but i'm hoping the proper pads will help with the fade I was experiencing. i'll be able to tell next weekend at laguna seca!

yeah the NPP is LOUD... i'm glad I can tone it down a little although usually I turn it back up again. I don't like being "that guy" making tons of noise everywhere but it's definitely enjoyable amongst enthusiasts. the adjustability is great, and so is the adjustability in the suspension. i'm very impressed by it!

Thanks for the reply. I may stick with the 4 pistons and change to aftermarkets later down the line. Once you switch to different pads I would like to hear your experience with those and the possibility of eliminating the brake fade. Also laguna seca, I would LOVE to run there lol.

The NPP I think is great as I would like the option to run quieter at times as to not disturb everyone around me, as my current car does lol. Also regarding the point bys, I may have worded it wrong. Looked like a couple times they should have pointed you by but they didn't, causing the trains. Then again I've never been to this track and I could just be a crazy person lol. Either way thanks again for the review and keep us updated on your track experiences

[FASTJEW]

Originally Posted by evanescent03

you're welcome, and yes, I had the air-deflectors and smaller brake dust shields put on by the dealership while they were doing my DOT 4 fluid.

Thanks for the great review! Looking forward to my first track day in 2 weeks and installing the air ducts myself this weekend, but I notice in your pics that the large air deflectors in front of your wheels are still there. Aren't we supposed to take those off?

The instructions say to reinstall them, but that part is after it talks about re-installing normal components...I am confused...

[evanescent03]

Originally Posted by FASTJEW

Thanks for the great review! Looking forward to my first track day in 2 weeks and installing the air ducts myself this weekend, but I notice in your pics that the large air deflectors in front of your wheels are still there. Aren't we supposed to take those off?

The instructions say to reinstall them, but that part is after it talks about re-installing normal components...I am confused...

Honestly since I did not do the work I did not look at it that closely either... This is what was taken off of my car. The current air deflectors I think are larger which deflect the air into the brakes... the brake dust shield is what is smaller for track duty but I think the plastic piece is actually larger to help direct air.

[BadBillyJack]

Originally Posted by FASTJEW

Thanks for the great review! Looking forward to my first track day in 2 weeks and installing the air ducts myself this weekend, but I notice in your pics that the large air deflectors in front of your wheels are still there. Aren't we supposed to take those off?

The instructions say to reinstall them, but that part is after it talks about re-installing normal components...I am confused...

I believe you are right, if what you are saying is that the two deflectors on the lower half on both sides of the bumper are suppose to be removed.