[pyroguy]

This last week I was traveling and when looking for rental vehicles I opted for a Dodge Challenger "or similar" for my rental vehicle instead of my standard "full size" vehicle since I was the only person that would be traveling in the vehicle and it was $40/day cheaper.

When I arrived at Hertz they did not have any vehicles available, apparently this is a common issue at this airport Hertz, but soon a white turbo 4 cylinder Camaro showed up and the lady said this was my ride. Sweet a Camaro, even if it is a "piddly little 4 banger". Now turbo 4 cylinder guys/gals don't go and get your panties in a twist. I come from a full bolt on, cammed 5th gen, and I live by the motto "there's no replacement for displacement".

So I look the car over to make sure there's no dents or anything before accepting it, standard rental vehicle practice. I put my luggage in the trunk and I get in adjust the seat all the way to the floor and back as far as it will go since I'm 7' tall and get in. The car is definitely tighter and smaller on the inside as well as the trunk space than my 5th gen, but surprisingly not uncomfortable. I check out of the parking lot and punch it getting on the highway. Initially it's what I expected performance wise, but once you hit about 2k rpms and the turbo begins to spool the car begins to pick up.

When I arrive at my hotel for the night I check the mpgs and I have been getting 33.8mpgs having traveled through downtown Atlanta and up an hour north to my hotel. Not bad! I drive the car around a little, beating on it as most do in a rental car, but nothing horrendous. No doughnuts or big smokey burnouts even though there's a perfect vacant parking lot next to the hotel begging to have this happen.

At the end of my trip as I'm returning the car I'm actually pleasantly surprised at what a turbo 4 cylinder Camaro can do. It was peppy, the handling was surprisingly nimble, and the mpgs were rather reasonable. If I was getting a commuter car for a long day to day trip vehicle it could be a consideration for me. However, the drawbacks for me were: minimal trunk space (I thought my 5th gen was tight), not a huge fan of the center A/C vent (it froze my knee out after a while), the visibility was even worse than my 5th gen (again I didn't know this was possible), and I missed my instant torque of my V8.

Overall turbo 4 guys/gals, I'll have to quit laughing that your vehicles are missing half of its cylinders. You have quite a nice little ride. I'm sure with the 1LE package it would have been even more fun on the twisty back roads.

[DenverTaco07]

Nice review. the drawbacks would be across all trims, but nice to hear what you thought of the turbo.

[pyroguy]

Originally Posted by DenverTaco07

Nice review. the drawbacks would be across all trims, but nice to hear what you thought of the turbo.

All except the instant torque of a V8. Of course the audible V8 sounds are always more pleasant for me vs. a 4 cylinder car, but that's a personal preference. Some people like the sound of a 4 cylinder engine with a loud exhaust. Me? I think a loud 4 cylinder exhaust sounds like a weed wacker on heroin, but I wasn't in it for the audible enjoyment.

At the end of the day I really was pleasantly impressed at the car itself. Oh, and it WILL do a smokey burnout if you want it to. Just don't go trying to shift gears while mid burnout, you'll lose your momentum and subsequently your burnout will cease.

[DenverTaco07]

Are the Camaro 4 turbos twin scroll? I thought that setup all but eliminated "turbo lag"

[pyroguy]

It's a single turbo, but I don't know about the internals of it. They aren't as laggy as some turbo setups, but below 2k rpms it doesn't have quite as much punch, IMO. It isn't a kick in the teeth power kick when the boost kicks in it's more of standard na pull which is nice. However, if you're above that 2k rpms and romp on the throttle you'll notice more of a punch than below 2k.

[JT58]

There's nothing wrong with a 4 or 6 cylinder Camaro. I had a 5th Gen SS- bigger and heavier and it netted 16 MPG on premium fuel. It was very expensive to drive it around. I now have a 2016 Gen 6, V6, M/T. I thought about a 4 cylinder Turbo as a commuter but the premium gas requirement held me back. So I opted for an even better bang for the buck than the 4 cylinder and I average 35 MPG on my work commute on 87 octane. The car is plenty fast for me and sounds good with MBRP axle back and I am not afraid to drive it- I rotate it as my daily every other week with a 2018 GTI. Sure if I wanted one car with a hefty payment I'd have an SS, but prefer my three, which bought all used for a screaming deal and I have no car payment and don't spend much on gas.

[67rstbkt]

There must be a shortage of Challengers going on - I booked a 6 cylinder Challenger and they gave me a 17 1SS - that's how I ended up buying my 16 2SS. I had no intention of buying one until I had that rental for a few days, lol.

[pyroguy]

Originally Posted by 67rstbkt

There must be a shortage of Challengers going on - I booked a 6 cylinder Challenger and they gave me a 17 1SS - that's how I ended up buying my 16 2SS. I had no intention of buying one until I had that rental for a few days, lol.

That's funny. What did you come from before you SS?

[protovack]

The LTG is light and the alpha chassis really likes that. You had an experience very typical for people driving the 2.0T for the first time. You think its going to be lackluster, but then you drive it, it puts a smile on your face. I'm glad you got the opportunity to see what we are always raving about

[redcoats1976]

have to be honest,i drove a loaner 2.0T while my 5th gen V6 was in for warranty work.it was a lot faster off a stoplight than i had suspected.only downside was i didnt like the exhaust sound.

[pyroguy]

Originally Posted by protovack

The LTG is light and the alpha chassis really likes that. You had an experience very typical for people driving the 2.0T for the first time. You think its going to be lackluster, but then you drive it, it puts a smile on your face. I'm glad you got the opportunity to see what we are always raving about

You know the saying “don’t knock it until you try it” comes to mind with my scenario. Would I choose a turbo 4 over a SS? No, but that is because my Camaro isn’t my DD. When my wife and I were buying our Camaro we almost went with a red line edition Challenger. The only reason we didn’t go that route was that it only came in a V6. I just love the sound and feeling of a V8 muscle car. However, for what the turbo 4 is, I really can’t complain. Also like you said, the Alpha platform is a lighter, more agile platform and it shows.

Originally Posted by redcoats1976

have to be honest,i drove a loaner 2.0T while my 5th gen V6 was in for warranty work.it was a lot faster off a stoplight than i had suspected.only downside was i didnt like the exhaust sound.

Agreed. There’s the eternal V8 vs V6 debate that rages on everyday, but there are V6 exhausts out there that do sound good. However, I have never found a 4 cylinder exhaust that I have ever described as sounding good. Personal preference I know, but that’s just my opinion.

[protovack]

Originally Posted by pyroguy

However, I have never found a 4 cylinder exhaust that I have ever described as sounding good. Personal preference I know, but that’s just my opinion.

Well......it's an acquired taste, you might say. You learn to like it, and you begin to appreciate the turbo sound. At wide open throttle it actually sounds really aggressive. When I'm driving it, there is never a time where I stop having fun because of how it sounds. It's like a mental exercise of learning "Oh, I can still have fun with a car with THIS sound. Okay, I'll need to get used to that." And then you do.
Bigger deeper sounding engines with more cylinders always sound better. A huge 12 cylinder diesel train engine sounds way better than the LT1, does that stop you from enjoying the LT1?

[18i4m6]

Glad you enjoyed it, it is what it is, and of course 8cyls are fun and sound great.

For me the lack of great exhaust sound is balanced by the fun turbo sounds and the loss of instant na v8 power all the time is balanced by the great mileage on it being a daily driver.

I came from a lifetime of superbikes, and I've decided that everything can be fun in different ways.

But yea, like protovack says, you have to be able to wrap your head around it. It helps that there are other fancy speedy 4 cyls out there as well.

[Chazzz]

Light on its feet, averaging 38+MPG with A8, turns heads like a V8 as most have no idea what’s under the hood, all for a tad over $20K brand new. It’s a no-brainer....