[mjk3888]

So I finally found a local dealer with a 6 speed Camaro SS. I had been wanting to test drive a 6 speed so I could feel how the clutch and rev matching felt.

So here are my impressions.

Car: 2017 Camaro 1SS 6 speed

Clutch seems smooth and has decent feel regarding the "catch point". Shifter feel is good. I will admit the stick height was a little lower than I was expecting but I think the throws were just right. Not too long not too short. I might go with a different shifter at some point, but only to firm up the feel not change the throws. Rev match is excellent! Just as good as advertised in my opinion! I did find it its possible to fool the system though. If I recall, the ARM did rev match incorrectly a few times when changing to a lower gear. I think it may have happened once because I wiggled the stick in neutral before grabing the next gear. Once I felt out the gates, I never noticed it happening again.

I will say that one of my biggest complaints was initial accelerator pedal feedback. Unfortunately I forgot to try track mode to see if it was better, but in sport I found it hard to modulate the throttle and release the clutch smoothly because of the "dead space" in the first 10% of throttle application. I think by the end of the test drive I was almost used to the throttle application and had smoothed out the few slightly bogged down starts I had.

My other complaint was the mode and traction control switch location. After testing some automatics and using the bump shift feature I didn't think it was an issue, but with the shorter stick height in the 6 speed I found it much easier to want to rest my hand right on top of the switches between shifts. I don't rest my hand on the shifter while driving but when sitting at a light I usually place the car in neutral and have my hand resting right where those switches are.

So my biggest take away's are that I would like to try and sort out the pedal application (Vitesse maybe) and I think it would be great to have a switch cover fabbed up to protect the mode and traction control switches. I think some sort of plastic cover could be made and double side taped to fit over the switches.

On a side note to anyone who was curious, the only think I noticed different on the 2017 model was the fifty logo on the bottom of the steering wheel. Everything else seemed exactly the same.

[mjk3888]

I posted this in the wrong section. Can a Mod move it to the general discussion thread?

[Luke1212385]

Nice write up! All i am waiting for is a cover for those switches, or maybe a software update that lets you lock the buttons?

[Richard0nee]

The 6-speed is insane.. I'm still getting used to the tremec. It is very notchy and you can hear plenty of driveline chatter. I hear that it's normal with this tranny/clutch tho.

As far as the dead spots, you just have to get used to the shifter. When changing gears, tap at the accelerator when you release the clutch, all at the same time when changing gears.. it will engage smoothly and there won't be any hesitation with the gas pedal.

I know one thing, you can't have lazy shifts with this tranny. It'll make you work til you have your shifts down

[Thor142]

Originally Posted by Richard0nee

The 6-speed is insane.. I'm still getting used to the tremec. It is very notchy and you can hear plenty of driveline chatter. I hear that it's normal with this tranny/clutch tho.

As far as the dead spots, you just have to get used to the shifter. When changing gears, tap at the accelerator when you release the clutch, all at the same time when changing gears.. it will engage smoothly and there won't be any hesitation with the gas pedal.

I know one thing, you can't have lazy shifts with this tranny. It'll make you work til you have your shifts down

I was really hoping they fixed that with the 6th gen

[Richard0nee]

Originally Posted by Thor142

I was really hoping they fixed that with the 6th gen

I learned that it's a characteristic with the Tremecs. I drove my co-workers C7 Stingray and his manual had the driveline chatter as well.

I like the notchiness in a sense but it can be annoying at times. But hey, as long as the tranny's tough, can handle x amounts of power, doesn't have problems with high rpm shifts I'm fine with it.

[Thor142]

Originally Posted by Richard0nee

I learned that it's a characteristic with the Tremecs. I drove my co-workers C7 Stingray and his manual had the driveline chatter as well.

I like the notchiness in a sense but it can be annoying at times. But hey, as long as the tranny's tough, can handle x amounts of power, doesn't have problems with high rpm shifts I'm fine with it.

To be honest the tranny/ clutch combo in may car is amazing at the track. It's just the lurching at low RPM and the chatter like a bag of hammers in a dryer drive me nuts on the street. It's so loud it's embarrassing.
Is it the same Tremec 6060 in the 5th 1LE and the 6th SS? Does anyone know?

[TransAmx2]

Originally Posted by mjk3888

I will say that one of my biggest complaints was initial accelerator pedal feedback.

I had the same initial feeling when I test drove a '16 6-speed SS and I think that is a built in throttle delay GM has in there for 2 reasons;

1) Safety/Traction, that delay helps prevent unintentional tire roasting which could be a liability in the wrong hands. A little throttle delay makes it more street-able.

2)Fuel efficiency, it could delay full throttle until it's sure that's really what you want. The delay would likely also help cruising at speed delaying throttle response while in cruise control on roads that are anything but straight and flat.

I think the VITESSE Throttle controller would allow an owner to "Dial in" the throttle response to each owners own preference. Sledgehammer did a great YouTube video on it and that coupled with what I have read on the product/ reviews have convinced me that will likely be my first mod if/when I get a SS/1LE

[Richard0nee]

Originally Posted by Thor142

To be honest the tranny/ clutch combo in may car is amazing at the track. It's just the lurching at low RPM and the chatter like a bag of hammers in a dryer drive me nuts on the street. It's so loud it's embarrassing.
Is it the same Tremec 6060 in the 5th 1LE and the 6th SS? Does anyone know?

Yeah it's the same tranny, Tremec TR6060.

Yesterday, going up somewhat of a steep driveway.. Stopped to someone walk by first, put the car in first and slowly as it went, you can hear the bottom end sound like it was coming apart lol

My previous Mustang with the MT82 did the exact same thing when going up a driveway. The MT82 didn't have much chatter but I heard awful things about high rpm shifts, etc.

[IPAbeer]

Maybe this Corvette recall is related to what you're also hearing in the Camaro?

The problem: A rattling noise may come from the transmission bell-housing area. This could be due to a faulty flex plate, which connects the engine to the transmission.
Vehicles affected by service bulletin:
2015 Chevrolet Corvette
2016 Chevrolet Corvette
See More Service Bulletins
Corrective action: Dealers will replace the flex plate.
Warranty info: This service is being performed free of charge under Chevrolet's new-car, powertrain or extended warranty, whichever applies.
What owners should do: Call your local dealer with your vehicle's identification number to determine if it's involved in this service bulletin. You can call Chevrolet at 800-222-1020 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 888-327-4236. Reference TSB No. 15-NA-045.

Read more at https://www.cars.com/articles/2015-2...cip4TWxLFoF.99

[Nick S]

Originally Posted by IPAbeer

Maybe this Corvette recall is related to what you're also hearing in the Camaro?

The problem: A rattling noise may come from the transmission bell-housing area. This could be due to a faulty flex plate, which connects the engine to the transmission.
Vehicles affected by service bulletin:
2015 Chevrolet Corvette
2016 Chevrolet Corvette
See More Service Bulletins
Corrective action: Dealers will replace the flex plate.
Warranty info: This service is being performed free of charge under Chevrolet's new-car, powertrain or extended warranty, whichever applies.
What owners should do: Call your local dealer with your vehicle's identification number to determine if it's involved in this service bulletin. You can call Chevrolet at 800-222-1020 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 888-327-4236. Reference TSB No. 15-NA-045.

Read more at https://www.cars.com/articles/2015-2...cip4TWxLFoF.99

A flex plate is what is used with an Automatic transmission. Takes the place of a traditional flywheel used with a manual transmission. I beleive the torque converter is mounted to the flex plate similarly to how the clutch is mounted to a flywheel. So this TSB would not be related to a manual transmission car.

[IPAbeer]

Originally Posted by Nick S

A flex plate is what is used with an Automatic transmission. Takes the place of a traditional flywheel used with a manual transmission. I beleive the torque converter is mounted to the flex plate similarly to how the clutch is mounted to a flywheel. So this TSB would not be related to a manual transmission car.

Thanks for the education!

[raptor5244]

Originally Posted by Thor142

To be honest the tranny/ clutch combo in may car is amazing at the track. It's just the lurching at low RPM and the chatter like a bag of hammers in a dryer drive me nuts on the street. It's so loud it's embarrassing.
Is it the same Tremec 6060 in the 5th 1LE and the 6th SS? Does anyone know?

Yeah, same thing just adds Active Rev Match. They have been rattling/clunking like that since my 1991 corvette. I found the best shifts are when you wind out the gears. When you baby it at low rpm you get most of that driveline noise.

[LesBaer]

For me personally, I love the location of the mode button and wouldn't change a thing about it. On my car the only thing that I have set to automatic under drive mode settings is the MRC and it's because of that button. I've never hit it by accident but having right there by the stick helps you quickly change from sport or track to touring if you see a bumpy road coming up quick. Same goes for switching from touring if you need to make a precise maneuver and want to quickly tighten up the suspension. I have engine sound and steering set through the screen, so those never change when I hit the actual button. It's also not an easy button press like traction control is.

I have hit traction control and turned it off by accident when doing something else with my right hand, but only once or twice in over 5k miles of driving. The benefit to having it right near the mode button is that it actually gives you your 5th drive mode - competitive mode. If you look at BMW's or some other cars, they've made it so overly complicated to enter into launch control. The way I have everything configured, all of the drive mode settings are together. I really like how they've made it so easy to quickly access it, but the pressure needed to apply the button press is a little too easy and should be tightened up a bit.

I agree with the M6 assessment except I don't hear THAT much noise from my drive line. After a few hundred miles the clutch really lightens up to the point where you barely need to press it down for a smooth shift. I literally learned how to drive stick on this car so I can't really compare it to anything else...the last stick I drove before this was 25 years ago (and I got a jump start lol). I love it though. Rev matching works great for the most part but sometimes I feel like I have to wait a split second for it.

The one thing I don't like is having to drop down to 1st gear. If you hit a slow moving pile-up of cars on a long exit off ramp and want to crawl (because of stop and go traffic), you really have to be going super slow or you'll jerk forward a little bit.

I got my car tuned right after the break-in period, so my throttle response is fine. I can't even remember what it was like before. I don't launch very often, but did test it out a couple of times. I'm not sure if it's in my imagination or not, but it seems like you get more throttle response in competitive mode. Having your tires spin could save you from snapping your rear axle under the wrong conditions.