As part of their marketing strategy in the Middle East, Chevrolet announced the creation of a website (www.camaroarabia.com) on which you could design your very own custom Camaro. This information would then be sent to a dealer who would contact you closer to the release date. The result? 5,000 confirmed orders by the end of the first day. Judging by the admiring glances and pointing fingers we received as we drove through Dubai, the Camaro has been on people’s radar for some time. To say this car’s been highly anticipated would be something of an understatement.
Chevrolet were keen to stress that each of their regional operations is financially firewalled. Whatever you read about Chevrolet in the U.S. doesn’t necessarily apply across the board. By all accounts the Middle East and North Africa business is doing well and is seen within the company as a major success story. However, amid all the confusion, and let’s face it, there’s been a lot, Chevrolet are banking on the Camaro to do the business in the saleroom. Thankfully, they’ve produced a winner.
I’m not going to beat around the bush, I loved this car. I’m not a huge fan of recent U.S. offerings in this market; they’re a little brash, a little rough around the edges for my liking. Having said that, the 2010 Camaro is, put simply, great fun to drive. The Camaro might not have the sophistication of European vehicles, but then it’s not supposed to have. What it is though is a thoroughly entertaining, well-designed machine.
It wasn’t until we got out of the city and had a chance to open her up a little that the true joy of driving the Camaro became apparent. The ride quality is fantastic for a sports coupe; the independent multilink rear suspension meant the minor bumps were barely passed on to the driver. Chevrolet will tell you that they wanted to make the car useable on a day-to-day basis and, after spending a considerable time behind the wheel, I’m happy to say that they’ve succeeded. If not exactly a laid-back drive, I don’t think that’s something you’d ever want to see on a Camaro, it’s certainly not a struggle. After hurtling around the roads for five hours straight at speeds that I’m not comfortable disclosing, I felt pretty fresh.
There are two variations to take into consideration if you’re thinking about buying one. There is a V6 and a V8 on offer, both of which can be chosen in a manual or an automatic configuration. Both power trains offer dual overhead cams, variable valve timing and four valves per cylinder. The results for the V6 are 304 hp and 370Nm of torque, doing 0-60 mph in 5.9 seconds. At the end of the day, the entry level Camaro sits at around the same level of performance as the Mustang GT. The V8 comes in at 400 hp, 553Nm of torque and gets to 60 mph in 4 seconds.
The automatic versus the manual? Well, that choice is always the same, power over ease of use, open roads or city life? The same holds true with the Camaro as with every other car. The transmission on the manual’s well put together, the changes are short and it’s reassuringly solid while not proving frustratingly heavy. Chevrolet is proud of the mechanics involved, perfectly happy to let a horde of journalists each try dropping the clutch while the engine was screaming. This car is reliable, solid. During testing it was driven for 72 hours straight, with only oil, water and petrol stops; nothing broke.
Safety-wise the Camaro ticks all the right boxes. Stability control, front- and side-impact airbags, overhead airbags, pretensioning seatbelts and anti-lock breaks all come as standard. There doesn’t appear to be anything missing. Chevrolet insists that the Camaro is both an exciting and safe drive.
In these days of global financial crises and high petrol prices, the issue of fuel economy is an important one. Despite being a muscle car, the Camaro can present some pretty impressive numbers when it comes to miles to the gallon; 13.8 l/100km in the city and 8.1 l/100km on the open road make the Camaro an outstanding proposition, especially when compared to the other options in the field.
The interior options do the job rather than blow you away; the stereo is perfectly acceptable, as are the Bluetooth and USB links. However, there’s no Sat Nav available direct from Chevrolet. In short, the options are limited, if functional.
Now we come to come to the downsides, slight as they are. The interior is fairly basic and feels a little rushed, as if the interior suffered in order to get the car to market at the current price. The retro styling will appeal to some, but not to others; the instruments sit within square surrounds that evoke memories of previous Camaros. The seats themselves were adequate, which is a shame as they were comfortable enough, well positioned, but merely adequate. The rear seating was, as you’d expect, a little cramped, don’t plan too many cross-country jaunts with the back seat crammed with people.
But that’s the rub. This isn’t a luxury sports car, this is a Camaro. Should we expect all the bells and whistles on the interior? Possibly not. I’d argue that, if the interior were slightly plusher it’d seem out of place. This car is, after all, a muscle car, it’s about the raw power it delivers, not about the walnut dash, or lack of it.
Two common bugbears raise their heads with the Camaro, as with many other sports coupes, the boot and the view. The boot is small, no two ways about it. That’s something you have to accept when buying this sort of car, but still, it’s something of a negative. Added to that, the view from within the car is a little restricted, the rear view window’s pretty small, but the wing mirrors are big enough and are well positioned.
The Camaro is a fantastic car, great fun to drive and comfortable enough to make long trips enjoyable. It handles like a dream, is impressively fast and stops on a dime. It’s a great car for hitting the open road and enjoying yourself in. Would you want to take the family on a long trip? Probably not. But then that’s not why you’d ever buy a Camaro, is it? No, this car appeal to the enthusiast that lurks in every auto buyer, a swan song to the former ceo of General Motors, Rick Wagoner, who declared that, “From henceforth, we will make cars that consumers really want to buy.”
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