Okay boys and girls no more hype, no more second guessing and best of all no more waiting. This is the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro and today here at San Diego's Hard Rock hotel, we're taking this brand new prototype for a first ever drive.
[Music]
And so from the Hard Rock hotel, we motor out to the streets of San Diego. Two Camaros here; one with six-speed automatic and one with six-speed manual, are 99 percent prototypes. So they are pretty rough around the edges awful paint not all parts to production shape some interior bits hold in place with tape while engineers test the final pieces. The hardware wise these cars are nearly done. With minor tweaks this is the Camaro that you'll be able buy by the next march.
How does she run? Like a cheetah escaping the zoo. The engine twirls for at 7000 rpm red line as it performs and lift there, but at cruise it withdraws like a fine personal valet almost into invisibility. The high pitched exhaust node is the decidedly non-muscular, it almost says agent tuner car. This Chevy may wear a base car label but you would never know it by the drive. Hydraulic power steering delivers excellent feel. The chassis boasting a Mustang Crushing independent rear powers through bends with a level of grip and simply obliterates any "base car" notions. Even pushed as hard as you you'd dare on public roads, the good riches rarely protest or slip, instead digging in and doing their best to pry your eye balls form your skull.
Body rigidity is exemplary too. The Mustang can only dream of delivering handling at this level of performance and sophistication. Well, I just spent about 2 hours behind the wheel of this new Camaro prototype driving up in the mountains northeast of San Diego. We are in the small town of Julian now. I can sum up my impressions in three letters wow! 3.6 liter, double over head cam, direct injection engine making 300 plus horse power.
I tried both the six-speed automatic and the six-speed manual, both are terrific transmissions. Steering feel is just sensational. Body control is great and ride is nice as the FE2 suspension. This is the base car. I have to keep telling myself that because I can't imagine how the V8 Camaro is going to be. All I can tell you at this point is ladies and gentlemen, you Camaro fans out there when the production cars hit the streets this march, you are not going to be disappointed.
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