For $3500, the 1LE option transforms the Camaro SS into a finely tuned handling instrument, a track-ready performer on the order of the Porsche 911 GT3. Even if you never take your Camaro to a road course, 1LE is a must-have option for the driving enthusiast. It’s telling that the order form won’t let you pair an automatic transmission and 1LE—presumably, that’s Chevy’s way of saying, “Serious Inquiries Only.”
hassis changes are extensive and bring the 1LE closely in line with the handling, if not the ultimate prowess, of the 580-hp ZL1. Compared with the standard SS, the front and rear anti-roll bars are enlarged, a strut-tower brace is bolted in place, monotube rear shocks replace the SS’s twin-tube units, and black 20-inch wheels—10-inches wide in front and 11-inches wide in back—are furnished with 285/35R-20 Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar G:2 rubber borrowed from the ZL1’s front end. To help keep it all working under duress, the ZL1’s wheel bearings, rear shock mounts, and larger fuel pump are used.
In addition to the black wheels, the exterior is dressed up with a hood wrapped in black vinyl, as well as larger front and rear spoilers. Interior changes include the microfiber-wrapped steering wheel and shifter from the ZL1. That shifter has shorter throws and churns a close-ratio six-speed gearbox with a shorter (numerically higher) final-drive ratio.
hat the 1LE code doesn’t change is the engine. Like all manual Camaro SS models the 1LE spins its rear wheels with a 426-hp 6.2-liter LS3 V-8. Our test car’s V-8 plays through an $895 two-mode exhaust system that opens valves to allow for more noise under hard acceleration and at high rpm. Acceleration times fall in line with like-priced versions of the Ford Mustang and the Dodge Challenger. The quarter-mile passes in 12.9 seconds at 111 mph, and the run to 60 takes only 4.5 seconds. The shifter slots into gear as if pulled by magnets, and your hands will think that the fake-suede wrapping on the knob could’ve come from Stuttgart.
As we’ve known for some time, the new Camaro, which should launch on the market in the second half of 2015, as a 2016 model, will be based on General Motors Company’s [NYSE:GM] brilliant Alpha platform, currently found in the Cadillac ATS and CTS. Both light and stiff, the platform should ensure the new Camaro is leaps and bounds ahead of the relatively heavy fifth-gen model when it comes to acceleration, handling and economy.
The lighter weight will also allow the new Camaro to offer a four-cylinder engine, providing a rival for Ford Motor Company’s [NYSE:F] new Mustang EcoBoost. Note, the Mustang EcoBoost weighs in at 3,532 pounds, and considering the Alpha-based ATS sedan weighs about 200 pounds less than this, the Alpha-based Camaro could have quite the advantage over its traditional foe.
In the powertrain department, the four-cylinder engine will likely be a version of the 2.0-liter turbocharged unit that produces 272 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque in the Cadillac ATS and CTS. Of course, V-6 and V-8 units should continue to be available. In fact, these prototypes are wearing quad-exhaust tips, suggesting they’re running V-8 engines. We hear the new Camaro SS will adopt a V-8 based on GM’s Gen V small-block instead of the current model's aging LS3.
At launch, we should see at least a base V-6 model, V-8-powered SS and perhaps the new four-cylinder model. Further down the track we can expect replacements for the 1LE, ZL1 and Z/28.
Look for a debut of the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show in January or the 2015 New York Auto Show in April. Production will take place at GM’s Lansing Grand River Assembly Plant located in Michigan, the same site where the ATS and CTS models are built (the current Camaro is sourced from Canada). Around the same time that the coupe is launched, we're expecting the Camaro Convertible to be offered as well.
The more powerful version of the SS, with its six-speed manual transmission, will return 16 city, 24 highway miles per gallon. Opting for the automatic will raise the highway figure to 25 mpg.
Other SS goodies include four-piston Brembo brakes, a sportier FE3 suspension and Competitive/Sport modes for the car's StabiliTrak stability control system, including launch control for manual SS models.
Of note, GM claims the Camaro SS lapped Germany's Nurburgring in 8 minutes 20 seconds. While not as blistering as the Corvette ZR1's 7:26.4 second lap, it still puts the car in some pretty decent company, such as the E46 BMW M3.
The Camaro SS recently gained an electric power steering system taken from the fine-handling ZL1. Despite this addition, the Camaro SS remains slightly less nimble than its main competitor - the Ford Mustang - due largely to its heftier curb weight. It continues to offer up a comfortable ride and excellent directional stability, however.
Inside, the Camaro recently received a minor cabin update with a new steering wheel and a revised gauge cluster. While the changes help make the car's stylish interior a bit more user-friendly, they do little to mitigate the visibility problems created by the show-car exterior styling - thick pillars and a high beltline mean that seeing out of the sides and back of the Camaro can be a challenge. Thankfully, Chevrolet does offer an optional backup camera.
New to the Camaro is an optional MyLink infotainment system, which offers voice control of certain entertainment functions and includes Bluetooth smartphone connectivity and streaming audio via Pandora radio and Stitcher SmartRadio. MyLink comes with a color touchscreen and can be outfitted with navigation.
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