Is the Camaro SS really that fast in real life?

[ChrisGT]

Dare I say this is all completely wrong? I would need to see some specific information as to where you have "read" this information.

I have been a huge fan of the Z06 since the day it came out (C6 mainly). I have read countless articles in Car & Driver and R&T that I'm sure we could quickely reference and I have never seen anything that even closely resembles what you are claiming above.

I personally own a 2006 Mustang GT, my cousin owns a C6 Z06, my one Uncle owns a C5 Vette, my other Uncle owns a new Camaro SS. Either Vette will walk all over the SS in handling, and straight line performance any day of the week. My Mustang will run with the SS very well, (Granted, I have been modding it since day one). And in all articles I've read the new 5.0 Mustang (which is still the same platform as the 2005+) walks all over the Camaro. As stated above, the Mustang is not a "very old platform". It was a completely new platform in 2005, and also as stated above closely resembles the Lincoln LS platform.

Granted, I really like the Camaro, and by no means am I bashing it, but it is much heavier than the Mustang and that hurts it. That is the one thing all of the magazines have said as well, the Camaro is too heavy. Great engine, but the weight is definitely not helping it at all. Having driven all of the above the listed cars, the Camaro also "feels" the heaviest. But there is no way that the Camaro matches a Z06 in handling. It also doesn't "kill" the competition. It beats one (Challenger), and loses to the other (Mustang).

Here is one article I found on Motortrends website that lists performance specs for all three cars http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests...10_camaro_ss_2010_challenger_srt8_comparison/
The performance specs are on the last page if you don't feel like reading all 7 pages.

Everything you said is 100% spot on. I've driven my buddy's 2010 SS and C6 Z06 and I own an 07 GT. I agree with all of your observations 👍 The Z06 is in a totally different category as the SS in acceleration, braking, and handling. I have noticed the Camaro being a bit too quick in GT5, but not by much. The handling department is where it is really a bit too good. Just because it has IRS doesn't automatically make it handle that well. The M3 should be leaving it for dead on the track. The GT5 handling model is a little off on the Camaro.. it seems to have much more downforce than it does in real life IMO. The Challenger is in the same boat. That thing can corner in-game!

 

[mike_gt3]

I raced both model several times with my car, the E92 M3 and the Camaro SS, they are close but the E92 is slightly(barely) faster from what i experienced, the SS have more punch though. Its very close...it will depend the speed you start from.

And the camaro SS vs 5.0 Mustang thing, well for real life, the Mustang 5.0L from a roll is about the same as an M3 E92. So the camaro isnt put to shame, depending the speed you start from, it will give a run for their money for a while.

I beat all of them though with my poor Cobalt SS TC with just a tune intake and downpipe!

For the Z06 though its another story lol

 

[Slash]

If I'm not mistaken, the new Camaro is build in a completely new plataform designed for the car(correct me some one if I'm wrong). This plataform was made for performance, and to kill his older and sluggish competitors (Mustang and Challenger).

I find the new Camaro to be a very well ballanced car, and dare to say that it handles even better than the Z06 Corvette, even though not being faster.

I've read in magazines how the Camaro completely outperforms the opposition, so I think they got it right. I was surprised too, as a matter of fact.

The Mustang will never beat this generation of Camaro when it comes to handling, since the Mustang is still running on a very old plattaform not ment for cornering performance.

As why the Camaro is faster than the M3? I think it's handling is on par with the BMW, but the extra HP gives it the advantage.

And it just got killed by the new Mustang lol





Forget the 5.0's we need some bigger engines in these bad boys like the old days. 351's, 427-8-9's, 460's, come on PD and FORD/CHEVY. WE NEED MOAR POWER haha

 

[SonicWagon]

And it just got killed by the new Mustang lol

Forget the 5.0's we need some bigger engines in these bad boys like the old days. 351's, 427-8-9's, 460's, come on PD and FORD/CHEVY. WE NEED MOAR POWER haha

The 2013 GT500 will have a 5.8l V8 with 650 HP. The 4000 pound camaro zl1 just crapped its pants.

 

[SonicWagon]

Dp

 

[MOTORTRENDmitch]

And here we go..

LOL i'm just glad he said it before i did...

 

[MOTORTRENDmitch]

The 2013 GT500 will have a 5.8l V8 with 650 HP. The 4000 pound camaro zl1 just crapped its pants.

+1 👍 we badly need one of the new Mustang 5.0s and GT500s

 

[Mac K]

And it just got killed by the new Mustang lol

Forget the 5.0's we need some bigger engines in these bad boys like the old days. 351's, 427-8-9's, 460's, come on PD and FORD/CHEVY. WE NEED MOAR POWER haha

Power is nothing without control enjoy your Chinese transmissions to.

 

[Whitey093]

Just wondering, are you comparing stock to stock? Because when you tune two cars to the same pp as you would online, you change the equation completely. You pretty much give both cars the same power to weight and are comparing torque curves and suspension setups rather than camaro vs m3.

 

[savage388]

You see, I'm confused. Because you say that, and then you link to a comparison test where the Camaro finished dead last, and which finished a good distance behind the Mustang in basically every test (objective and subjective).

The Mustang which is below the trim level that American car magazines keep pitting against the E92 BMW M3 for performance tests, and would therefore actually allude to the performance of the Camaro in GT5 being inflated even more (because if a Mustang GT with the track pack can somewhat comfortably outdo the Camaro SS across the board, the comparable-to-an-E92-M3 Boss 302 should destroy it just as the E92 should).

In the game some cars seem faster than in real life because there's not the element of danger when a cars grip limit is approached. The e92 is said to have better steering and brake feel, both of which contribute to faster real life times but mean nothing in gt5. Also there is the issue of tires. In gt5 all cars come with a generic tire model, where as in real life the e92 has grippier tires than the camaro even with the summer tire option. Look at the c6 zoo for example, IRL it is a monster that will spin and kill you with any chance given to it. In gt5 however you don't get scared for your life when the car loses the back end and therefore you can push harder than anyone would try IRL.

 

[JDMKING13]

In the game some cars seem faster than in real life because there's not the element of danger when a cars grip limit is approached. The e92 is said to have better steering and brake feel, both of which contribute to faster real life times but mean nothing in gt5. Also there is the issue of tires. In gt5 all cars come with a generic tire model, where as in real life the e92 has grippier tires than the camaro even with the summer tire option. Look at the c6 zoo for example, IRL it is a monster that will spin and kill you with any chance given to it. In gt5 however you don't get scared for your life when the car loses the back end and therefore you can push harder than anyone would try IRL.

I have experience this when testing the cars in GT5. 👍

 

[JaySin85]

I used the Camaro SS for a lot of a-spec races and it was a good car. Kind of stopped running it for a few months, then finally drove it online last night. I was very surprised at how stable it is and the kinds of cars I was keeping up with. I think it will end up being a car I go to a lot more often now. Might even get another, because my current one is tuned to about 580pp. Have every weight reduction for it and it's still a hefty 1300kg. Was fun tailing GT-Rs on the ring, which the Camaro really seems to shine on.

 

[YellowG1]

Unlike 95% of the posters in the thread (particularly the ones magazine-racing), I owned a 2010 Camaro SS in real life.

In real life, there is a good deal of understeer--it's apparent even when you're driving at 8/10s. It's definitely not quicker than an E92 M3 except maybe at the drag strip. The low-end torque (and there is a lot of it) may make it seem quicker, but the turn-in is not very crisp and the steering feel could be better. The sightlines out of the car are not the best, so you lose confidence on a twisty road, since the car feels bigger than it really is. Fortunately, some of these faults are pretty easily dialed out (so easily that I wonder why GM didn't do so in the first place)--it's not hard to get rid of a lot of that understeer with some upgrades to the suspension. Still, all-around, it is a pretty quick, competent and comfortable car. I don't find it to be abnormally quick in GT5. Stock, the car still has a lot of understeer, which you can make up for with all that HP and torque--still, it's not too hard to drive relatively quickly, unlike other more nervous cars.

 

[Whitey093]

Most cars from the factory have too much understeer cause most drivers are terrible IRL so they must be protected from themselves. This can usually be adjusted pretty easily in the
aftermarket. Previous posters are right though. GT5 eliminates real world factors such as sightlines, confidence (or lack of), and tires among others. So its not 100% realistic. But it sure is fun.

 

[CorvetteConquer]

Forget the 5.0's we need some bigger engines in these bad boys like the old days. 351's, 427-8-9's, 460's, come on PD and FORD/CHEVY. WE NEED MOAR POWER haha

Not up to date on the new/future models?

2013 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1- 580 HP

2012 Ford Mustang 302 Boss-444 HP

2013 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500- 650 HP

 

[Slash]

Not up to date on the new/future models?

2013 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1- 580 HP

2012 Ford Mustang 302 Boss-444 HP

2013 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500- 650 HP

Horsepower has nothing to do with it. They are all small blocks, low displacement. Biggest engine in that list is the GT500 with a 353.

 

[mvpers]

Horsepower has nothing to do with it. They are all small blocks, low displacement. Biggest engine in that list is the GT500 with a 353.

umm. the camaro is a 378 cubic inches, and get beat by fords 302 cu inches. so more displacement isn't needed.

 

[mvpers]

oh, and this:

http://www.fastestlaps.com/tracks/laguna_seca.html

 

[trombone]

I think I'll just place this here.

Willow Springs Hot Lap courtesy of Motor Trend:

BMW M3 2011 - JOE behind wheel - 92.07 sec / PRO behind wheel - 87.67 sec
2011 Mustang GT 5.0 - JOE behind wheel - 91.52 sec / PRO behind wheel - 87.76 sec

Lateral Acceleration

2011 BMW M3 Coupe - 0.95 g (avg)
2011 Ford Mustang GT 5.0 - 0.96 g (avg)
An earlier Motor Trend test rated the Camaro SS reaching merely 0.92 g (avg)


Sources:
2011 Mustang GT vs 2011 BMW M3
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes/1010_2011_2011_ford_mustang_gt_vs_2011_bmw_m3_comparison/viewall.html

2010 Camaro SS (comparison with Challenger/Mustang)
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes/112_1006_2011_mustang_gt_2010_camaro_ss_2010_challenger_srt8_comparison/viewall.html

^None of the above matters though, because I'd rather own a Challenger.

 

[SavageEvil]

Camaro is a nice handling car in GT5 but in real life, meh. From inside it's just too cramped, visibility is marred by super thick C pillars and you feel like the car is swallowing you up. I can't say I like the design, everything about the car just screams too big. Fenders are huge, doors massive but it just makes for a poor car to drive fast...and with 300hp in the base model that is just stupid. Looking to test out the Challenger next, but I have a feeling it will be deja vu. I haven't the slightest idea what GM was thinking when they designed this car at all. You make a sports car, you want visibility first and foremost, control and stability and then power output. They need to redesign this car stat and make those pillars less of a problem and don't have the driver sunk in so deep it's hard to see over the hood, I'm 6'0 and I feel like the car was trying to eat me. So much wasted with this car, can't believe some of the idiots they have working at GM to tell the truth. The Corvette needs to be upgraded as well, because of it's not so great performance this is why the other cars in GM stable get held back. Freaking garbage if you ask me, just make the damn thing better and stop holding the others back with excessive weight or horrible engine output and ****** suspensions.

Camaro in the game nice car, very fast but I doubt people drive it stock...not sure why people are comparing it to another car that isn't in the game. Mustang is a nice car, but like the camaro it's to damn big, why must all our cars be so huge? Best thing GM has in the Camaro is a V6 outputting 300+ horses, figure out a way to leverage that with excellent mileage and total vehicle weight and perhaps we can have an American equivalent to the RX7. I'd personally tired of big bulky cars more power but that's negated by weight gain and mileage stays the same and sometimes gets worse.

 

[GTP_Gearhead]

Not up to date on the new/future models?

2013 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1- 580 HP

2012 Ford Mustang 302 Boss-444 HP

2013 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500- 650 HP

My signature says it all.
Horsepower sells cars, Torque wins races. I have no interest in huge horespower. Post the torque specs, then we'll talk.

 

[Mac K]

Deleted..

 

[acascianelli]

to my knowledge the mustang is fully independent suspension. not sure what you mean by it being on a very old platform?


Edit. been looking around and I guess I was wrong. I just remember seeing people putting independent rear suspension on old mustangs and I thought it was from the new gen mustang, guess I'm wrong.


EDIT 2 was reading up and the mustang already had it on 2005 and then it was canned for the solid axle again with talk of the 2014 (50th anniversary) mustang going independent, Ford dropping the falcon from the aussie market and going global with the Mustang. that would be strange to see an Australian or Japanese Mustang.

The only road going Mustangs to ever have IRS were the 1999-2001 Cobra's, 2003/2004 Cobra's, and the 2000 Cobra R. I know it was pretty common Cobra owners to swap out the IRS for the GT's Live axle because it was faster for drag racing.

 

[acascianelli]

My signature says it all.
Horsepower sells cars, Torque wins races. I have no interest in huge horespower. Post the torque specs, then we'll talk.

2013 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1: 556 lbft
2012 Ford Mustang 302 Boss: 380 lbft
2013 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500: 600 lbft

The ZL1 and GT500 are pretty much the same weight, I think the Camaro is a little heavier, but it's almost negligible. The Boss is something like 300 pounds lighter than the ZL1.

 

[GTP_Gearhead]

I've never been a big mustang fan, but I will say Ford is heading in the right direction as they seem to get better every year. The torque numbers are impressive. I'm sure the Shelby will be outfitted with a proper suspension, but how about the Boss? Was it Top Gear that said the Aussies had stepped in to lend a hand with the new mustang suspension?

 

[acascianelli]

Both the Boss and GT500 are still using a live axle. I know tons of people complain about it, but honestly I've never once wished I had IRS in mine.