Simply slipping into the 2020 Camaro SS 1LE’s microsuede Recaros lights a broad smile across my face: Welcome home Mike! The Camaro SS and I share a history together. We’ve run to 181 mph at El Mirage, linked long drifts between desert shrubs, and whipped over the sinuous mountain roads with poise and abandon. Yes, we’ve had fun together! And is there more fun in our future?
The V8 in the Camaro SS’s engine bay thinks so. It greets me with a mighty bark, then settles into a bassy purr. “Let’s play!” it says. Soon, my darling, soon…
I search around the cabin for the mirror, seat, and steering column adjustments. Once adjusted, the seats are comfortable, the primary controls—steering wheel and shifter—fall right to hand, and the secondary controls—HVAC, radio, driving modes—are easy to find. Material quality? Well, from the floorboards to the headliner, the interior is constructed of hard-feeling, hollow-sounding, black plastic. In a $26k holiday rental car, that’s fine. But in a $45k performance special? Honestly, I think it’s fine too. Because I know the $19k that took the Camaro from an I4 1LS to a V8 SS 1LE went into engine, braking, and handling improvements that let the SS 1LE perform well above its price tag.
The seat and steering column are adjusted for my body, and the mirrors have been moved for maximal (yet still limited) visibility; I’m ready to drive. I reach for the stick and depress the clutch. The beefy 6-speed shifter stands low, and its throws are commensurately short. The clutch pedal is surprisingly easy to work. (It has that compound-bow feeling where its resistance lightens at the end of travel.) I move the shifter through the slick gates and engage first gear. Slipping the clutch, I ease the Camaro SS into motion.
As I depart the auto mall, I think of the SS’s everyday usability. The Recaro front seats are comfortable and should be good for bodies large and small. (I would tighten the bolstering around my narrow ribcage if I could.) The backbench is surprisingly deep. My daughter’s child seat should install there without any issues, so long as the front seat slides forward an inch or two. Visibility ahead and on the sides is fine, but the over-the-shoulder sightlines are blocked. (For parking maneuvers, there is a helpful rearview camera.) And since the 1LE lacks a sunroof, I have enough vertical clearance for a helmet. Okay, helmet clearance isn’t an everyday consideration, but the 1LE is the Camaro’s track package!
Then there’s the ride comfort. In a nearby industrial park, there is a bumpy railroad crossing which the SS 1LE glides over the tracks with composure and grace. The chassis is well insulated from the wheel motions, and harsh impacts are smothered. Considering how punishing other manufacturers’ track-packs are, I’m dumbstruck at the SS 1LE’s luxurious ride. The SS 1LE corners and coddles!
If the suspension has been optimized by silver-haired engineers with achy backs, then the exhaust has been tuned by 13-year-old boys with a penchant for firecrackers and fart jokes. The V8 in the SS 1LE has a fruity frap and a cacophonous overrun! While I’d be a bit embarrassed to pull up at a PTA meeting in the SS 1LE, deep down, I’m laughing with the noise.
(Could AMG be the reverse abbreviation for General Motors of America? The AMG GT S was equally obnoxious and lovable.)
I let the LT1 engine blow raspberries out the tailpipes as I run it up and down the dusty straightaway that runs parallel to the railroad tracks. The large, pushrod V8 draws a torque curve that is as broad and as flat as Australia’s Nullarbor Plain. Displacement, rather than turbos, produces the peak-free 455 hp and 455 lb-ft. Except for a ticklish throttle—the Camaro jumps whenever I brush the gas pedal—the engine responds smoothly and predictably to my inputs. This engine would be great on the racecourse, where its heady torque would make throttle steering child’s play. (And the transmission’s auto-blip downshifts would be helpful in braking zones.)
When I rented Camaro SSs in the past, I loved their tail-happy antics. The 1LE, though, has wider and stickier rubber; has it been leashed and tamed? Yes and no. The 1LE hardware does have a tighter rein on its horses, but the rear tires still break traction (and duke with the stability control) on sandy straightaways and off-camber turns. So, I expect the 1LE will still satisfy a hoon. Plus, the 1LE is only sold with a manual transmission, so it is only a clutch kick away from a smokey slide!
I toggle through the drive modes on my way back to the dealership. Tour is the calmest, with the exhaust quieted (the fireworks are put away), the steering lightened, and the suspension set Downy-soft. Sport relights the exhaust bellow and fireworks and amps up the throttle response. Track makes the steering very firm, stiffens the suspension, and loosens the stability control. For me, Tour is the good-neighbor mode, and Track is for going bananas! Sadly, none of the drive modes imbue the accurate but close-lipped steering with road texture and tire feedback.
When I pull back onto the dealership lot, I’ve added only four miles to the SS 1LE’s odometer. I wish I could drive it 400 more! I’ve only puttered around the block, but it was enough to know that the 1LE track package hasn’t compromised the SS’s excitement or daily usability. I love this Camaro SS 1LE! But it doesn’t have a future with me…
I already own a car with a big Chevy V8, beefy 6-speed manual transmission, cushy magnetic-ride suspension, and skid-happy RWD chassis: my 2014 Cadillac CTS-V wagon. Unfortunately, the SS 1LE and the V wagon are too similar for me to own both. (You can’t pry the Caddy’s keys out of my fingers!) I aim to have yin and yang in my garage, not Mike and Ike.
My search continues, but I know someone will be thrilled when they take this Camaro SS 1LE home!
Mike's Steering Column 