Overview & Reviews

For most of the past four decades, the Chevrolet Camaro has been the poster car of young (and not so young) speed freaks and boulevardiers alike. You know, the type of folks who value the rumble and thrust of a small-block V8 and sleek styling as much as would-be Hollywood starlets value a photo op.

Starting out in the late 1960s as an answer to Ford's Mustang, the original Chevrolet Camaro could be had in coupe or convertible form and with six-cylinder or V8 power. Forty years and five generations later, the concept really hasn't changed, as the current Chevrolet Camaro also can be had in coupe or convertible form with six-cylinder or V8 power. It even looks similar and carries the classic Camaro qualities of tire-spinning performance and a reasonable base price. But this is a thoroughly modern car that makes for a decent everyday driver, despite some significant practical drawbacks.

Current Chevrolet Camaro
The Chevrolet Camaro is available as a two-door coupe or convertible and in five trim levels: base LS, midgrade LT, high-performance SS and hyper-performance ZL1 and Z/28. The LS comes standard with niceties like alloy wheels and air-conditioning, to which the LT adds power seats and a touchscreen with smartphone integration. The V8-powered SS includes a limited-slip differential and a sport-tuned suspension. The ZL1 boasts a variety of performance parts like Brembo brakes and adaptive suspension dampers, plus standard leather upholstery and Boston Acoustics audio. The hard-core, coupe-only Z/28, on the other hand, has a race-ready suspension and modifications for reduced weight.

The Camaro LS and LT pack a 3.6-liter V6 that produces 323 horsepower and 278 pound-feet of torque. A six-speed manual transmission is standard with the V6, and a six-speed automatic is available. The Camaro SS is equipped with a powerful 6.2-liter V8 matched to either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission. The manual-gearbox SS cranks out 426 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque, with the automatic version tuned to "just" 400 hp and 410 lb-ft. Offering the same transmission choices, the Camaro ZL1 gets a supercharged version of the 6.2-liter V8 good for 580 hp and 556 lb-ft of torque. The Z/28, which is 300 pounds lighter than the ZL1, employs a 505-hp 7.0-liter V8 and comes only with the six-speed manual.

On the road, any of these Camaros will provide brisk performance, a reasonably compliant ride (though the Z/28 is significantly firmer) and respectable handling, while the V8-powered versions should satisfy the most ardent acceleration addicts. The ZL1 and especially the Z/28 are astoundingly capable on a racetrack with their special suspensions. However, in day-to-day driving, the poor outward visibility, mediocre cabin trim, cramped backseat and tiny, oddly shaped trunk opening could be deal-breakers. As such, we'd advise potential buyers to also consider the Camaro's equally classic competitors, the Dodge Challenger and Ford Mustang.

Used Chevrolet Camaro Models
After a seven-year hiatus, the Camaro returned for 2010. In that first year, the Camaro was offered as a coupe only, and the V6 engine produced 304 hp. The next year saw the convertible's introduction and a bump up to 312 horses for the V6. It reached its current output for 2012, which also saw the introduction of the ZL1 and a number of noteworthy changes to the cabin. Camaros produced prior to this suffered from an oddly shaped steering wheel and gauges that were hard to read. For 2014 the Camaro introduced revised styling (including one-piece taillights that replaced the original double-rectangle design) and the debut of the Z/28.

Running from 1993-2002, the previous Camaro generation continued the age-old tradition of performance and style above all else. Initially just a coupe body style was offered in base and Z28 trims, the former coming with a 3.4-liter V6 (160 hp) and the latter with an LT1 5.7-liter V8 (275 hp). Transmission choices included a five-speed manual (V6), a six-speed manual (V8) and a four-speed automatic.

The following year saw the return of the ragtop, while 1995 brought a 3.8-liter, 200-hp V6 for the base Camaro. For 1996 the Z28 had 285 hp and the SS trim was reincarnated, complete with a 305-hp version of the 5.7-liter V8. A midcycle refresh took place for 1998 with a new front-end look and powerful new LS1 5.7 V8s for the Z28 (305 hp) and SS (320 hp). Apart from minor trim differences and a bump in power for the Z28 in 2001 to 310 hp, the Camaro soldiered through 2002 mostly unchanged. That last year also marked the Camaro's 35th birthday, which was celebrated with a 35th-anniversary SS.

Although fast, stylish and affordable, this Chevy Camaro was lacking in terms of refinement, particularly in regards to the interior. The clunky steering wheel design was about as sporty as a taxicab's and there was an abundance of low-grade plastic trim. Furthermore, the seats were rather plain and short on lumbar and lateral support. On the upside were the large gauges, decent cargo capacity and buttoned-down handling (though midcorner bumps could upset the solid rear axle suspended out back).

Consumer feedback is mostly favorable toward Camaros from this era. Praises center on the strong performance (even with the V6) for the money, relatively good fuel economy, mechanical reliability, cargo capacity, handling and styling. Chief complaints concern cheap interior construction, a smallish interior considering the body size and occasionally leaky T-tops.

For more information on these and even older Chevrolet Camaros, go to our Chevrolet Camaro history page.

User Reviews:

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  Awful - 2015 Chevrolet Camaro
  By Parsifal - January 6 - 7:55 pm

  This is a car? It looks bad, gangsta style. I rented it because I had a choice, and I wanted to check what driving this thing is like. Very disappointing. Heavy, does not break and does not steer. Never again.

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  Buyer beware - 2015 Chevrolet Camaro
  By Scott Lang - December 4 - 10:13 pm

  This car is excessively noisy on the highway. The layout and positioning of the gauge package is such that the climate controls make reading some of the gauges difficult or impossible. There is nothing precision about the power top. When closing the top it requires muscle power to pull the top down to the point it is flush with the top of the windshield so you can manually lock it in position. Have have now owned two BMWs with power tops that not only lie flush with the top of the windshield but lock themselves. With an MSRP of over $40,000.00 you would expect the car to have push button starting. Not this car. Not only does it not have this feature the ignition is located on the steering column in a place that cannot be seen from the drivers seat unless you lean over and look around the side of the steering wheel. Also the key fob for this car does not have the flip out key, just a big empty space. It has a regular key hanging from the fob. When I asked why I was told that drivers kept breaking the flip out key off in the ignition with their knee. On a recent trip to Northern Virginia I deviated from the planned route. Traffic was bad and having lived up there I knew a bypass route. I expected the navigation system to "recalculate" after it told me to turn around a given number of times as every other Nav system Ive owned. Wrong! After directing me to turn around about 6 times the system locked up. The only way to unlock it was to pull off the road, stop the engine and then restart it. The Nav system then rebooted. I called Chevrolet to inquire about this and after requesting the cars vin they came back and said the Nav system on my car does not recalculate. I asked who made the system and was told Panasonic. If Panasonic really did make it it was to Chevys specs. The car has great lines but it is only a facade. After purchasing this car I also bought a Suburu Forester touring model. Its sticker was over $7000 less but it has dual zone auto climate control, adaptive cruise control, lane deviation, obstacle avoidance, cd player, and push button start. All items not to be found on the Camaro. And US manufacturers wonder why they are loosing to the imports.

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  It has got to go. - 2015 Chevrolet Camaro
  By Richard OConnor - November 29 - 5:52 pm

  Bulky on the outside and cramped on the inside. It is a shame GM bothers with the back seat. GM should offer a rear seat delete kit. I would rather have a carpeted shelf to put a bag of groceries on than the joke of a back seat thats in it. If you need a back seat it doesnt fill the bill. If you dont need a back seat then buy a real sports car. I could not recommend this car to anyone. I have had mine a week and I am going to see what the dealer will offer with a buy back.

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  GM "What Quality Control" ? - 2013 Chevrolet Camaro
  By buuud - October 25 - 4:33 pm

  Problem 1: When I first picked up the car it exhibited a loud creaking noise from bad front end bushings. Problem 2: Driver side weather-stripping kept falling down out of its channel. Problem 3: After 5 months of ownership was a slight shuddering I thought was something with the motor. It would start at about 1400 rpms during acceleration. Mechanic test drove the car saying it feels like its misfiring. BS, it had a bad tranny and four attempts later I got it back. Problem 4: Metallic sound from driver side rear. Lug nuts loose. Tightened myself. Sound gone.

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  Never again - 2012 Chevrolet Camaro
  By rbyrer - April 8 - 10:42 am

  (Wont Buy Another Chevy) because Last year I bought a "new" 2012 Camaro. Kept it for a year, didnt like it much and went to trade it in at another car brand dealership. They ask me how it had been wrecked. I told them I bought it new and it had not been wrecked. As it turns out Carfax said it had been wrecked before I bought the car, checked the vin code, it was correct. They had sold me what I thought was a new car which had been wrecked. Went back to the GM dealer, the service manager said they did not know it had been wrecked and refused to do anything about it. I called GM to complain and get something done about it. They sided with the dealer! Maher Chevrolet, ST Pete, Fl.

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  Dont waiste your money on a Camaro! - 2012 Chevrolet Camaro
  By cruize - November 16 - 5:14 pm

  3,000 miles = grinding noise while in motion. 3,500 miles = grinding noise fixed by dealer said it was parking brake engaging while in drive. 3,500 miles = Front Engine cover oil leaks 3,800 mile = Engine oil pan leaks I contacted Generl Motors and explain that this car is falling apart before 4,000 miles. Taylor at Technical Customer Service says thats why it comes with a warranty. All we can do is repair it when it occurs. After two weeks of phone tag GM offers to give me complimentary oil change. I need to return the headache to GM but according to them thats not possible so here it is less than 4,000 miles and car will be in shop for a week to try to fix 2 oil leaks. Acceptable?

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  Hate this car - 2011 Chevrolet Camaro
  By jason - November 14 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car a month ago and I have already had to get rid of it, this car is horrible! The paint is already chipping, the cars performance is lacking, and I did not know when I bought how difficult it was when it came to blind spots. Took the car 3 times to the dealer for mechanical and paint problems and every time I got told there was nothing they could do. For the price of this car it should be top quality, I will never buy another GM product again, traded in and got a Challenger never been happier!

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  6000 miles and 12 trips to the dealership later... - 2016 Chevrolet Camaro
  By Alex D - November 26 - 7:09 pm

  First off before the fanbois go on the attack, yes, I understand its a first year car. But its not the fist time GM has bought or built seats, headliners, transmissions etc. Cant blame "first year car" on seats that were falling apart after 2k miles. Also my car was held up for 2 months in QC to ensure when my car arrived it would be semi problem free. Notice I didnt set the bar dramatically high using "semi problem free" I didnt expect a perfect car as no car is perfect but in the first 6k miles both seats have failed in some way from the motor, cooling/heating mech, latches etc. The A8 trans has been a nightmare with constant overheating issues even when driving in 34-55 mph areas with low to medium traffic density, even during break in. The audio and navigation system has been nothing but problems even after it has received a reflash twice. Also I think they had someone that was under 55 designing dash layout. Who thought it was a great idea to tilt the screen so far downward it causes the driver to crane their neck over and down to see the screen? The exhaust system rattles like it was from a mid 90s civic, even after being replaced. The idiotic run flats they fitted the car with are ridiculously loud and if I had any thought of keeping the car Id swap them out in a heartbeat. There there were issues like the hood not aligning properly and being told their dealerships BODY SHOP had to remove the front of the car to fix it correctly as well as the rear end sounds like it will fail at any moment even after the fluid has been changed in it twice. Still waiting for someone from GM to look at that to authorize a replacement rear end fix. The seat materials for a 50k car are awful, the headliner has sagged and been replaced. The interior rattles multiply weekly and Ive given up on trying to track them all down as the dealerships techs have made more appear than fix the existing ones. Yes its got 420 hp (sorry, I dont over estimate like car companies) and a new body style mimicking some of the lines of the new vette but its the build quality that kills this car. In 5 years this camaro will be no better than the mid 90s trash GM produced. Didnt they receive bailout money to save their company and not build crap like this? I was so tempted to purchase the car but at the last moment changed to a lease and I am so glad I did. Cars you should own m3, m4, mercedes amgs, porsche etc. Cars you should lease American produced junk like this. Its great they moved production back to the US but I would have thought American workers would should their thanks by putting pride into their work and building a quality product. And by all means dont take my word for it. Google issues for the gen 6 camaro, look up pages of issues people are having. People are getting entire motors replaced at 1000 miles, people are getting cars replaced because they werent painted correctly and people like myself with a two page list of issues just get the run around. Its sad because I wanted to like this car and it was my first time back in an American built car in 8 years but with all the issues I will be opting to end my lease early and just take the hit to get out of it. I would rather pay for a car that is worth the monthly payment rather than pay for a camaro that has mediocre reliability and quality.

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  I bought a lemon!! - 1996 Chevrolet Camaro
  By Meg - May 16 - 9:22 am

  I bought this car for $5k and have put nearly that much into it. I do not recommend this car. I replace headlights like you wouldnt believe and at $25 a pop.... Replaced fuel pump, alternator twice, battery etc etc. Ever repair is ten times as expensive as other cars... It stinks!

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  camaro v6 - 1996 Chevrolet Camaro
  By mike - March 20 - 2:25 am

  All and all i must say it was another low quality GM product. I bought the car at 80,000 miles, and had it untill it tanked out around 96,000 miles. During that time, it was broken down more than it ran. Always something, id fix one thing and something else would go wrong. When it did run performance was not what it should have been. My scion and integra are much more fun to drive. The v6 was quick enough for daily driving, but dont expect to win any races. The car was a decent looking car minus the ugly stock rims. The t-tops were cool, and i LOVED the interior. By far the best interior of any car i ever owned. It came stock 2 tone black and red inside.