For Halloween night, I was interested to see what kind of reaction the Camaro would get from trick-or-treaters, so I parked it on my driveway. Little kids were pretty much oblivious (though, disappointingly, this included one dressed up as Bumblebee from Transformers 2). One memorized mesmerized teenager in a group of boys gushed "Your car is beautiful!" as soon as I opened the door and then said it again as I was passing out candy. I don't think he even remembered to say "trick or treat."
Then there was this encounter: Doorbell rings. A little princess with her parents behind her. Usual candy procedure commences. Twenty seconds later, the doorbell rings again. This time it's the dad of the princess. "So what do you think of the Camaro?" He was really into the car and had come back to ask questions. His wife was mortified that he had done this. But I grabbed the key and showed him around. He liked the nighttime illumination and was blown away when I told him it makes 426 horsepower and not the "280" that he guessed.
Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor @ 6,225 miles
altimadude00 says:
02:45 PM, 11/ 2/09
280? Even the last generation LS1 engines put out more than 280!
sabastian says:
02:48 PM, 11/ 2/09
280. lol. The V6 has more than that.
zoomzoom22 says:
03:39 PM, 11/ 2/09
Did you tell him that an Accord/Camry/Altima/Malibu/6 makes about 280 these days? This guy is behind the times!
texases says:
03:39 PM, 11/ 2/09
Maybe he should have "mesmerized" the right number ;)
bimmerjay says:
05:05 PM, 11/ 2/09
The trick is "yes this instrument cluster/steering wheel/shifter/interior is really in a modern production car" and the treat is "yes this car has 426 hp".
sylvia says:
07:24 PM, 11/ 2/09
That's one of the better Halloween stories this year :-)
clarkma5 says:
08:23 PM, 11/ 2/09
280...hey, he's more up to date than MY dad. Anytime my dad sees a quick car he always lowballs its horsepower by about half...and he still seems unable to wrap his head around family cars with much over 200 HP.
benjo3686 says:
06:39 AM, 11/ 3/09
My 1999 Sable has the "upgraded" DOHC Duratec 3.0 V6 which pumps out 200hp/200torque. The base Vulcan 3.0 made 165 horses i believe.
My Dad had a 1997 Moutaineer, 5.0 V8....215 horsepower, like 220ish torque.
Those numbers look pathetic now.
redwoodaggie says:
07:04 AM, 11/ 3/09
Good for him! I'd never be brave enough to do that.
cr_driver says:
09:56 AM, 11/ 3/09
Brave enough to do what?
zoomzoomn says:
06:19 AM, 11/ 4/09
I still do not believe that the interior on this lives up to the exterior's well done modernized-retro look. It just looks cheap!
zoomzoomn says:
06:48 AM, 11/ 4/09
The problem for me is price. A modestly equipped Challenger R/T is over $30 grand! That's just a bit too much to me. A simarly equipped 'Stang is $28K. On the other hand a simarly equipped V6 Camaro is also about $30K, so the Camaro is garners an even higher premium just to get into a V8. Anyone remember those wonderful sleeper Mustang LX V8 and Camaro RS V8 coupes of yore? How about one of those for, say mid $20's?