Where to start.
No, it's not convenient. Or subtle. Or easy to park. Or good for hauling people. It'll probably break, at least once. But lawdamercy it's a whole vibe, an absolute party on wheels. Every intersection is a carrier launch, every corner is rotation on demand, every downshift a rolling thunderclap.
This is my 2020 LT1 package in Rally Green Metallic, picked it up about a month ago. 6.2 litres of pushrod freedom, 6 speed Tremec 6060. Only options were 20in forged wheels, NPP (dual mode) exhaust, and sunroof. Apparently, its 1 of only 42 manual LT1's made in this color.
That sums it up. I wanted a fun, RWD, manual coupe under $30k, and it had to be reliable enough to put up with 10k miles a year. I wanted a V8, but it wasn't a hard line requirement. It just had to make me smile.
I comped the weirdest crap. Everything from 03-04 mach1 stangs to X-runners to S197 bullitts to V6 camaro 1LEs. Even those Jag F-Type coupes. I test drove a Miata ND2 RF Club and loved it, but it was truly impractical. Even considered driving a beater and getting a project car, but a lucid moment of clarity made me realize I was high on my overconfident garbage and I don't have time for that, and didn't want to be miserable every day driving a heap.
Drove a 15 mustang GT and knew at once I had to acquire this power. But the car felt bulkier than I like and I didn't gel with the MT82. Didn't bother looking at the 86 twins, i've done subaru pancake engines before and thanks but no thanks.
Enter the 6th gen Camaro. I actually wrote them off early. Too many issues with GM build quality, tiny trunk, expensive, you'll crash trying to park because each window is the size of a slice of bread, etc. Then I sat in one. I loved it. It was the just-right porridge. The LT1 sounded like every NASCAR dream I ever had in middle school study hall and the Tremec felt weapons grade. The trunk, with the seats down, is totally fine. The hunt was on.
So I accidentally found out about the LT1 package while trying to find SS cars that were in my price range. Turns out GM took a low feature V6 and shoved the SS drive line into it, with front brembos the base SS suspension, and the aux coolers deleted. That's really it. I'm a simple man, and I like my dailies that way, so this felt perfect.
I found mine listed for 3k under market in Alabama. It was this strange color id never seen, and the miles were high-ish but the dealer had a good rep and the CPO warranty was too good to ignore. Traded my beloved 2010 Civic Si in for it, which in a cool twist of fate got bought by another enthusiast. The rest is history.
It's big, sleek, and kind of intimidating. Throttle and clutch are soft, I understand why they do that but it's not ideal compared to the motorcycle-fast response of the Si. Body control has too much rebound. But otherwise it drives super nice and I'm still finding out how deep you can stuff it into a corner, even on these lousy 500tw tires. Great brake feel, although it could use better pads. On the highway it's just a missile.
Let's get this out of the way, the windows are small but some adjustments make it livable...I mean I drove it straight through downtown Atlanta (below) with 30 minutes of acclimation and didn't die. But no, I wouldn't want to have to street park this everyday. I think the hysteria's a meme - the ND2 was easily worse checking my 4 and 8 o'clock and the windows remind me exactly of my dad's 08 Audi TT which wasn't such a lightning rod. But, I get why people wouldn't like it.
The engine is brutal. Makes power everywhere, all the time. Im still coming to grips with it. The sound is straight off your local circle track grid. 1800 RPM cruise at 78mph returns nearly 30mpg avg though. NICE.
The tremec is the best trans I've ever driven. Early morning, when cold, it's kinda cranky. You really have to babysit each gear shift. But when it has heat in it, guys I can't shift fast enough to make it even give me a nibble from a synchro. It's almost a cheat code. Oddly, the higher you rev the easier it falls into a higher or lower gear. It's the least happy when short shifting. Fresh fluid helped a lot.
The "NPP" exhaust is GM-speak for dual-mode, you get little butterflies that can route exhaust through the muffler or essentially bypass it. It's one of my favorite things and super handy to put it in Stealth mode in the morning, then switch over to Sounds of Mayhem when I get on the main roads.
As far as fit and finish, it's lousy, at least on the interior. That's the honest truth. The door cards groan if you touch em, you can see sunlight around the edges of the sunroof shade. There's something flopping in the wind in the engine bay I'll have to find. The seat fabric is already showing wear. That's the tradeoff.
But I insisted on an extended warranty with this thing and you only go around once so the hell with it. I'm too busy listening to the V8 anyway. I paid $29k with the warranty until 146k miles or 6 years so I think I did ok.
Every car I've owned came to me in a weird confusing multi-path cluster mess that resulted in the car finding me more than the other way around. I think that's just how I am. I think that was the case this time too, and I'm gonna really enjoy it.
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