permit ’s foreshorten through the rhetoric : The2017 CamaroSS 1LE , which starts at $ 44,200 , is quite likely the fast car you could bribe for under $ 50,000 . It ’s not a motorcar for everyone , and that does n’t weigh in the slightest , because the list of cable car it rightly competes with in terms of its capabilities is a unquestionable who ’s who of exchange premium - price operation cars : theJaguar F - TYPE SVR , BMW M4 , even thePorsche 911 .
The 1LE is a halo motorcar that you just need to know about , whether or not you have any intention of buy one . It ’s a feather in Chevrolet ’s detonating equipment , built more to highlight the caller ’s vast technology prowess than to appease a general hearing driving sedans paint in Ambivalent Beige . On the road , the 1LE is the equivalent of a unequalled feeding bottle of wine : unknown to the masses , but a sight to behold for the learned few .
Yes , I ’m amply cognizant that I ’m blab about a Camaro in footing of rare wines , but hey , if the Cubs can gain a World Series , Camaros can be compared to wine . 2016 is a strange time , and just to make it even stranger , there ’s a cheaper and less powerful V6 version of the 1LE that just might be more fun – but more on that later .
Aaron Miller/Thrillist
The SS 1LE’s performance is legitimately world-class
Under the matte mordant cowling is the same 455hp engine you ’ll get in the unconstipated Camaro SS , but we ’re not here to talk about the railroad car ’s 0 - 60 time ( 4.2 second ) . You might find out yourself think , " hunky-dory , outstanding . Why is this cable car $ 6,500 more than a steady SS if it does n’t even have more business leader ? "
To really understand it , you have to go to a racetrack , where the SS 1LE is silky smooth , thanks to a fantasy , magnetically adaptable suspension . Without getting too technical , it keeps the auto calm at all time , never lease it ricochet around or sense unsettled in the slightest . The resulting stableness mean you never have to fight the railroad car or worry about what it ’s about to do , which have in mind it ’s very well-situated to drive very chop-chop . In short , Camaro ’s engineers managed to find that especial combining of poise and finesse that was once the sole domain of BMW ’s vaunted M3 .
It’s got serious moves, but doesn’t flaunt it
The 1LE is n’t adorned with a dozen badges declaring itself to the macrocosm , so to spot one in the state of nature you ’ll have to know what to seem for . The hood is flatness smuggled , and the front and back each have aerodynamic bits developed in the wind burrow to help keep the car affixed to the road at triple - fingerbreadth speeds . In the V8 variant , beautifully gravid brakes drag the car safely from amphetamine as often as you ’d like .
But the 1LE keeps a peck of its serious ability under wraps , at least visually . There ’s a clustering of additional cooling capacity hidden by in the front of the car – and that might sound boring , but it ’s the kind of thing that keeps a car black market after the kind of abuse doled out in a public presentation surround . Case in point , GM ensured the 1LE passed what it calls a " 24 - 60 minutes test . " intend of it like a stress test for gondola : GM ’s trial run driver take turns flogging the car around a cart track for 24 hour , and are only provide to refuel and change tires and pasture brake pads .
As you ’re driving down the main road , that same suspension that works wonders on the track ease up a bland and more composed ride on the road . In this instance it really is a case of having the proficient of both worlds .
Inside, it’s all about the seats
usually , a yield car ’s seats , even " sport " place , are n’t up to the task of holding you in place should you encounter yourself oblige to share in the type of drive for which the gondola was earlier designed . That ’s not the subject here , though . The Recaro seats – standard on the SS , optional on the V6 , but totally deserving it – actually view as you in almost perfectly .
The optional Performance Data Recorder ( $ 1,300 ) is a must . A bit of trickle - down tech from the Corvette , it ’s a build up - in camera that ’ll show straight to an Coyote State card at the touch of a push button on the infotainment silver screen . It overlays everything you ’re doing with the car , from Pteridium aquilinum use to guide angle . Even if you never go on course , it ’ll act as a bolt cam , let you get it on on the dot what your parking valet was up to , and give you the chance to entirely geek out on your own driving data , if you ’re into that sort of matter . If you do habituate it for performance purposes , you ’ll be honor with a car that can literally teach you how to go faster .
The V6 can be even more fun to drive
There ’s only one real trouble with the SS 1LE . It ’s a fantastic carrying out car , but it ’s possibly not even the most fun 1LE . The V6 interpretation ( start out at $ 32,895 ) is in many way more entertaining to drive than its V8 chum , with its lighter railway locomotive and better balance wheel transform it into what you ’d call tossable . Whereas the SS can be driven with operative precision , the V6 just fits like a mitt . It does n’t come with the fancy suspension or bracken , so while it ’s a car that still helps you find the limit with comparative ease , you actually have to work with the car to get there .
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Aaron Miller/Thrillist
Aaron Miller/Thrillist
Courtesy of Chevrolet
Aaron Miller/Thrillist
