The Brits are not very fond of muscle cars, partly because they’re too sophisticated for their own good, and partly because their idea of a sports car is totally different than Americans. Nevertheless, Chevrolet is taking its chances by launching the new Camaro in the UK, in hope to change things for the better. It took the Camaro a while to reach the UK shores, but it seems ready for business.
In Britain the Camaro only comes in SS guise, which means it’s powered by the 432PS 6.2-litre LS3 V8 engine that also produces 569Nm of torque at 4,600rpm. Obviously with that kind of power the car is no slouch. The manual verison makes 60 mph from nought in 5.2 seconds (convertible 5.4) and hits 155 mph if you keep your foot down. The Automatic has 405PS, and is 0.2 seconds slower to 60.
What can let the Camaro down in the UK is its handling. Chevy has made every effort to make sure the car’s chassis is setup like a European sports car. It gets an all-new FE4 suspension that was developed specifically for this side of the Atlantic featuring retuned front and rear dampers, plus new solid front (23mm) and rear (24mm) stabiliser bars. What’s more, you get 20in wheels wearing Pirelli P-Zero tyre and Brembo four-piston anti-lock disc brakes plus StabiliTrak and traction control.
Despite all this the Camaro’s handling is not much cope with UK’s twisty back roads. Mind you, the car is huge fun for driving like a lunatic and making massive slides. But it’s not as fast as a European equivalent.
Price-wise, the coupe start at £35,025 while the convertible begins at £40,025. The 45th Anniversary packages come at an additional £1,500 each including VAT.
