Done a lot of test drives lately - updates and impressions, mostly modern muscle cars

z31maniac said:

NickD said:

Rodan said:

We test drove a '16 Mustang GT Premium 'Vert a while back...  it was pretty underwhelming.  400hp isn't as much as it sounds like when you're pushing 4k lbs.

We also looked at a Camaro SS... love the look, and the performance, but the outward visibility is so bad we didn't even test drive it.

That's my gripe about the Mustang. Rode in a '16 GT Performance Pack at an autocross and it didn't seem like it was 444hp. In fact, every Coyote Mustang I've ridden in always feels really soft down low, likely a result of that smaller displacement. I'd gladly trade off that top end for a little more down low. GM's LT1 revs to redline just fine and is a real belter down low, like what a musclecar engine should feel like. And while it didn't seem like I was feeling every horsepower, I certainly felt every one of it's ~4000lbs. It required a lot of patience because you would make an input and it would heave and wallow around and you would have to wait forever for it to settle and then make your next input. The 5th-gen Camaro was just as porky but it always felt lighter on its feet.

The Camaro visibility is something you adapt to quickly. Spent a lot of time in 5th gens and when you first get in it's a case of "Damn, I can't see E36 M3". Get out on the road and within 5 minutes you settle in and figure out it's actually not bad once you get situated. At least in my case, and I'm 6'3"

Drive the 1LE. 

It definitely doesn't heave and wallow around.

I'm sure. As I said, the Camaro has always felt lighter on it's feet, even just the regular SS. 

The comments about weight remind me of a conversation I just had with a guy because we both have one-off cars weighing roughly 1600-1800 lbs fully loaded. I asked what gearing he had and when he told me, I said that while it makes first gear useful, a lot of people complain that the gears make the car lug. He countered that all those complaints disappear when the same gears are put into a car weighing half as much.

People driving Hellcats, Camaros, and Mustangs must spend a fortune on tires if doing trackday events.

In reply to scardeal :

The Kia really isn't a muscle car in the sense that it isn't American.

Yes, I know the C63 isn't a domestic, either, but it was just so bonkers on paper I had to at least consider it. Plus, I have a soft spot for gangster cars.

 

Guys, the torque management on a stock Coyote Mustang is a well known “feature”. It can easily be remedied with a couple hundred  dollar tune. Stock cars feel like garbage compared to tuned ones.

The other day, a friend pointed out that if I relaxed my "V8" requirement, I could get into an ATS 2.0T / 6MT, which is built on a variant of the Alpha platform that underpins the CTS and Camaro.  I have 2 friends with "tuned" 2.0T cars making 325 ft-lbs, and they said it was a great car before the tune, and a greater car with the extra 65 ft-lbs.  Premium package includes MagneRide and, while rare, they can be found in the $18k range for 2013 and 2014 models with 50k or less.

The only bad thing I've heard is the CUE systems kinda suck.

im going to take a very close look at these cars when I become an active car shopper in a few months.

Those cars are pretty great as long as you can stand the center stack haptic controls interface for everything.  I drove a top spec 3.6 ATS and was really impressed by it. 

One more vote for the 2016+ Camaro SS 1LE, when driven on the track, with an automatic.  Having both hands on the steering wheel, priceless. 

Getting the run flats off the car is the first thing that has to be done before the ink is dry on the purchase agreement.

My suggestion is to drive an ATS with the 2.0T if you're interested. I owned one for a year, and although the engine had power, let's just say it didn't inspire.  Fantastic chassis and brakes, though!

Vigo said:

Those cars are pretty great as long as you can stand the center stack haptic controls interface for everything.  I drove a top spec 3.6 ATS and was really impressed by it. 

Just make sure you get an extended warranty that will cover those things, because the Cue screens are notorious for delmainating or cracking fairly frequently, and they are mad expensive.

I drove an early ATS with an automatic and, until I drove the CTV equipped WRX, it was the most disappointing transmission I had ever encountered. There is a thread about it.

It seems like the transmission has been updated since then, and I can't say I am surprised. I might give one another chance. 

Camaro is most likely, but still liking the idea of an SS or Mercedes.