Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 2018 Review

We generally know what to expect with American muscle-cars. Big-hearted straight-line performance, a (generally) bassy exhaust note and cornering grip that’s the result of an oversize wheel/tyre combo rather than any real finesse in the car’s suspension design or calibration.

Truth be told, this was my impression even after driving the much-hyped previous-gen Camaro ZL1, which had been touted as a new benchmark-setter for a ‘Yank Tank’ but left us a bit cold, even though it packed a sizeable supercharged wallop.

Although decently rapid, I didn’t find it particularly tactile or enjoyable to drive, and had no pangs of regret when handing it back to the Chevrolet minders after a couple of days with the car.

What a difference five years can make. The big difference this time around is that the latest iteration is underpinned by the more sophisticated Cadillac-sourced Alpha platform, rather than the older Australian-developed Zeta architecture used by its predecessor (and Holden’s last homegrown Commodore).

The latest Camaro ZL1 is nothing if not a revelation, so the prospect of right-hand drive converted versions of the car landing in Oz at some point via the Walkinshaw Group is a tantalising prospect indeed, particularly as supplies of the V8 Commodore SS will have well and truly dried up by then.

The nitty gritty
So, what exactly is the Camaro ZL1, and what is it that makes the bowtie-wearing coupe simultaneously a sledgehammer and a scalpel?

Naturally, a big part of the recipe is a thumping great V8 (it could hardly be an American muscle-car without one, could it?). The motor in question is a wet-sumped version of the 6.2-litre supercharged LT4 unit, thrashing out a towering 485kW at 6400rpm and 866Nm at 3600rpm.

The V8 can be had with either a six-speed manual or the brand-new 10-speed (!) automatic, and we’re glad it’s the latter we sampled as this transmission proved every bit as eye-opening as the rest of the car, serving up whip-crack gearchanges and a generally fool-proof electronic brain. More on this shortly.

Considering the fact the ZL1 measures over 4.8m (4831mm) in length and a tad under 2m (1905mm) wide, and that it’s stuffed full of a big V8 and supercharger, its kerb weight of 1787kg isn’t excessively lardy.

In terms of the performance equation, it dishes out a 0-100km/h split of 3.5sec and standing quarter-mile of 11.4sec, which means the ZL1 comfortably has the legs on the BMW M4 and Mercedes-AMG C63 S Coupe.

Oh, and its direct rival at Ford – the Mustang Shelby GT350, which remains unavailable in Australia, where the 5.0-litre V8-powered Mustang GT costs just $57,490.

Of course, the Camaro ZL1 – if it makes it here – will be far more expensive in Australia, where base Camaro pricing is expected to kick off close to $90,000.

Another key ZL1 ingredient is the magnetorheological dampers that react based on inputs from sensors that read the road surface 1000 times per second.

Add to this the electronically controlled limited-slip differential that juggles torque between left and right rear wheels with great deftness and you already have the makings of a handy tarmac weapon.

Track tested, aggressive aero
But it’s not just a case of throwing bits at the car and hoping for the best, as GM’s development engineers reportedly made no less than six separate trips to the Nordschleife to get every aspect of the car’s tuning just so. They are also said to have spent more than a year calibrating the 10-speed automatic… and it shows.

The sixth-generation Camaro is already an arresting looking car in its lesser trim levels – the chop-top roofline and stormtrooper-esque face see to that – but in ZL1 guise this is even more so. There’s a tarmac-scraping splitter up front, and a bit of caution is required to ensure you don’t end up nudging it against the kerb when perpendicular parking.

The front fascia is nothing if not aggressive, with a massive central grille flanked by a pair of well-integrated brake cooling ducts. Even the Chevy bowtie badge is hollowed out for maximum airflow.

Nestled within the bonnet is a large carbon-fibre composite air extractor, and this isn’t there just for show as it moves air from the engine bay to aid cooling and decrease aero lift. The aero addenda also includes a three-stanchion rear spoiler to further boost high-speed stability.

Humble origins
There’s no getting away from the car’s humble origins once you slide into the cabin (the basic V6 Camaro starts at $US26,700 in the US), even though the ZL1 gets a lovely pair of Recaro sports seats with sueded-microfibre inserts, a flat-bottomed, suede-trimmed steering wheel and suede inserts in the dash and door trims.

All around this you’ll find lashings of hard plastic, as you’d expect in a car that starts at under $35K in base form. The rear seats are best left to the kiddie brigade, but it’s useful to know they’re there when needed.

One other gripe is the strange angle that the central sat-nav screen is set at. It faces slightly downwards, so ends up picking up a lot of glare and reflection off the transmission tunnel on bright, sunny days.

No complaints about the dash layout, which is exceptionally easy to read at a glance. The large tacho and analogue speedo flank a quartet of virtual dials (oil pressure, engine temperature, fuel gauge and boost pressure) and a digital speedo readout.

The interior designers have steered clear of trying to get too fancy, and the result is big on functionality.

Mad Max motor
It takes the starter motor a couple of rotations to crank the V8 into life, but once this is done, there’s some entertaining mayhem in store.

There’s a fair bit of supercharger whine that comes through to the cabin at low-to-mid engine speeds, so if you close your eyes it’s easy to visualise yourself riding in Mad Max’s Interceptor. In many ways, that’s what this car is – a 2018 version of the Pursuit Special.

There’s ample grunt pretty much across the rev range, yet the build-up in power is much more linear than is the case in the latest breed of twin-turbo V8 German hotshoes, which kick like mules virtually from idling speeds.

One case in point is the Mercedes-AMG C63 S Cabrio I recently tested. The Merc ragtop showed an inclination to light up the rear tyres at the slightest tickle of the throttle (especially in damp conditions).

By comparison, the Camaro ZL1 is a much more easy-to-manage device and it takes a pretty determined stomp on the gas to unstick the rear end. This is partly down to the fact the 866 Newtons of peak twist don’t come on stream until 3600rpm, so the engine’s best work is done in the upper half of the rev range.

Bear in mind, though, that the ZL1 sucks through the go-juice at a prodigious rate if you regularly tap into its massive performance potential. My average with the car wasn’t far short of 20L/100km.

But, boy, does that blown LT4 sound good when you get to the serious end of the rev range. I found the previous ZL1 curiously lacklustre in terms of its sonic signature, but no such accusations here.

Where it’s the whine of the supercharger that dominates at low revs, at higher engine speeds it gives way to the angry, hard-edged growl of the 6.2-litre V8 spitting its spent gases out of those four drainpipes.

It’s pure Mad Max stuff. Yet, on the flip side, the ZL1 cruises silently and serenely at 120km/h, the tacho needle registering barely over 1500rpm at this steady lope.

Bite to match the bark
It’s laugh-out-loud fast, too. Any car that pulls 11.4 down the quarter is clearly no slug, but even more impressive than its off-the-line urge is its in-gear acceleration.

Mash the throttle at middling revs and the ZL1 practically leaps off its axles. A big ally here is the ultra-quick-witted 10-speed auto, which almost instantly drops a few cogs and gets you in the fattest part of the torque curve.

The 10-speed auto is seamless, but one consequence of the plethora of ratios is that you have no idea which gear you’re in if you leave it in Auto.

The other mild drawback – if you’re shifting manually – is that you need to drop down far more gears than normal in order to get the requisite engine braking when charging across twisty roads. Other than this, it’s a fantastically well-sorted transmission.

The ZL1’s 7min 29.6sec tour of the Nordschleife provides a clue to its backroad pace, and our experience with car revealed a generally fool-proof on-limit demeanour.

Gain a bit of familiarity with it and you begin to develop an appreciation for just how hard you can lean on those Goodyear Eagles (285/30 ZR20 at the front and 305/30 ZR20 at the rear).

There’s a massive amount of grip to play with, and the car remains impressively neutral even as you begin to approach its cornering thresholds. If there is a slight criticism, it’s that the steering doesn’t relay a whole lot in terms of textured feedback about what’s going on at the front wheels. That said, the tiller is pinpoint accurate and nicely weighted.

No complaints about the six-piston Brembo stoppers either. They pull the ZL1 up decisively, and the pedal has a decently progressive action.

Jack of all trades
Back off the gas and the ZL1 settles into a generally relaxed gait. In this mode, it overwhelms neither the eardrums nor the lumbar region.

In short, it’s a pretty comfortable cruiser and ride quality, although occasionally busy, never deteriorates to the jarring end of the scale – even in Sport mode.

The overall impression is generally one of being gobsmacked, as the Camaro ZL1 is as quick as most Euro exotics around a racetrack or across a mountain road, yet it also has the knack of effortlessly transitioning into a docile, easy-to-live-with everyday coupe.

The fact that it delivers all this at a price in the US that equates to just over $80K in our money makes the ZL1 a bona-fide bang-for-buck titan.

That said, you can safely expect to pay close to double that if Chevrolet’s top-shelf Camaro does eventually land in Aussie showrooms in right-hand-drive form.

2018 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 pricing and specifications:
On sale: TBC (hopefully 2018)
Price: From $US63,435 ($A81,630) in the US
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged petrol V8
Output: 485kW/866Nm
Transmission: Ten-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
Fuel: 14.7L/100km
CO2: NA
Safety rating: TBC