[Number 3]

For those that have followed what I wanted in the Gen6, and many have been willing to accept a LOT less than what I wanted, I have to say that the car is really, really good. But, sadly, now having walked around one and taken the chance to drive one......................it's not great.

Granted our drive was a 1LT RS with Nav and quite a few options. And that drive alone actually makes me question the need for an SS for anything that is a daily driver. The new V6 sounds great and really is the equivalent to the V8 in a Gen4 Camaro. It was very impressive in just the few miles we drove the car.

What I liked:

Improved interior materials

Ergonomics (except for the center NAV screen)

Exterior Fit and Finish

What I didn't like:

Rearward visibility is horrid. GM should be embarrassed

Rear quarter visibility is even worse. GM should be beyond embarrassed

There is NO rear seat........at all. Even with the front adjusted to my knees hitting the IP, there was only 3 inches of space from the back of the seat to the rear seat cushion. Kids probably wouldn't fit. Backpacks would be very happy however.

Trunk space is passable. I actually put my golf clubs in the trunk. With the rear seat down, two sets will go. With the seat up, I had to remove my driver and 3 wood. But there was no room for those 2 longer clubs. Probably have to go in the back seat. So again, workable to my requirement, but not what you can do with a Gen5.

Overall:

The ride and handling is awesome. Even on a short drive it's clear the chassis on this car is really beyond outstanding. And that was a 1LT.

Forward visibility is improved.

Side visibility due to the high belt line is about the same. Passable

Head room is not great for me. I have a tall seated height (I've been anthropomorphically measured) so headroom is generally a problem. The car we drove had a sunroof and a few bumps resulted in my head hitting the headliner. Yep, could pass on the sunroof, but I prefer a sunroof. So this alone may be a deal breaker.

The dealership had, oddly and good for them in December, 3 Gen6s, 4 Gen5s and 3 C7s in the showroom. The Gen6 sitting between 2 Gen5s didn't really seem that much smaller to have taken away so much trunk and rear seat space.

The RS package is really a nice upgrade IMO. My wife and I both liked the look and it gives the front view a higher end appearance.

Mrs. Number 3 was very underwhelmed by the visibility. I had hoped it was improved enough for her to even consider it a replacement for her ATS next year. But at 5'2", the high belt ruined the feel of the interior for her.

Back to that NAV screen. Tilted in such a way that it sticks out as being odd. It should be vertical, if not tilted away from you, but it isn't. Likely due to either sun washing the screen out or even worse, creating vailing glare in the windshield. Either way, it jumps out as being out of position to me.

In the end, I had hoped to have the car would make me want one bad enough to give up my SS. It didn't do that. In fact, when I got back in my SS, it made me appreciate the roominess of a full size sedan. Maybe I'm just getting old :(

What it did do was convince me this isn't likely a DD for me. That may change by spring, but it did leave two impressions.

First, if you can swing the extra $$ it makes a C7 look like an even better car. With a really small trunk and virtually no rear seats, the Gen6 is pretty much a cheaper Corvette.

Second, and this is really good, it makes a Gen6 Convertible as a 3rd car look really, really interesting. I can imagine a 2LT convertible as a fun summer driver but needing the back seats to actually hold the golf clubs.

Don't get me wrong, I liked it a LOT. Not enough to try and trade in my SS today, and Mrs. Number 3 likely would want AWD and better visibility to make it her DD. But I can certainly see why most of the members of Camaro5 and 6 would LOVE this car. I just have higher standards. GM has simply done what I hated so much when I was there and this car is PERFECT for the design studio and product planners. GM has fallen in love with the high belt, slammed roof and is willing to pay the consequences of reduced visibility in their designs.

I understand when people say, "hey, just adjust your mirrors correctly and rely on the back up camera". But this is accepting GM's internal rationalization and making it your own. GM could have done better and I know this from having worked with the people that package cars for GM. Decisions were made and I hope they aren't detrimental to sales. It really is that bad. And the folks posting, "I had no issues with the visibility" just don't care, and by that I mean it isn't important to them. For me it's a really big deal and GM may have missed it on this point alone. Time will tell.

My brief experience has only reinforced my fears that the car will not be any more successful than the Gen5 from a sales perspective. It is essentially a greatly improved Gen5. But it does not make a great coupe, which from my first comment, is what I had hoped GM would strive for. And in that regard they have failed quite beautifully.

It's a great car and I can see why so many members here that are Camaro enthusiasts will be happy. By spring I may even change my mind, although a convertible seems much more appealing to me after today.

And lastly, my thanks to Sean Love at Sunrise Chevrolet in Glendale Heights IL. They originally weren't willing to let us drive a car, and I was upfront that it likely wouldn't make us decide to buy today but he arranged a test drive anyway. And again, clearly a dealership set up to support Camaro and Corvette buyers..............in December.

So it is really the car I thought it would be, but not the car I had hoped it could be. And today reinforced that a lot.

Also, as usual, just one guys opinion.

[bhavyas]

Higher standards??? You mean we have very low standards in life.. ohh kmon dont say that... haha..jk...

good write up btw... i am going to have issues with visibility at start.. but I think I will get used to it..

[tomlink]

Nice write up and photos. Most of your issues (visibility) I got past 5 years ago. I guess I just need to see it for myself.

Oh, and tell me when was the last time someone told you they thought your car was awesome? It's been 6 hours now for me. That is what you can expect even more in a 2016.

[DenverTaco07]

"they failed" "it's a great car"

[Tr6]

Thank you for the input. Sadly, I have nothing but good to say about the car. I do have a 2SS with all the bells and whistles that "fix" the problems the car does have. Like blind spot assist fixes the massive blind spots the car actually does have and rear camera with lines is also fantastic (plus detecting vehicles coming in from sides) and do have an f150 + malibu so the camaro not being my own car, I have ZERO complaints about the Camaro. I also could've gotten a c7 z51 instead of my 2SS (2 grand less than my camaro actually, granted not brand new) so camaro being "cheaper vette" is no more and I'd still take the camaro over the c7 purely because I feel so much more comfortable in the camaro (room). I do agree that there is no backseat space but we are talking about a coupe. It is like expecting a bone stock silverado to do 8 second 1/4 mile runs all day long.

[meb91]

I wouldn't say the back seat is completely useless. Yes it's uncomfortable for taller people, but I'm 5'7" and fit fine in the back. Kids and shorter adults can easily sit back there.

As for visibility, I sat in the Camaro, Mustang, and Challenger all in the same day recently while I was at the LA Auto Show. Visibility seemed very similar in all three, the main difference being that the Camaro has slightly smaller rear quarter windows than the others. Yes when compared to a sedan with huge windows you can't see as much, but that's the case for all three of these cars. It won't be an issue if the mirrors are adjusted correctly, it's just something to get used to when coming from a sedan.

[Number 3]

Originally Posted by meb91

I wouldn't say the back seat is completely useless. Yes it's uncomfortable for taller people, but I'm 5'7" and fit fine in the back. Kids and shorter adults can easily sit back there.

As for visibility, I sat in the Camaro, Mustang, and Challenger all in the same day recently while I was at the LA Auto Show. Visibility seemed very similar in all three, the main difference being that the Camaro has slightly smaller rear quarter windows than the others. Yes when compared to a sedan with huge windows you can't see as much, but that's the case for all three of these cars. It won't be an issue if the mirrors are adjusted correctly, just something to get used to.

Not sue how you could have any leg room. When I adjusted the seat to the point my knees hit the IP there was less than a hand of space between the seats.

I do think that if Mrs. Number 3 were driving and had the seat much further forward maybe someone could fit.

I've had 4 adults in a Gen5 with me driving. That isn't possible in a Gen6.

[Number 3]

Originally Posted by tomlink

Nice write up and photos. Most of your issues (visibility) I got past 5 years ago. I guess I just need to see it for myself.

Oh, and tell me when was the last time someone told you they thought your car was awesome? It's been 6 hours now for me. That is what you can expect even more in a 2016.

When I run into people that know what my SS is I get lots of conversation. That isn't very often though. But that is part of the charm of the SS.

[meb91]

Originally Posted by Number 3

Not sue how you could have any leg room. When I adjusted the seat to the point my knees hit the IP there was less than a hand of space between the seats.

I do think that if Mrs. Number 3 were driving and had the seat much further forward maybe someone could fit.

I've had 4 adults in a Gen5 with me driving. That isn't possible in a Gen6.

It's possible, but yeah it does depend on how far forward the front seats are. Sitting behind a tall driver may be difficult or impossible depending on height. 4 adults that are all 6'+ probably isn't happening.

In my case, I adjusted the driver's seat to a comfortable position for my height, and then sat behind it. My knees were close to the back of the seat, but I was still able to sit comfortably. My 6'5" friend tried getting in the back behind my seat as well. Technically he was able to squeeze back there but not comfortably obviously. He had to duck his head down quite a bit and contort his legs at some odd angles - it was rather amusing to watch!

Anyway, I wouldn't judge a car like a Camaro on its back seat room. It's nice to have for storage/taking people somewhere in an emergency, but I don't think most sports car buyers are expecting a comfortable back seat. They made the 6th gen smaller and lighter and had to take that space from somewhere. If having a roomy back seat were a priority I'd go with a sedan. If having a lot of cargo space were a priority I'd buy a truck or SUV. Different vehicles for different purposes.

[mt3130]

I passed on the 5th gen because the interior quality sucked and it felt like a cave.

After seeing the car in person, I think the 6th gen feels the same way (like a cave), and the visibility was just as bad. The materials used are much better, and the design is much better than the 5th gen.

Sitting in the passenger seat, my knees hit the dash with the chair all the way back. In order to get comfortable, I had to tilt the chair all the way back so that it rendered the back seat completely useless just to fit in the car.

In the driver's seat, I was woefully unable to find a comfortable driving position.

I don't understand how GM took the ATS, which comfortably seats 4 adults, made it longer and wider, and came out with a car that only realistically seats 2 adults, less interior room and a smaller trunk.

I went from being pretty sure this was the car I was getting, to it pretty much not even being considered. The car hadn't undergone PDI, so I couldn't drive it.

I'm still going to test drive it when it comes time to buy, but I don't see there being anyway that I see myself willing to accept the compromises required to use this car as a daily driver. That would have to be one hell of a test drive. I think GM went too far in the name of performance, and essentially created a parts bin Corvette.

I'm sure I'll get blasted around here for my opinion, but I think that critical reviews are important to those who were on the fence like I was.

[alfonsoj23]

Originally Posted by tomlink

Nice write up and photos. Most of your issues (visibility) I got past 5 years ago. I guess I just need to see it for myself.

Oh, and tell me when was the last time someone told you they thought your car was awesome? It's been 6 hours now for me. That is what you can expect even more in a 2016.

Haha I like this ^

Well for me it's been 5 hours since someone told me "I like it" while looking at the car, can't even begin to imagine what they'll say about the gen 6. The car is simply beautiful in my opinion.

[alfonsoj23]

See, if you adjust the seat properly... There's actually some decent room for smaller people... For sure not tall people... We need to put this whole back seat crap to sleep already... Lol

[meb91]

Originally Posted by mt3130

I passed on the 5th gen because the interior quality sucked and it felt like a cave.

After seeing the car in person, I think the 6th gen feels the same way (like a cave), and the visibility was just as bad. The materials used are much better, and the design is much better than the 5th gen.

Sitting in the passenger seat, my knees hit the dash with the chair all the way back. In order to get comfortable, I had to tilt the chair all the way back so that it rendered the back seat completely useless just to fit in the car.

In the driver's seat, I was woefully unable to find a comfortable driving position.

I don't understand how GM took the ATS, which comfortably seats 4 adults, made it longer and wider, and came out with a car that only realistically seats 2 adults, less interior room and a smaller trunk.

I went from being pretty sure this was the car I was getting, to it pretty much not even being considered. The car hadn't undergone PDI, so I couldn't drive it.

I'm still going to test drive it when it comes time to buy, but I don't see there being anyway that I see myself willing to accept the compromises required to use this car as a daily driver. That would have to be one hell of a test drive. I think GM went too far in the name of performance, and essentially created a parts bin Corvette.

I'm sure I'll get blasted around here for my opinion, but I think that critical reviews are important to those who were on the fence like I was.

How tall are you, if I may ask? I was very comfortable in the driver's seat, I'm only 5'7" of course but this is the first I've heard of someone not being able to find a comfortable driving position. I've seen some guys on the forum 6'+ who said it was still comfortable for them. I'm not here to blast you, just wondering.

[Blueclyde]

Nice write up. I understand your dislikes. I think they are valid. I offer a couple points.

1.) Hoping to get out if a Camaro what you have in an SS is not possible. The SS is a sedan, and a damn awesome one at that. It really addresses most of your dislikes, and that exhaust note...
2.) You really should have driven a 2SS with MRC and A8. The blind spot detection and camera helps. I've had 4 5th gens. My current ZL1 is way worse in forward and side visibility. It's also harder to get in and out of the ZL1 compared to the 2SS that I test drove.
3.) Word on the back seat and trunk. Both are considerably smaller.
4.) 5th gen SS to 6th gen SS is a humongous upgrade. I've got to be honest, my ZL1 puts out about 630 at the flywheel and an A8 SS feels damn similar stop light to stop light. The car puts the power down better and feels way more nimble.

All in all your points are valid and it really comes down to your own personal wants and perspective of the car. If you like your SS I can't see replacing it with a Camaro as a DD.