Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Chevrolet, GM, First Drives
Poise Before Power



Power isn't everything. We cannot argue with the fact that the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 is an immensely fun car to drive on both the road and track. But unless you have a closed course with a proper straightaway to unleash all 580 of those supercharged horses - despite the ZL1 being a rather easy car to manage in everyday driving - you'll really only be using that force to blast by slow-moving semi trucks and perhaps engage in ill-advised stoplight drag race tomfoolery on suburban streets. In both of those instances, all that power certainly feels nice under your butt, but in the end, you just end up looking like a total chotch.

The thing is that the more power you have at your disposal, the harder it is to wrestle with a car on winding roads or even out on a track. There's a beautiful simplicity that's experienced while wringing out a less-powerful car with superb steering and top-notch suspension geometry, and it's that logic that allows us to wholeheartedly love cars like the Mazda MX-5 Miata and Subaru BRZ/Scion FR-S twins.

More to the point, this is exactly why we fell in love with the Mustang Boss 302. Ford took its delectable pony car and set out to fine-tune the chassis, suspension and brakes above all - adding a small dose of power into the mix as well - and in the end created a car that many of us would rather live on a daily basis with than the absolutely bonkers Shelby GT500.

Not to be outdone in the never-ending muscle car wars, General Motors has responded to Ford's Boss with this: the 1LE performance package available for the 2013 Chevrolet Camaro SS coupe. And while we can't yet say if we prefer it to the Dearborn Darling - we'd need some proper back-to-back time first - our day spent whipping the 1LE around Gingerman Raceway in South Haven, Michigan only affirms our belief that power is purely relative. Naturally aspirated or not, this is the Camaro we've been waiting for.Continue reading 2013 Chevrolet Camaro 1LE
2013 Chevrolet Camaro 1LE originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 03 Aug 2012 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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