[FriskyDingo]

I work at a GM dealership, and have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of our first SS. Here are my driving impressions on it, copy/pasted from another site I frequent-





Starting with the outside, pictures don't do this car justice. Not to how good it looks in the first place, or even how different from the 5th Gen car it looks. There are much more sophisticated design elements at work here than it's predecessor. Think of it as the old design shrunk down to 9/10's, pulled taught over it's skeleton, with more surface detailing and intersecting body lines tossed in for good measure. The front looks fantastic, it's my favorite view of the car. Next up is side profile, which really highlights the new lines. The rear is definitely my least favorite. It just comes off as a little too abrupt, and I'm not a fan of the rear wing.

The inside is a radical departure from the old car, and it's much better for it. Nicely finished and put together panels replace hard, coarse, low-rent plastic. The air vents which double as temp control dials are a great touch. The whole center stack is really nice. Simple, well-laid out, easy-to-use. I don't like the steering wheel that much. The rim itself is great- nice diameter, meaty, shaped right for driving- but the design of the center section is pretty bad. It's like they looked to Aston Martin for inspiration here. Seats are great. They offer good adjustment and support, and are sized right. It was easy to find a comfortable position.

What we all want to know about is the drive, though. It is, after all, what this car is all about. Well, on that front, it drives great. But it didn't wow me, truth be told. I don't know if my expectations were too high, or the 8AT took too much away from the experience, or what. But it just didn't get the endorphins rushing. Let me clear and state all the things the car does right. The steering is very good. There is absolutely no slop, and it is marksman accurate. It could use a tad less weight, and a dollop more of feel, however. It handles fantastic. It turns in sharp, handles flat, and takes elevation and pavement changes alike with total aplomb. You'd really have to do something hamfisted to upset this car's chassis. It's just extremely well controlled and buttoned down. It brakes hard, with good, not great, pedal feel. It accelerates even harder, feeling every bit as strong as I recall the Z/28 being. And it all comes together in one very cohesive package.

After several miles of twisty two-lane roads, however, it never really lit my fire. I know at least a substantial part of that was the trans. This was my best drive of it in a sporty application so far, and I don't care what the press releases or GM fanboys will have you believe, it is just NOT as good as dual clutch auto setups from BMW, Audi, Porsche, and the like. It's fine left to it's devices in Drive. And even it Sport Mode using the paddles, it offers quick, snappy upshifts under hard acceleration. Under part throttle, though, it's not as crisp. And on downshifts, the gulf between it and the aforementioned transmissions really becomes apparent. It just doesn't get down through the gears near as quickly or neatly. I absolutely could not buy this car in auto form. I am sure the 7MT is a tremendously more fun option. But I'm still not convinced that will elevate the car to the status I had in mind going into the drive.

Besides that 8AT, the visibility is still a strike. It's better, but it's still not great. The two humps of the pod the instrument panel are set in, in particular, are a detriment to your view of the road. It's not a terrible offense, but these are the kinds of things that separate great sports cars from merely good ones. The other complaint I have is the feeling of mass. While this car feels notably smaller and easier to place than the old car, there is still a feeling of mass in it's moves that saps a little bit of satisfaction. It really didn't feel any lighter than the new Mustang GT I drove. In fact, apart from the Camaro feeling much, much quicker, I didn't really find the car that much more enjoyable to drive than the Ford. It almost feels too friendly. I love the added refinement, but I can't help but feel like a little character was lost in the process. In comparison to that 5th Gen Z/28 I mentioned earlier, that car is immensely more fun to drive. Almost more than I can put into words. I would happily take the shortcomings of the old car's interior for that 'on-the-starting-block-waiting-for-the-pistol' demeanor combined with it's unabashed American attitude and glowing charisma.

I was expecting a drive of the new SS to cement my desires to buy one, but unless I get a go at the manual car, and it radically changes my opinion, that is no longer the case. I would rather spend the same money on an older ZL1 or SS sedan, or spend a little more and get an old Z/28. It's a high-water mark for the Pony Car game, but not a high water mark for personal driving experiences.

[RM7]

The auto usually adds around 200lbs, it's not meant for performance. It's meant to sell the car to people who want to look good, but can't drive a stickshift.

There are certain cars that are great as stick, but the auto version is only there to sell to people who can't drive stick, not to make a good performance car. This is definitely one. My WRX was another. That auto version you just drove is the same weight as my manual 2010 SS, to give you an idea, but the 6spd on that SS was a joy to row through, fun as heck. I can't comprehend my SS as an auto, would have been terrible.

On the visibility, yeah, but it's a low car with a long hood. It's always surprised me how many people are surprised by it (obviously you are not, so I'm not counting you) when they sit in it. Then they make a huge fuss, as if no other low long-nosed car has ever existed. There are some pretty radical designs that have existed, but you pay a price for some of the styling and design. If these people got as crazy about all the other cars that have existed with the same problems, then it'd be something I suppose, but otherwise, there are plenty of tall econo-box cars to choose from