The 2010 Chevrolet Camaro 3.6-liter’s surprising EPA-estimated fuel economy is better than that of Mustang or Challenger. Through its 3.6-liter direct-injected V6, Chevy's power entry outperforms the competition and sets the bar for emissions and efficiency.
The 2010 Chevrolet Camaro promises power with efficiency. For example, Camaro’s advanced 3.6-liter direct-injected V6 with variable valve timing produces 304 hp and an EPA-rated 29 mpg in highway driving. Credit engineering for the unusual combination. Direct Injection in the Camaro uses fuel injectors located beneath intake ports to inject fuel directly into the cylinder (as opposed to earlier in the combustion process), thereby optimizing fuel delivery to the combustion chamber, resulting in remarkable power and fuel efficiency.
Comprised of weight-saving cast aluminum parts (specifically the cylinder block and heads) as well as a forged steel crankshaft, the Camaro’s 3.6-liter runs on regular gas, and features the perfect combination of lightweight/high-strength construction. Beyond the engine, Camaro’s dual exhaust system (with dual catalytic converters) ensures reduced backpressure, quick engine operating temperatures and optimum power with surprising efficiency.
Ultimately, the impressive highway mileage figure must be credited in part to a long overdrive sixth gear, both on the automatic and the stickshift. It’s ingeniously designed engine and gearing systems ensure that the Camaro’s direct-injected 3.6-liter V6 outperforms the 2010 Mustang by nearly a hundred horsepower and a staggering 3 miles per gallon.
Even the performance-oriented Camaro SS can make the performance-with-efficiency claim! One of the two available 6.2-liter V8’s features Active Fuel Management that shuts down half the cylinders under light load conditions. The EPA estimates 25 mpg highway mileage as a result.
Camaro LS and LT with automatic transmission get an estimated 18 mpg city and 29 mpg highway. The figures are 17 mpg city/29 mpg highway with the manual. Camaro SS with an automatic is rated at 16 mpg city and 25 mpg highway and 16 mpg city/24 mpg highway with the manual transmission.
Compare those mileage figures with the 2009 Dodge Challenger with manual transmission that gets 14 mpg city/22 highway, and the Challenger is more expensive.
How does this baby drive, you ask? If first drives are any indication, the 2010 Camaro is fun to drive. Just ask Matt Delorenzo of Road & Track. He test-drove two V6-powered models at a GM test facility. “The first thing you notice is how solid these cars feel. There is virtually no flex in the body, nor rattles or looseness to distract from the driving experience,” he noted. “The V6 automatic, which has snappy, wheel-mounted sequential-shift paddles, relies on 18-inch wheels shod with BFGoodrich rubber to deliver a sporty feel and a great ride.”
Michael Austin, a reviewer with Car & Driver, was able to spirit away his test Camaro 3.6-liter to the magazine’s “10 Best Test Track” in Michigan. “Around the 10 Best loop, the Camaro showed remarkable poise with the suspension handling the pockmarked roads with hardly any disturbance to the cabin. The chassis is less jumpy than that of the Mustang and far more communicative than in the Challenger, and although the Camaro is nearly as wide as the Dodge, it doesn’t feel as big.”
So, we’ve established a fact: The 2010 Chevrolet Camaro is fun to drive and won’t rip you off at the gas pump. At an MSRP of $22,995, the 2010 Camaro LS is a muscle car bargain.
Those of you who tuned in to the 2009 Daytona 500 saw a gussied up orange and dark gray 2010 Camaro serve as pace car. It has been 40 years since a Camaro performed pace car duties at Daytona. What a fitting way to make a comeback!
By the time you read this, we’ll have 2010 Chevrolet Camaros in the showroom and available for test drives. Don’t miss this opportunity to drive the reincarnation of a legend. If the early reviews are any indication, you may just drive one home!
