2022 Chevrolet Camaro SS 1LE Review

This is, hands-down, the best performance bargain of the year.

For around the same price as our favorite three-row family SUV, enthusiasts can snap up a snarling, V8-powered two-door with the handling chops to embarrass six-figure supercars at a local track event. The 2022 Chevrolet Camaro SS 1LE is a performance coupe with more available adjustments than an Eames office chair.

Yet nobody cares. Or rather, just 21,893 people do; that’s the number of Camaros Chevy sold in the US last year. (Add a little over a thousand for the Canadian market, too.) The Camaro is the performance bargain few are buying, and after a week spent under its spell, I started to see why.

For better or worse, not much has changed with the Camaro, mechanically, since this generation debuted back in 2016. Visually, a poorly received facelift for 2019 saw another hasty revision a year later, and it’s that look that persists here. The body-colored front bar does break up the awkward gaping maw of before, yes, but it only highlights the smattering of competing lines that make up a fussy front-end. Where the Challenger is unapologetically retro, and the Mustang is a modern coupe with throwback touches, the Camaro sits awkwardly between both camps. Chevy has painted itself into a stylistic corner. (Though I do find it ironic that the 2024 ‘Stang gives serious Camaro vibes from the rear three-quarter.)

On a similar take-back note, the 1LE package is back to being the exclusive domain of V8-powered Camaros. The Bow Tie folks briefly offered the package on turbo-four and V6 models, but binned ’em both after two years. That’s too bad, because it’s that unassumingly-named package that transforms the Camaro into a giant-killer.

A recent industry event gave me a taste of the Camaro’s soundtrack. Parked beside the Challenger Jailbreak and Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing (both cars managing editor Mike Schlee reviewed this year, the lucky guy), the Camaro took part in a 1,930-horsepower wake-up call. It was the loudest car of the group, no contest.

To drive around with the exhaust in its rudest setting is to embrace goblin mode. The Camaro is all glorious id here, that rumbly low-rev Nascar soundtrack giving way to a metallic tear that’s downright apocalyptic. At any engine speed above idle, lifts of the throttle treat anybody within half a mile to a fusillade of bangs. Dogs startle, children cry, birds take flight—and everyone glares.

The Camaro is more than just a rolling anti-social alarm. The steering is a modern miracle, weighty and full of feel. The heavy clutch and shifter take some getting used to, but they’re both so precise that it’s a pleasure. The six-speed manual needs a concerted shove into each gear, yet engages seamlessly every time—and there’s a rev-matching system for blip-perfect downshifts.

Even on well-worn tires, the Camaro is tight and predictable. A near-perfect weight distribution helps: it’s no lightweight, yet the Chevy is more consistent in its responses than the Mustang, Supra, or new Z (the latter facing off against it earlier this year). Forget the muscle car history or the presence of rear seats: the Camaro is a sports car.

Even if the Camaro can easily rack up a 1:1 smile-to-corner ratio down your favorite back road, it’s still the sort of car you’d ostensibly live with every day. That’s where the problems start showing up.

I mean, I think they’re out there. The Camaro illustrates Schrödinger’s famous thought experiment a little too well for my tastes. The doors hit at the shoulders, and the roofline comes down to eye level, so visibility is mailbox-grade. At least Chevy fits the Camaro with a digital rear-view mirror, a rarity amongst non-SUVs.

The wheel needs to be pulled so far in that getting in and out is more of a lateral shimmy. Aggressive bolstering on those Recaro seats doesn’t help, even if they lock me in place during high-g maneuvers. I actually got stuck in the back seat trying to snap photos.

Forced into daily downtown drudgery, the Camaro is a mixed bag. Leaning forward at every intersection to see the lights gets old; that soundtrack does not. The love I had earlier in the week for those fat front tires and their ample grip is lessened as they follow every crack and crest in the tarmac, no matter how minute. And even in its softest setting, the suspension is very much on the firm side.

Okay, enough Camaro kvetching. The Camaro might be less accommodating than Victorian dresswear, but the space is hardly sparse. There’s a large, customizable screen between the analog dials, heated and ventilated front seats, and a rockin’ stereo. Plenty of black plastic too, but flashes of ambient lighting and suede microfiber perk the place up. The Camaro’s oversized-vents-as-climate-controls move is so satisfying as well, for a clever consolidation of controls while maintaining tactile interaction. The head-up display (HUD) is as useful as ever, and it’s the only one I know that works with polarized sunglasses.

But why oh why is the infotainment screen pointing downward, Chevy?! The 8.0-inch screen is so disappointed in its surroundings, it’s taking a resigned bow? The system itself is fine to use, and the wireless Apple CarPlay works without issue through the week.

Back to the earlier claim. What else can offer such levels of performance at the as-tested $51,240 ($61,038 CAD, both amounts including destination) price point? Not a base Corvette, especially now that it’s a solid 20-percent more money. How about Mustang? The Camaro’s erstwhile rival is on the verge of a new generation, but the outgoing Mach 1 comes closest, if also significantly more expensive. New Z? Been there, beat that.

The Miata and Toyota GR86/Subaru BRZ twins share a similar driver-centric philosophy, though at a much more relaxed pace and price tag.

FAQs

How much does the 2022 Chevrolet Camaro SS 1LE cost?

To get the SS 1LE requires at least $50,845 ($60,543 CAD), including destination. The cheapest V8 model is around $38,000 ($45,000 CAD); a four-cylinder Camaro another 10 grand less.

Is the 2022 Chevrolet Camaro SS fast?

Does a 0–60 mph (0–96 km/h) time in the mid-4s, and a quarter-mile dash in the 12s, sound fast to you?

What is the Camaro SS 1LE package?

The 1LE package adds more aggressive aerodynamic parts, revised adaptive suspension, better brakes, stickier tires, and heavily bolstered Recaro seats, amongst other upgrades.