bossco

Seems like a good trade off to me, I'd take style over a top speed that isn't really useful except for internet ***** contests.

stars1010

I agree, I'll prob never go much over 100 mph.

bossco

Tru'dat, another one that makes me laugh is when the IRS guys start pitching the earth shattering and life saving performance offered by an IRS vs SRA, Yeah I'll admit IRS is better, but the true benefit is in ride comfort and space packaging. Otherwise like top speed, you aren't going to be able to realize the ultimate performance potential of the setup.

Z/28lover

Who cares about top speed, this isnt Grand Turismo.

Unless you do MAJOR track mods, and have safer tires, suspension, etc. you dont need to be going that fast anyway.

And anyone that goes over 100 on a public street is just a moron. PERIOD.

guionM

Pat, let me put it this way:

The Dodge Charger SRT8 is shaped like a brick wall, and has a grille big enough to swallow a BMW Mini. It's been tested as high as 170mph. It has 425 advertized horsepower. The 5th gen Camaro looks more aerodynamic, and will have roughly the same horsepower. Don't worry.

BTW: for those who don't believe an SRT8 Charger will run at least 165, here's something for ya :
http://videos.streetfire.net/search/...DA27112F2E.htm




Excellent point & I agree 100%!

I have owned as many Thunderbird SCs as 4th gen V8 Camaros. IRS as a whole is grossly overrated for handling. The only time you even notice the difference is taking a hard curve and you hit a bump or crack (or pothole). The live axle will tend to hop. IRS will tend to stay planted...... That's it! To top it off, the new Mustang does an incredible job of even shrugging most of that off unless you do it at speeds approaching "Not very Bright".



Top speed is also overrated. Out here, unlike the eastern US, there's plenty of chances to run your car at top speed with litterally hundreds of miles of straight flat interstate and visibility that enables you to see cars miles ahead of radar range. I've never been passed by anyone going more than 100 or so. Even most freeway Grand Prixs are over before 130. Of three 4th gen Camaro V8s, I've only ran top speed in any of them 1 time.

Small road irregularities that's normal on public interstates become unnerving at 150+, and after actually running over 155 & experiencing the length of road that it takes to build up that speed (at 150 mph you're going a mile every 15 seconds, and it's going to take at least a couple of miles to get that last 10 mph not to mention the time it took you to get to 150!), and with most roads outside of the western and prarie states with far higher concentration of other vehicles, curves, hills, and hiding places for police, I know most claims of top speed runs on public roads I hear from people are pure BS or exaggerations.

Having a car with a 160 or 170 top end is nothing more than bragging rights.

azfan

I went back and looked at the Motor Trend article. It was october 1997. The new Seville at that time had a cd of .30, just a shade behind a C5!, and the previous model was .34. It came out about the same time as the 4th gen Camaro, same cd, without the weird look. As far as top speed we know the 4th gen did about 160. I have a feeling the 5th gen with similar aerodynamics, and even more power will do about the same. Heck, look at it this way, Mercedes sedans do 155! And they are electronically limited.

EllwynX

I agree. The odds of me ever getting any higher than 90 are pretty slim.

(Unless some schmuck in a Mustang runs up next to me trying to be a smart@$$ and I'm feeling adventurous anyway. But even then it will be extremely rare I'm not worried about a ticket.)

95Z28LT1-PA

Guess I'm a moron...I did 145 mph in my Z28 on the PA turnpike today

JAB

Maybe....maybe not. Doesn't sound like the greatest idea though.

guionM

What section?

I grew up in Monroeville (the former Exit 6), ran it very often (just came back from Pittsburgh last Saturday) and know the Turnpike very well.

Can't think of anyplace on the whole turnpike you'd run that high on a 4 lane, truck infested, heavily traveled, State Trooper patroled, often curved and hilled road.....ESPECIALLY during the day.

I'd say either this deserves a flag, or doing that rate of speed on the turnpike does make the "moron" title fit.

Sinister_Z

Z28PAT

I like the look of the 5th gen, the car looks awesome in person,
and I'm sure GM considered the aerodynamics in the design process, I also know going over 100 is crazy on any highway, I pegged the speedo in my Lt1 one early morning on I-75 and you run out of room very fast at that speed.

pat

sselie

I couldn't agree with you more (at least about the IRS), which is why, as a track junkie, I'm very much looking forward to a Top Dawg 5th Gen with an IRS setup and a top speed at least as high as my LS1 4th Gen.
One of the things that continues to blow me away (even after more than 8 years with my '98 SS) is how "trackable" this car was right out of the box with the SLP Bilstein Level II suspension.
I try to take this car out on 4-5 lapping days each season and my favourite course is the Mosport Grand Prix track, just east of Toronto. This is a fairly high speed course and I'm able to hit 140+ mph at the top of the Andretti straight. I see 90 mph on some of the turns as well. I gotta tell you that I have to be watchful of the pavement on a couple of those turns as there are some bumps in certain places than can, as you say, become quite unnerving if you hit them at high speed! This is componded by some neat off-camber turns and extreme elevation changes in parts of the course. I'm really hoping that the IRS will go a long way towards eliminating some of the "surprises" I get on that course with the solid axle.
And granted, I'm not getting close to seeing the 160+ mph top end, but I have no problem in making good use on the course of all the power the car has to get to that speed. Top end capability is a factor for me.
I would obviously never consider driving the car on any public road at speeds anywhere near approaching what it can do on the Mosport track, but that doesn't necessarily mean those of us who drive these cars on the track aren't gonna look forward to and make use of some improved capabilities.
My feeling is that to drive these cars at or near their limits is one of the most rewarding experiences one can have with these vehicles when done on a track in a controlled environment. Chevy engineered these cars to run on the track and my hope is that this particular focus will not be lost with the 5th Gen. FWIW, the only suspension mods I've done (over and above the SLP Level II) are SFCs and a STB. I did add C5 brakes as the pedal would get a bit spongy after 15-20 min on the track, but not any more.

Best regardSS,

Elie

blackrat

A good top speed is something that carries a lot of prestige anywhere else but the untied states. Why do you think gm was so proud that the Z06 can pull 300 km/h?

True, it's not something that many will use, but bragging rights are bragging rights, and if you want to see the general view of the Camaro escalated higher then it is right now, a good all around performer is going to be the way to do it.

Another thing, like was pointed out in the "What does a Mustang top out at?" thread in the lounge, not only does poor aerodynamics affect top speed, more importantly it affects how long it takes you to get there. Every post in there that had first hand experiance of the stang pointed out how anything above 120 turned into a crawl. Meanwhile, my fourth gen will zoom up to it's top speed with no difficulty at all.

bossco

Pretty much inconsequential, given that most people will barely see past 100 mph and alot of people get shakey at anything well over 100. To be honest and come clean on being a moron, I've actually won a few races just by hanging in there and going a good ways into the triple digit zone, but your right, my 02 GT felt alot faster past 120 than my 07 GT does, however it accelerates pretty good where I use it the most so that crawl above 120 isn't a big deal.