2011 Chevrolet Camaro & 2011 Chevrolet Cruze

Casey Williams

It’s another one of those frigid winter days, wind blowin’, ice crackling powerlines to the ground. Nostrils are freezin’, cats are snuggling, and even your neighbor’s husky pugs up his nose at going outside to lift a leg. Winter is cruel in the way it causes convertibles to hibernate in dark corners of the garage, batteries all run down, waiting for the cherry blossoms. It makes me sad – cannot freakin’ wait for spring! Of course, and it didn’t take long to hop a plane when this thought fired across, one could fly to San Diego for a drive in the all-new Camaro Convertible. Better still, land in L.A. and drive to San Diego in the hyper-efficient Chevy Cruze. Winter can kiss my ass, I’m outta here!

Haulin’ it down the coast, the Cruze Eco averaged over 43-MPG, running nearly 80 mph. That’s a serious challenge to hybrids like the Honda Insight and diesel compacts from The Fatherland. This magic is conjured from front grille air shutters that improve aerodynamics at speed, 5-lb. lighter forged aluminum wheels, tire spats, finessed facias, spoiler, low rolling resistance Goodyear tires, and underbelly pan to gentlemanly part ways with the wind. Motivation comes from a 138-HP 1.4-litre turbo engine, driving the front wheels through a six-speed manual transmission. Overdrive fifth and sixth gears turn in clean green, but sometimes require a shift down of a couple cogs to steam through fast mountains.

The Cruze is tomb quiet on the highway, but poses no threat to the euphoric symphony of wind whipping by your ears in a Camaro Convertible. Easing through the portico at our hotel in San Diego around Noon, our Chevrolet minder had an array of freshly-washed Camaros.

“Which one do you want,” he asked?

“A red V6,” I responded.

He handed me the keys, “Be back by 5:00 for dinner.”

No problem, my friend. I could use five hours with nothing to do but drive and 76-degrees to enjoy. I headed to Mission Beach, advancing the heads-up display to an even 70 mph. For me, Camaros with the 312-HP 3.6-litre V6 are the ones to marry. A quick clonk removes any doubt there is enough power to dispense with traffic while reserving the right to turn in nearly 30-MPG. The SS’ 426-HP 6.2-litre V8 is borderline obnoxious for everyday use, but all of that torque and power humble mountains – especially when rowed through the six-speed manual transmission.

That power is girded by a fortified body structure. Engineers installed a tower-to-tower link under the hood, reinforced the transmission support, and added front and rear underbody “V” bracesin a bid to keep the roofless body from shaking and creaking above the four-wheel independent suspension system. This maneuvering of steel allowed the chassis to be tuned exactly like the coupe’s. In other words, the convertible handles brilliantly. According to Chevrolet, the Camaro’s body equals the stiffness of a BMW 3-Series convertible. Very good.

Camaro is a car born to have its steel top sacrificed to the sun gods.Its sexy Coke bottle shape starts with a long sculpted hood and ends in bulging fenders followed by quad taillamps. Everything portrays a current-century ’69 Camaro. Engineers worked with the Corvette supplier to create a power top that is as taut as a Bentley’s when up and perfectly concealed under a folding one-piece tonneau when deployed. Up to down flicks off a power button in under 20s – less than a stoplight. To keep things smooth, the radio antenna is embedded in the rear spoiler while XM and OnStar are signaled through a body color shark fin on the decklid.

Big round gauges in square tunnels, classic quad auxiliary gauges in the center console, and simple audio display love livin’ in the Camaro’s interior. Cloth seats and dash trim are standard, but there are multiple interior packages to add heated leather, contrasting color seats, backlit dash/door inserts, and uplevel USB-injected audio. There’s everything you need to soak up waning warmth via hefty comfy.

It’s morning in California and time to try out the SS. Exchanging the V6 for a 6.2-litre V8 amps up the scare factor by a couple levels of Hell. Upon reaching open highway, I kicked the gas and chucked off into the distance.Stupid power comes in handy when ripping around piggy trucks on trail-thin two lanes threading up through the mountains. While it is good to remember the Camaro is a heavy four-seat muscle car and not a Porsche Boxster, its tight suspension and body structure pay their dues, plastering a smile on your cheeks through every hairpin curve and straight-away.

I’ll get on a plane tomorrow and fly home where I’m sure, after a warming spell, it will be a balmy 35 degrees. Can’t freakin’ wait! Ah, but the night is still young, the stars are out, I can hear the ocean, and I’m going to spend a little more time Camaro Cruzin’. Winter can just wait to freeze my ass! I’m rocking my sunburn.

Prices for CruzeEco starts just over $18,000; Camaro Convertibles begin at $30,000.Pick one up today or wait until May 29 to see the white and orange Camaro Convertible pacing the Indianapolis 500 in tribute to both Chevrolet’s and Indy’s 100th Anniversaries.I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the coming of summer!

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