Community Question: Is The 2016 Chevrolet Camaro Ready For All-Wheel Drive?
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This is a question we’ve been pondering for some time. So, we decided to pass it on to you all. Let’s build a brief argument for it.
The 2016 Chevrolet Camaro will feature some of the most powerful engine choices ever offered in the long-running nameplate. They include a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder making 275 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque, a 3.6-liter V6 making 335 hp and 284 lb-ft and finally the mighty LT1 6.2-liter V8 producing 455 hp and 455 lb-ft of torque.
Those potent powerplants could arguably benefit from more then just the rear wheels for power delivery. And as the American muscle car evolves, we see it becoming more, and more globally competitive. Heck, you could even say they’re more sports cars than straight-line, torque-twisting muscle cars.
On the other hand, all-wheel drive was already considered for the 2016 Cadillac ATS-V as an option, but dropped in the name of weight savings. And both the ATS-V and Camaro ride on the Alpha platform, which gives us a feeling it may have been looked at once before. The 2016 Camaro has already lost 200 pounds, but depending on which engine is under the hood, even more mass is eroded from the curb weight.
Besides, a good set of rubber and the 2016 Camaro should be ready to put all of its ponies to the pavement.
But, we turn it to you now. Should the Camaro team ready an all-wheel drive system for the 2016 Camaro? Or should it soldier on in its true rear-wheel drive fashion. Vote in the poll below, and sound off in the comments section.
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YES for the 4WD option. After looking on MT lap times on how it was improved on a 4WD Porsche Carrera S4 VS Carrera S, now I can see some logic on that, if you had ask me before I will answered just RWD.
Yes make it AWD, but don’t make the AWD mechanical. Drive the rear wheels with the turbo four and drive each of the front wheels with its own 75-100 hp electric motor. The performance and mileage improvements that the motors bring will offset the extra weight; the battery will lower the CG, and computer controlled motors will compensate for every moment of lag. The cars that get the best performance from AWD are TTR hybrids, and really, who needs to idle a Camaro engine when you’re stuck in traffic?
AND AN AWD IMPALA!!!!!
i personally don’t think AWD is necessary in a pony car. i’m not sure how many people in snowbelt statrs would consider an AWD Camaro as a daily driver personally i think putting an AWD option on the Corvette is a more sensible option, as it performs in the supercar class, where many of its competitors utilize AWD as a marketing tool to indicate to potential buyers, many of which are not “car guys” or engineers, that their cars have, on paper “street cred” and specs to give their cars legitimacy. i understand the Caddy CT6 was purposely designed to NOT have AWD, in a class where this feature is often expected and included as the price of admission.
i think putting an AWD option on Corvette makes a lot more sense, and when Chevy marketing and engineering honchos see the real world take rate, they casn make a much more educated
decision on the AWD Camaro. personally, when i was a kid, i used to drive my beloved second-hand ’70 Mustang convertible in the snow and winter all the time. i don’t believe all-season tires were available back then and i didn’t want snow tires killing the look of the ‘Stang. my solution was to throw a couple of big cat litter bags in the trunk, for weight and for use if i ever did get stuck, which might have happened once, if at all. i just used regular Michelin radial tires which always had good rubber, to me they were like snow tires. i’ll admit i was more of a daredevil back then, i was young and strong and that Mustang, my first car, was my baby. last point to me, pony cars were all about affordable American fun, big bang for the buck that could build brand-loyal buyers. Putting AWD in the Camaro would be a bold and risky move, one that i’d be hesitant to sign off on. i’d bet the ’16 Camaro will be a huge hit, with or without AWD. Perhaps mid cycle, when the car might be showing it’s age, the option can be made available, to renew interest. i certainly don’t think AWD is needed for 2016, but down the line, who knows? i think GM and Chevy can bask in the glory for the moment. i would trust Chevy engineers if the Camaro really needed AWD for vehicle dynamics ( does anybody say “handling” anymore? ). From a marketing standpoint, AWD could create quite a buzz, like IRS in the Mustang or 707 hp
in the you know what. I think Corvette as a testbed still makes the most sense. Corvette is the GM crown jewel built to showcase GM’s best stuff. Let real Corvette performance drivers decide if AWD is worth it, they have more disposable income. The price of AWD would have to make
sense from a performance standpoint (is the extra weight worth it?). The answer may be in all the numbers.
Need the option, both for SS and higher performance versions of the car. The pinnacles of automotive excellence all offer it, as well as key German competitors Audi and BMW.
The fastest cars around the TopGear track and Nurburgring are RWD.
AWD yes. This is my third Camaro and probably my last. Love the car but the RWD sucks big time and is downright dangerous in any weather condition other than a warm sunny day.
I had no choice but to drive quite a distance from my home and the weather turned horrible as I had to make the return trip. This was yesterday. I am now re-thinking wtf am I doing driving a car like this just because it’s pretty. It’s a freakin’ death trap. The car is not meant for any weather condition.
Please re-think why you are building this car with RWD? Seriously I have 2 1/2 years before I buy another car and I am now looking for an affordable alternative to the Camaro.
Please make the New Buick grand national all wheel drive twin turbo to compete with the gtr! Try to keep the Chevy muscle rear wheel because they’ll always set the records! Let’s show a real 3.8L V6 to companies like Nissan, and Porsche. 😉
Cad 2st choice. Bought 15 ATS Jan ’15 turbo /all wheel, happy with car. Camaro would be 1st choice if all wheel were available.
That may be why Chevy won’t offer AWD on the Camaro, because they want to sell more AWD Cadillacs with bigger profit margins. I also plan to buy an ATS4, but I’m getting mine used so as not to reward GM for their foolish business practices.
Living in Michigan with its Bad Winters I leased a Chrysler 300 with Hemi (392 hp) and AWD. Now leasing a Lincoln MKZ 6cyl 3.7 L (300 hp) with AWD. When the lease expires I will lease an AWD car. Maybe I don’t “need” all the hp, but in Northern U.S. I NEED AWD. I make this post in the Hope that mfg engineers are reading . . . BTW. I Always Buy or Lease U.S.A. Domestic vehicles. Would really like a Chevy Camaro with AWD.
Your comment is completely false and you are just perpetuating a myth. All cars have stability control and Traction Control as of 2012 anyway which makes is nearly impossible to lose control even if you try to. Lose the summer tires.. better yet. Put them on your AWD car and compare it to a well balanced RWD with a solid all season or winter tire and then get back to me on that BS statement that RWD is bad in all weather. Totally false. Bad information like this sickens me. Been driving a RWD for 17 years in PA winters. Never once had a problem.
Hey Dude. Sorry that you are “sickened.” Do you drive in the Frozen North? My college roomie of years ago is a retired Mech Eng specializing in Suspensions Engineering for a Big 3 Mfrg. You May be right, but I doubt it . . . call my observation “BS” brands you as a teenboy. Get a Life dude.
Elmer, when I read Dan’s words, they seem more like a reply to the words Jesse wrote in February than a reply to words of yours.
I would buy a Camaro in an instant if I could get one with AWD! No V8 option necessary, I’ll take the LGX V6 AWD combo that’s already developed for the Alpha-based ATS. Why? Because I want a sports car but cannot afford two cars and an empty garage bay for one of them to reside as winter garage queen. This, despite the fact that I despise the cartoonish styling of the Camaro. It comes down to the superiority of the Alpha chassis and my desire to buy American.
An AWD Camaro is such a no-brainer that it leaves no doubt that GM HQ is contaminated with some unusually powerful stupid. Their obstinance regarding AWD is really bizarre given the location of their tech center and proving grounds in the snow belt. It’s like they take pride in standing up to their customers to deny them what they want. Maybe someone should check to make sure they’re drinking unleaded water.