Camaro convertible gift rental

I rented a mid-size sedan from Dollar. They had none despite my prepayment and confirmation of same, the only car was a Camaro with 3K on it. Since I wanted to transport family around town and since I own a proper sports car, this outcome was not the "gift" they thought they were giving me. About the car: The six-cylinder variant? The sound from the twin trumpet dual pipes is uneventful at least in normal not speeding driving. In fact, I'd go further and say it sounds awful. The paddle shifters? My PDK is more than a decade old and its performance crushes the Camaro paddles easily even without sport plus. Paddle actuation to gear change feels "leisurely" compared to our cars. Back seats? Not with the top up for an adult, you'll wish you were Dino at the drive in breaking through the canvass with your head. Top folds to eat trunk space, in fact you have to keep a mat snapped in place in the trunk which relegates the space to less than half. Therefore, if you go on a trip it's "top up" or luggage riding on the useless rear seats. As for performance? Eh, tight turns for a 3,600 pound slob. All in all? I hated it except for the looks which are nice. Porsche making our cars with two trunks and the punch they deliver along with stellar handling precision isn't cheap. But Cruise was right, there is no substitute. After all the attached beauty can barely fit a couple pairs of gloves.

Several years ago we spoke to a lady who was getting into a Mercedes E350. I complemented her on the car, and mentioned that I had been considering buying one. She said that she really liked it, but had not appreciated how good a car it was until she had been given a Chevy loaner while it was in for service. Once you've experienced quality, it's hard to go back.

I've had a few Camaro rentals myself Boris, and same conclusion. They are fat heavy pigs with terrible blind spots. Ive even had one of the big V8 models, and it was still a slow, fat pig. Just like all the Dodge Chargers that every rental facility seems to have by the hundreds now. Slow, heavy pigs that just make a lot of V8 noise and not much else. The weight of the doors alone are enough to take your leg off if you aren't careful. The 10 speed auto I had in one of the Camaros was biggest piece of crap tranny I have ever used. Upshifts way too soon for fuel economy reason, but kills the torque from being in too high a gear too soon. And it constantly "hunts" up/down for the proper gear when driving which was incredibly annoying

I'd call a V8 Camaro a lot of things, slow certainly isn't one of them.

I've had two SS models challenge me, and neither one could keep up, even in straight line. I was stunned as I thought for sure the SS would stomp me, but they both gave up and trailed away in shame. The reality is 0-60 times are only a hair faster than a 981 S PDK , despite the 455HP and V8 torque due to the extra weight which can be more than 4K depending on the setup. The V6 models are a lot slower. They just feel and drive so heavy to me after being so used to a much lighter and nimble car. I guess its like a bull vs a ballerina type thing?

Agree… once you experience Porsche engineering it’s hard to think of driving anything else, including BMW . I haven’t owned a Mercedes, but expect I would feel the same … would be fun to tell the E350 driver … “I once considahed buying an E, but I got one as a loaner fo my (Macan/Cayenne/Panamera/Cayman) and just couldn’t dreeeem of going so faaa baaakwahd” … as you can tell I am not simpatico with most MB snobs. 😉

We had a Mercedes 300 diesel years ago. Not much in the performance department, but a tough, comfortable and reliable car. With a 42 gallon fuel capacity, range anxiety wasn't something that ever came up. Merging onto a freeway, however, was something that needed to be planned days in advance.

Speaking of Camaros, GM is discontinuing. the Camaro in January, I believe. The September issue of Motor Trend magazine has a drawing of the 2026 replacement which looks to give the Mustang Mach E a competitor. Camaro front end but four doors and SUV like rear. It was an EV also as I recall. Interesting stuff in this months magazine. Porsche is making the 718 an EV in 2025. Check the issue out the next time you're near a magazine rack.

You probably got the turbo four version, the six cylinder cars are actually pretty quick. 330 HP, they would give my 987.2 CS a real run for the money. The coupes drive really great, even the base models. I've had several as rentals, and I was pretty impressed. The convertible Camaro I got as a rental had the four cylinder, and it was indeed a slug. And yes, the vision out any Camaro is pretty terrible. I also once got a SS model as a rental. If you think your 987 Cayman is quicker than one of those, you probably are wrong. 4.0 seconds 0 to 60 mph, 180 mph top speed. I know that this is a Porsche forum and we all love our cars, but dismissing other cars just because they aren't German is silly. I got to my local PCA autocrosses, and there is a current model Camaro that is usually one of the quickest cars out there.

Nothing rides better than a Mercedes in the comfort/handling combo dept… I’ve had one for 8yrs, bought it new…. I’m not even sure what I’ll substitute it with. I need to make a move in the next year tho, but I’ll just keep it… it’s mint and low mileage… I like the Genesis lineup a little, but it’s not an MB, I’m just not breaking the bank for daily drivers anymore I had a Nissan Rogue last week in Florida, what an absolute piece of chit