2.0T 1LE Camaro - Have we talked about this yet?

News of the 1LE package arriving to the 2.0T 4-cyl. Camaro:  

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/2019-chevrolet-camaro-20t-1le-brings-track-chops-to-the-turbo-news

I know there's been a few comments here of 2.0T Camaro's doing surprisingly well at autocross events.  Color me intrigued by having the 1LE option available on the turbo 4 banger.

The 2.0T's aren't exactly underpowered out of the box, at 275hp /  295ft.lbs., and the 4-cylinder gives an almost perfect 50/50 weight distribution.      

"1LE includes larger front and rear anti-roll bars, rear toe links with stiffer cross-axis ball joints, more rigid rear cradle bushings, and revised dampers... a pair of beefy four-piston Brembo front brake calipers, a set of staggered 20-inch summer-rated Goodyear Eagle F1 run-flat tires (245's / 275's), and auxiliary coolers for the engine, transmission, and limited-slip differential. A six-speed manual is the only gearbox offered."

What say GRM?  

I'm in love with the concept, but like most people - won't pull the trigger on it (I just got a new DD anywho). I hope many, many people do purchase them so there are tons of used ones later (and wrecked ones - this'll be a sweet drive train swap down the road)... When I was shopping around I looked pretty hard at the 1le v6 cars, but the lack of adaptive cruise control and friends was a killer for me personally.

It has a love it or hate it face apparently (well, on the internet, which as we know is meaningless) - I don't really mind it. 

I Like the idea of it, especially if GM offers a warranty safe tune (didnt they do this for the Cobalt SS?) New tech in the new 4 bangers is awesome, so light and so much power, I bet it gets over 30 mpg highway too!

accordionfolder said:

 but the lack of adaptive cruise control and friends was a killer for me personally.

 

Sorry about your lack of friends...but why does that affect your view of this car? 

I love the idea. I wish it was smaller, about the size of the frisbee twins. I have a 67 and a 2011. The 2011 is bigger in every direction. My inner caveman says a camaro needs to make V8 sounds, but this concept is so good I may have to evolve. I wonder what this weighs compared to the V6 1LE?

The Camaro 2.0T 1LE should be compared to the BMW 430i and considered a great value.  Sadly, it will be compared to the Camaro SS and found wanting.  And those new headlights remind me of my bagle hound when her tear ducts are inflamed and leaking.  Maybe it'll look better in real life.

I LOVE the idea, but man, they screwed up the looks of the car with the new front and rear fascias. The front looks significantly better in non-SS form, and the taillights are terri-bad. Looks like they went to Walmart's automotive section and grabbed a pile of trailer lights and slapped them on the rear. 

I don't know what they were thinking here. Maybe they look better in person?

Also, is there any word about squeaking out more ponies out of the Ecotec Turbo? The Mustang Ecoboost makes significantly more power, and you can score those on the cheap with the performance package compared to the Camaro. 

Still, it's an interesting option for a daily driver for someone like me who has a long commute. 

Could be good FRS/BRZ competitor for the person who wants a larger car and the more headroom, more cargo room, and more backseat roo...oh, wait...

Could be good for someone who wants a less cramped engine bay.  Some things should be easy given that there is nearly room for a second engine under hood. 

I think it looks great.  Just MO of course.  I drove an automatic EcoBoost Mustang for a few days and it was "meh" as the kids these days say.  I'd like to try a Crammit to compare.

I like it and frankly its the car I was thinking of building when shopping for a new track car six months ago. I went and drove a base 4cyl and liked it a lot. I wasn't quite sure I wanted to go thorugh the shenanigans associated with ordering one so ended up with teh Accord, but had this been available I probably would have. Missed it by that much. 

Neat, but I don't know if I would spend $32K on it... but that opinion goes for pretty much any new car these days... 

In reply to mazdeuce - Seth :

I wonder if GM knew this was being cross shopped with decade old Accords. Would they have done things differently if they did? Eh...probably not.

In reply to doc_speeder :

"Sorry about your lack of friends" - HA! That gave me a good chuckle.

 No - I was referring to the v6 1le's (i.e. 2017s? I think) I was looking at early this year - I was searching for a car with adaptive cruise control, LDA, etc. I still have a MS3, the Suburban, and the two race cars. Needed to have another purpose. The CX-5 we ended up with is a great drive, full-stop. Has all the bells and whistles and the interior is insanely nice and quiet (http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2017/03/how-the-2017-mazda-cx-5-became-so-quiet.html). But obviously that's not here nor there - just an aside of why I pushed out the previous gen Camaro. It seemed relevant since this generation WILL have those options. 

Looks like a really cool cross shop to a Genesis coupe if they still made one.

I wish the body & greenhouse were proportioned more like the NASCAR body:

I'd probably buy one over the mustang if it was priced competitively.  The V6 1LE seems to go for like $35K, and that's too much man.

I gotta ask “what’s it weigh?”  That camaro is usually 4,000lbs. Heavy, and terrible port-hole-like vision would keep me out of it. Heck, because I’m short, it’s high belt line would make me look like a toddler at a titty bar...

In reply to Trackmouse :

I think I remember seeing around 3400lbs. 

Trackmouse said:

I gotta ask “what’s it weigh?”  That camaro is usually 4,000lbs. Heavy, and terrible port-hole-like vision would keep me out of it. Heck, because I’m short, it’s high belt line would make me look like a toddler at a titty bar...

Probably closer to 3300lbs.

The 2017 car was quoted at 3410lbs - I'm sure it's +/- a lot depending on what you get on it. Not terrible at all for a modern car with tires that wide and that much torque. 
*edit - from Chevy the 2017s are:

3,354 Manual Coupe 2.0T
3,339 Automatic Coupe 2.0T
3,647 Manual Convertible 2.0T
3,627 Automatic Convertible 2.0T

Funny that the auto's are lighter than the manual - keep in mind this is the standard car, not sure what the 1LE will do to it.

The styling update doesn't bother me and I like the 1LE pkg being available across the board. There is an upgraded brake and suspension pkg option currently, but I assume the 1LE takes it further. However, it's far too expensive, can't see out of it, and I'm not hearing the greatest things about the 2.0 turbo with higher miles. (Over 80,000) It's sad as I've read several Mustang vs Camaro 4cyl tests and the Camaro is picked as the better car overall.

I'm 6'4 and still can't see out of them. I don't hate them, but I wouldn't want one.

Daylan C said:

In reply to mazdeuce - Seth :

I wonder if GM knew this was being cross shopped with decade old Accords. Would they have done things differently if they did? Eh...probably not.

I'm a terrible market demographic. 

bluebarchetta said:

The Camaro 2.0T 1LE should be compared to the BMW 430i and considered a great value.  Sadly, it will be compared to the Camaro SS and found wanting.  

Agreed.  Similar fate of most of the reviews of the Ecoboost Mustangs.  "shoulda had a V8" is the chorus.  

I'd argue it's often a different buyer, and likely will be cross shopped against other cars that a typical Mustang/Camaro might not directly be cross shopped in V8 guise (say against a GTI / Focus ST or even BMW's 230i or 430i mentioned above).  

I drive too many miles to consider a Camaro SS or Mustang GT, but I've strongly considered various turbo 4-cyl. cars and this has piqued my interest.  

In reply to Gearheadotaku :

What type of issues do these currently have? im out of the spectrum when it comes to GM. Just curious 

It's a sweet handling, track warrantied car. Win for our side.

I drove a 2.0L Turbo Camaro yesterday. :) If you look at dyno sheets online, oddly enough the HP drops quickly after 5500RPM, but I noticed it feeling very out of breath above at 6k and shifted there. I normally like engines that rev out nicely to redline, but this engine still felt pretty good. I really enjoyed it. That said, the handling/steering is the killer part of this car.

I still think the V6 is the better option, but this would certainly be compelling if the V6 didn't exist. The V6 costs a little more, but it will more than pay for itself over time in most areas due to lower fuel costs on 87 octane vs. 91 on the 2L.

The "should have been a V8" thing is lame with such nice lower tier engine options and great chassis. Where I live it's a 50% price difference between a base I4/V6 and a V8, and your foot can be on the throttle for more than 1.5 seconds before you lose your license.

I'm 6'5" and the visibility is no worse than in my RX-8, while the comfort is better.