Road Test: 2011 Chevrolet Camaro SLP ZL585

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Z28 in waiting

New Jersey's SLP steps in to juice up Chevy's muscle car

By John LeBlanc The growl of a hibernating grizzly bear after poking one of its eyes with a sharp stick. The thundering fury of California’s San Andreas earthquake fault line, as it opens itself up and swallows you whole. These were only two of the sensations my addled brain could conjure up the first time I stomped on the 2011 Chevrolet Camaro SLP ZL585’s throttle. Then I grabbed second gear… If you’re a fan of muscle cars, you’ve more than likely already decoded this paticular Camaro’s unique badging. The “SLP” stands for the longstanding, aftermarket tuner that first made waves back in the mid-1990s, building tens-of-thousands of fourth-generation Camaros and Pontiac Firebirds between 1996 and 2002 in its LaSalle, Qué., facility. If you’d guessed the “585” as the SLP Camaro’s horsepower rating, you’d be wrong: more like 592. With Chevrolet’s resurrection of the fifth-generation Camaro last year, SLP Performance Parts got back in the Camaro-tuning business as well. For 2011, the New Jersey-based company is offering five so-called Camaro V8 “ZL” packages. Each can be ordered only from your local Chevy dealer, starting with three non-supercharged versions (ZL465, ZL454 and ZL427), and the supercharged, automatic transmission ZL560 — and my tester, the also supercharged six-speed manual gearbox ZL585. SLP says a package for a V6 Camaro and a topline 750 hp supercharged Camaro SLP ZL1 (in honour of the original 1969 ZL1, of which only 69 modern examples will be made) are coming as well. Better still, SLP’s modifications are backed by its own 5-year, 160,000 km powertrain warranty that equals GM’s coverage. The 2011 Chevrolet Camaro SLP ZL585 tester lent to me by Automobiles Paillé Inc. in Berthierville, Qué., starts with a $38,445 Camaro 1SS/RS package, straight from GM’s Oshawa plant. The laundry list of upgrades SLP applies in its New Jersey facility for the SLP ZL585’s as-tested $72,495 price, would be as long as a quarter-mile drag strip. But most of the tangible differences can be found under the ZL585’s bulging hood and behind its Hot Wheels-inspired 20-inch Red Line wheels. Added to the Chevy’s stock 6.2-litre V8 is an Eaton TVS 2300 high-output supercharger and a Blackwing cold air induction system. Out back, an as-advertised Loudmouth II Axle-Back Exhaust System is installed. Combined, the SLP modifications add 166 hp and 147 lb-ft of torque to the factory 426 hp and 420 lb-ft Camaro SS. Needless to say, the results are measurable. The ZL585 gets from naught to 100 km/h in just under four seconds — about a second quicker than a factory Camaro SS or a $58,999 Ford Shelby GT 500. To help when the roads aren’t completely straight, the ZL585 receives a sport suspension package that lowers the two-door, four-passenger, rear-wheel-drive coupe 25.5 millimetres at the front, 20 at the back. My car also received an Eibach coil-over spring and shock package with adjustable sway bars both front and rear, and Michelin PS2 performance rubber wrapping those 20-inch rims. Six-piston Brembo GT brake calipers handled stopping, with two-piece cross-drilled 15-inch rotors that also let SLP increase the stock speed limiter from 250 km/h to 305 km/h. For a closed-course race track, of course… Surprisingly, driving the SLP-prepped Camaro was both remarkably similar and different than a “normal” Camaro SS. Despite its over-400 hp rating, each factory-built Camaro SS I’ve driven, has felt almost too refined and quiet for a muscle car. There are no such complaints with the ZL585. It brings real “muscle” to the stock Camaro SS’s supposed “muscle car” moniker. The ZL585’s supercharger grunt means almost instantaneous throttle response, with zero let up. The torque arrives like a giant, curling tsunami. And the exhaust sound coming out of the back will scare small children (it did mine), or Prius drivers. Needless to say, the ZL585 will make you nostalgic for 1969 gas prices. Don’t expect any improvements on the Camaro SS’s 13.2L/100 km city or 7.9 highway fuel economy ratings. First glance of the SLP-tuned Camaro’s hunkered-down, road kill-rubbing lowered suspension and rubber band tires had me booking an appointment with my massage therapist. But no worries. Beyond its ability to distort distance and time from a stoplight, its suspension may be its best feature: the ZL585 offers a surprisingly nice balance between ride and handling. Yes. Over sharp pavement, you’ll hear the big tires thumping. But overall ride quality (already a positive aspect in the factory Camaro) is quite controlled and never annoying. And while the car’s suspension always fought with the Chevy’s inherently generous mass (1,746 kg), it corners much flatter and with less drama than a stock SS. Unfortunately, the SLP car’s similarities with the stock Camaro are its biggest complaints. Except for a SLP-supplied gearshift knob (that looks like a flattened baseball) and some interior trim details, the ZL585 sticks with the basic Camaro interior. That means interior plastics and trim that would shame a $15,000 Cruze compact owner, seats that have about as much support as a pair of goose-down pillows, a deep-dish steering wheel that’s hard to handle, and outside visibility that mimics a Normandy Beach bunker. Me? I’d ditch some of the SLP ZL585’s outrageous exterior graphics in lieu of a proper helm to grab onto and some decent Recaros to grab me. Sure. Almost $75 big ones may sound like a lot for a Camaro. Some may even squawk, “That’s BMW M3 money!” Which is correct, but realistically moot. Euroweenies are Euroweenies and Rednecks are Rednecks, and never the twain shall meet. If you like the existing Camaro SS, though, but want something that drives a lot faster, handles a bit sharper and, at least until Chevy unleashes its 2012 Z28 with the same 556 hp supercharged V8 from the Cadillac CTS-V, is unique, the 2011 Camaro SLP ZL585 is the only game in town. 2011 Chevrolet Camaro SLP ZL585 BASE PRICE/AS-TESTED: $63,440/$72,495 ENGINE: 6.2-litre supercharged V8 POWER: 592 hp/567 lb.-ft. COMPETITION: Ford Shelby GT500 WHAT’S BEST: Immediate engine response; mucho-macho exhaust sound; refined ride and handling balance; exclusivity. WHAT’S WORST: Cartoonish looks; inherently-poor ergonomics; low-rent interior materials.

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