I've been thinking about, once I can afford it, trading in my 06 LS and getting a new Camaro... it's a badass car inside and out. All the reviews say its a great modern muscle mar. But there's a few things I'm worried about and make me consider either sticking with a Monte Carlo and trading up to an 07 SS, or looking at a Dodge Charger or maybe even a Challenger.

If the new Camaro becomes as common on the road as Mustangs are now, I don't want one. The reason why the new Camaro is so unique is because it doesn't look like anything else that's on the road right now. It loses this quality, however, if it's every fifth car you see. The base model V6 Camaro is priced new at $23,000 making them pretty darn affordable.

Another thing that bothers me is the way the radio is set up in the dash, making it impossible - or at least very difficult - to replace with an aftermarket head unit. Not only that, but the radio is used to configure settings for the car. This to me is mind-boggling as to why GM would design their car like this, limiting the options for long-term owners who want to customize. Not only that but they aren't offering factory navigation, just the BS OnStar turn-by-turn directions that are no where near as useful as an indash nav unit, and the OnStar is gonna cost you $100 a month. Now, it's possible that the aftermarket will find a way to put a new head unit in there. But it's not looking good. It's possible that GM tied the radio, HVAC, hazard lights, and door locks all into one unit. I really like the fact that on my 06 LS, I can pop out the factory radio with nothing more than a screwdriver, and drop in a new one of my choosing. That's how ALL cars should be.

I've been looking on AutoTrader and you can get a fully-loaded 07 SS with very low miles for around $15,000-17,000 now. I really like my 06 LS; it looks great (although not as good as the new Camaro), it has lots of room in the backseat, and the trunk fits my 2 12's with plenty of room to spare. Another thing that's cool is that I very rarely see 06-07 MCs on the road, so it's special when you do see one. The biggest downside on the MC... FWD!! If this thing were RWD it would be a much easier decision. GM definitely got it wrong here. No sports car should be FWD, period.

Some other cars I've been looking at are the Charger and the Challenger. I'm a GM guy so it saddens me that I would be leaving them. That being said, the Challenger is still priced too high for me, but if I wait a couple years they are likely to come down once they get some miles on them. Right now what's more affordable is the Charger. I kind of didn't want a sedan, but the Charger still looks badass no doubt about it, especially the Daytona Edition, and they're priced about the same as an 07 SS.

I'm still holding out for the new Camaro, but it's got some stiff competition. What do you guys think?

 

 

If you don't want a common car, why would you consider a charger? IDK about you, but that's all I see around by me.

With everything else though, yes they will be affordable, but if you get yourself a really nice one, it will stand out from the crowd.

I do see tons of mustangs in 1 day, but when I see a really nice one, it stands out.

 

I don't know where you got your facts, but the Directions & Connections plan is only $28.90 a month or $299 a year. Plus, you can buy a portable navigation system for like $100 now.

Why would you want to mess with a good thing? The radio in the Camaro I'm sure will suffice as far as sound quality is concerned. Especially with the upgraded Boston Acoustics, 9-speaker, 245-watt system. Plus, I really don't think car companies care one way or another if they are making their radio/head unit/dash in a way that will allow aftermarket units. They probably prefer if you didn't install something else.

I personally want a Challenger, but will wait until after I pay off my '06 SS. That will be in 4 years and I think they will be down in price enough to afford.

What's wrong with your Monte that you want to get rid of it?

To add, chibi is right... Chargers are everywhere. Plus they are sedans... I don't really care for 4-door cars.
And with Mustangs, true car people, the only ones that care to look at other peoples cars, will also catch a nice Mustang and see that it stands out from the fleet of V6 'Stangs driving around.

Good luck!

 

Maybe the OnStar isn't $100 a month but $300 a year is still too high. Why pay a monthly charge for something if you don't have to? I have a portable nav and while it gets the job done, I hate draping wires across the dash and having something (illegal) stuck to my windshield. Indash navs are the way to go.

I don't doubt that the radio in the new Camaro will sound good... but there's a few features that only come with an aftermarket unit. I would love to have a DVD player and a backup camera for example. Not to mention a nice Garmin nav built right in. Plus, a Kenwood or an Alpine is just way more sophisticated when it comes to making your speakers and subs sound their best. It's also much easier to add an amp with an aftermarket unit.

There's nothing wrong with my Monte, it's a great car, and I got a good deal on it, but it's a base model V6, cloth seats, surfboard spoiler, etc. I bought it because I needed to get rid of my previous car, an 01 Seville coming up on 100,000 miles, before it started to have problems.

Chargers are pretty common, true, but there's a world of difference between a base model V6 Charger and say, the Daytona Edition. Just look at some of the tricked-out Chargers on CarDomain.com... when done right, they look awesome.

 

 

You're definitely correct about the fact that a Charger can look awesome. I mean those SRT8 Chargers are incredible. And the Daytona ones are pretty awesome as well.

I just personally don't like messing around too much with the interior features of a car because I don't think aftermarket receivers mesh well AT ALL with a cars interior. They always look so out of place.

Have you tried a vent adaptor for your Nav unit? I do understand the cable thing though, because it definitely does get annoying.

 

The SRT-8 looks so beast, but wow those are some gas guzzlers. I really like the Daytona Edition, because it has the more efficient engine and still performs great and doesn't look like a base model.

Some aftermarket units look tacky... especially when you have a single DIN unit in a double DIN opening. But a nice Kenwood or Pioneer double DIN touchscreen unit almost looks like a factory unit in our MCs.

What exactly is a vent adaptor? Never heard of it. I'm guessing it's some way you can mount a portable nav on an A/C vent? It still has to be plugged into a power outlet though? I've heard of people hardwiring their portable navs into their car's wiring, so it has power when the car is turned on, and then mounting it somewhere on the dash. Unless done right it seems like it would look tacky.

 

You realize when you are buying a camaro, you are buying a sports car right?

The things you listed obviously are on the luxury side of life. If that's what you want, get a cadillac or another luxury coupe that comes with those options.

When people say they want a Camaro, it's not because it has an in-dash dvd player, it's because of the 400+HP under the hood and the roar of the engine when they slam on the throttle.

And what would you need a backup camera for if you aren't in a giant SUV that you can't see small things?

Some people just want all the new toys, give me a good set of mirrors I don't care about cameras.

 

Seeing that i have been a gear head since the age of -1 ( both my parents were gear heads also), the Camaro screams performance. If Luxury is what you are after, then do what BlackSheep said, get a Caddy or a Lexus. The Camaro doesn't have that high of a rear deck to warrant a B/U cam.

Not to be rude or anything, but it sometimes amazes me that people try to take a beautiful car and turn it into a Donk or add more gadgets then the space shuttle. To me a car is meant to be driven, not to see what the weather is in Craplakistan.

JMO.