2010 Camaro SS — Flash Drive Car..........

 2010 Camaro SS — Flash Drive Car..........

The 2010 Camaro SS RS is, in most ways, exactly the car we had hoped for after laying eyes on the original Camaro concept a few years ago. Powered by a 426-horsepower 6.2-liter V8, it is very fast, makes great sounds, and attracts attention wherever it goes. It does feel bigger and heavier than I would like, but the steering is crisp, the 4-wheel independent suspension works well and the overall balance is very predictable, making the RS both easy and fun to drive. Unfortunately, driver visibility is seriously impaired. Wide A-pillars obscure the front view, and a high beltline and large C-pillars make rear visibility a real issue. Even so, I'd drive this car every day. –Mike Meredith

I still think this is the best looking American muscle car on the market today. The Camaro just oozes with coolness. It is a beast with the 426 horsepower V8 that produces an exhaust note that sounds incredible. This Camaro moves like a locomotive and gathers steam very quickly. There is one design flaw: the wide-swinging doors. In close quarters, it's difficult to open them without dinging adjacent cars or other objects. A large blind spot looms over the driver's left shoulder. Even with those faults, it is easy to have a love affair with this car. –Joe Chulick

The Camaro SS is drop-dead gorgeous, especially in Victory Red. Like any classic muscle car, it has an incredible exhaust note, especially when the revs pass 3000 rpm. But unlike those cars from decades ago, the Camaro is easy and fun to drive on twisty as well as long straight roads. Sliding the rear end out with wheels spinning and engine roaring immediately put a smile on my face. What's not fun is driving the Camaro as an everyday car. Idle is somewhat rough, ride is stiff and our tester had a black interior which combined with the low roof made it very claustrophobic. No question that the Camaro SS is a blast when conditions allow, but for most circumstances, the good looks couldn't quite win me over.

The Muscle Car War Heats Up New Latest

The Muscle Car War Heats Up

 The 2011 Ford Mustang is a whole new breed of horse. While the big news is that the 5.0-liter V8 has finally returned to the Blue Oval, the company has also sharpened its V6 considerably, producing more horsepower and better fuel economy from the same six-cylinder found in the car’s closest rival -- the Chevrolet Camaro. It’s a smart move on Ford’s part, especially considering the company is likely to move quite a bit more base Mustangs than the well-dressed GT versions.

Ford ups the ante and GM, Chrysler can't be far behind

Judging by data gathered by Motor Trend, General Motors should be worried about the performance of the 2010 Camaro V6 compared to that of the 2011 Mustang V6. While Ford’s new champ delivers just a single horsepower more (305) than the Camaro, it’s half-second quicker to 60 mph -- and maintains that lead all the way down the quarter mile. Even more surprising, the V6 Mustang performed better on the skid pad, braking test and slalom compared to its rival from Chevrolet.

So what can GM do to step up its game? For starters, it can put the Camaro on a serious diet. The big two-door comes in 282 lbs heavier than Ford’s bruiser, and that extra weight shows up in nearly all of the Camaro’s performance figures in one way or another. While a little more power never hurt anyone, the 3.6-liter V6 is already a stout performer. If GM really wants to see the Camaro dot the Mustang’s eye, the company is going to need to send its new star to fat camp.

Red Subaru, Cars

Red Subaru, Blue Subaru

No one who writes about cars can resist stereotyping the owners of various brands. C’mon, give it a try: Lamborghini = South Beach nouveau riche; Corvette is the baby boomer flaunting both chest hair and a full-on midlife crisis.

But it was interesting to hear Sarah Palin insinuate that if you drive a Subaru, you must be an Obama-loving Democrat. Last week, in tiny Searchlight, Nev., Palin said the following during a Tea Party rally: "That bumper sticker that maybe you'll see on the next Subaru driving by -- an Obama bumper sticker -- you should stop the driver and say, 'So how is that hopey-changey thing working out for ya?'”

Sure, the "hopey-changey" line is a stock Palin talking point, but the brand-specific message spread quickly to Subaru forums, where owners expressed dismay or anger at being pigeonholed thusly by the former Alaska governor. The truth, of course, is that there’s no such thing as a Democratic car or a Republican car -- as much as most of us like to tweak Saabs as being first in the hearts of liberal college professors. And Palin’s instantaneous backpedal, in which she assured the audience that she has nothing against Subarus, made it clear that Palin realized the minefield she had stepped into: No savvy politician goes out of her way to alienate members of any group, just for the sake of an easy punch line. Can you imagine any high-profile partisan calling out Pepsi drinkers and suggesting that they must belong to the other team?

But as with certain stereotypes, there is a kernel of truth here: As John Voelcker noted in a 2005 survey by Scarborough Research found that Subaru owners had the second-highest percentage of owners identifying themselves as Democrats, trailing only Volvo, whose owners clocked in at 44 percent Democratic and 32 percent Republican, with the rest either calling themselves independents or declining to answer.

Checking up on that survey, I found that Porsches and Hummers were the favored chariots of the GOP. (Big surprise, right?) Twice as many Porsche owners -- 59 percent to 27 percent -- identified themselves as Republican, with Hummer also going red-state in a landslide, at 52 percent Republican versus 23 percent Democratic.

If Subarus are indeed associated with Democrats, Vermonters and, well, lesbian Vermonters, its brand values have certainly evolved. Not that long ago, the word “Subaru” conjured vivid images of boxy, charmingly utilitarian station wagons, perhaps hauling granola to the local food co-op. Subaru is still known for its rugged all-wheel-drive cars, but it has also become more style-conscious. The Subaru WRX and the brand’s association with rally racing have lent it a boy-racer demographic as well. And considering the way Subaru has shot up the sales polls, it’s clear that its appeal cuts across all party lines: Subaru was one of only three brands to see its sales rise in an otherwise miserable 2009. And through March, its 2010 sales are up a remarkable 40 percent over last year.

At the recent New York Auto Show, a Subaru spokesman quietly told me that some owners contacted the company in the wake of Palin’s remarks, however tongue-in-cheek they may have been. Some owners expressed apprehension that they might be singled out for verbal attacks, or their cars for vandalism. The company has tried to assure them that there’s nothing to worry about. Certainly, Hummer owners aren't about to start running Subarus off the road, unless perhaps that hippie in the Subaru flips off the commando-wannabe in his Hummer. (See what I mean about stereotypes?)