2019 Chevrolet Camaro Turbo 1LE First Drive

 

No one expects the little brother to have a mean right-hook. Such is the case for the 2019 Chevrolet Camaro Turbo 1LE, the result of Chevrolet Performance’s trickle-down economics from the SS. The biggest question we got from readers was over why would you pick this when the 465hp, LT1-powered SS (and its optional 1LE package) is available. To answer that, we’ve got to look at the Turbo 1LE’s place in the Camaro family, and what it tries to answer in the hotly-contested $30,000-range of sports coupes.

Back in the Day
The 1LE legend started with three other letters, RU7 – the infamous spec Camaros and Trans-Ams built between 1986 and 1992 for SCCA Showroom-Stock and Player’s Challenge racing. With showroom-stock racing on the rise (the SCCA even ran mini-trucks against each other), the challenge grew to shape the third-gen Camaro in ways that may have never happened under 1980s General Motors, then concerned more with fuel economy than performance. Out of the gate, the brakes were desperately grabbing the rotors in a battle they had no way of winning on the track. With the racers backing them, the boffins in Chevrolet devised a corporate big-brake package using the B-body’s 11.86-inch rotors with the C4 Corvette’s twin-piston calipers utilizing a unique steering knuckle. Then they found under heavy braking, the stock tank allowed for the fuel to rush past the pump pick-up, so trap-door baffles were then added to keep it fed under higher G-loads (allowing it to run down to a half-gallon before starving). They also shortened the overdriven fifth gear ratio in the transmission, because it was just a bit too tall to battle the (lighter weight).

I spy, with my little projector-beam eye, an RU7 Camaro.

Here, a never-raced, third-generation RU7 Players Challenge Camaro meets its great-grandson, the sixth-gen Turbo 1LE.

Furthermore, the radiator and driveshaft received aluminum replacements that were better suited for track use, and the usual Three-Esses of suspension components (springs, shocks, swaybars) received track appropriate updates. The Player’s Challenge cars, in particular, were homologated under the RU7 option code – but for the wise, a secret option package existed for those who ordered the G92 axle package (3.42 gears with Positraction) and the C41 A/C delete. It was loosely known as the 1LE “Special Performance Components Package,” which brought the RU7’s spec kit to the street before it became its own RPO code for the fourth-gens.

Right Here, Right Now

When taking a step back to the humble 2.0L Camaro Turbo, it’s hard not to feel a familiar push for the 1LE package here – fuel economy regulations are tight while production car racing is healthy and strong at the grassroots – though this time the four-banger isn’t the limiting factor, it’s you, the driver. The classic trickle-down economics of GM performance is here too, many of the SS’s go-fast goodies are used, like the 245/40R20 front, 275/35R20 rear Goodyear Eagle F1s and staggered 20-inch wheels.

The 245/275mm-wide tire combo is one of the largest in the class, and but is one of the keys to the 1LE’s raw fun.

This car isn’t a secret SS fighter, nor are its sights set for the Mustang GT. It’s there to give turbo-four hot rodders an option to drive one of the most capable RWD chassis in modern production at a stinkin’ good deal – think GTi and ST owners who are looking for more fun and quicker lap-times but enjoy the fuel-efficient practicalities of a turbo-four. With turbocharging playing such a big role in bolt-on power in recent decades, Al Oppenheiser is looking to capture some of those who would prefer to play with a boosted package. Al, the Camaro program’s lead engineer, knows he’s not here to please the V8 crowd, and he doesn’t have to. For those looking at low-buck sports coupes that will survive a weekend of racing and still drive itself home (and a factory track warranty that’ll back it), it’s a package worth looking at. “The cool thing about the 1LE package in the sixth-gen is that because we started with the SS and the V6, and then expanded boundaries with the ZL1/1LE, we have this whole parts bin we can take things from and apply to the Turbo 1LE,” he mentioned.

The elephant in the room here is the LTG, GM’s turbocharged 2.0L four-cylinder that’s found in everything from the Cadillac ATS to the GMC Terrain. If you’re here to compare it to the V8, we’ve got two comments: 1) Spend the extra dough if you want it and; 2) the LTG makes more horsepower than every single factory Camaro V8 built from approximately 1974 to 1995. The Camaro receives the highest-output version at 275hp and 295lb-ft. of torque – with a noticeably wide powerband from 3,000 rpm to 6,500 rpm.

Don’t fear the reaper, even though the LTG represents contemporary performance, it holds its own to decades of V8 Camaro performance.

Turns 9 through 12 at Ridge Motorsports Park is an excellent demonstration for this. You come out of turn 8 at something like 50mph, and charge up the hill, flat-out, through 9 and 10 just under 100 mph with the tach just ready to whisper the limiter. When you enter the tricky late-apex of 11, you’re hauling on the brakes before diving into the sharper-than-expected left-hander and climbing out of the hole at 45-some-odd-mph – all in a single gear. The fact that the little-turbo-that-could hauls the Camaro from 3,000rpm to redline at 7,000rpm with equal thrust is impressive if you’ve come from more traditional turbo-fours, where torque is virtually non-existent unless the motor is wound-up and begrudgingly in boost. Chevrolet claims that 90% of the torque is available by 2,000 rpm, which is more noticeable in daily-driving routines, and makes the Turbo 1LE very civil in traffic with smooth operation at low revs.

The secondary advantage over the V8, and even the V6 models, is that the nose of the engine sits further back in the chassis, creating a near-50/50 weight balance. In fact, at 3,354 pounds, the Turbo 1LE is nearly 400 pounds lighter than the base SS. This is appreciated in the well-tuned springs, shocks, and swaybars of the FE3 suspension package that were spec’d for the Turbo 1LE. FE3 also brings stiffer subframe and suspension bushings throughout, which allows practically every bit of movement from the tire to be felt by the seat of your pants with minimal deflection.  All of this adds up to a lightweight ringer in the Camaro family for autocross and tighter road courses with all-you-can-eat grip at turn-in, it’s just lighter on its feet.

That track-ready durability is where GM’s trickle-down performance from the SS and V6 1LE continues, with an upgraded radiator, intercooler, and differential cooler keeping the key hardware cool under long stints. “We have launch control added [over the base Turbo coupe], and all of our manual transmission Camaros have no-lift shift. It’s a paradigm shift,” Al continued. “It really improves your lap time.” Once we got over distant memories of bang-shifting T-56 Firebird Formulas, it really did make gear changes subconscious while maintaining boost between shifts.

The Price

The 2019 Camaro Turbo 1LT with the $4,500 1LE package (RPO A1X) starts at $30,995. The only extra options are well-advised Recaro seat package ($1,595) and Performance Data and Video Recorder ($1,300) for serious track fiends; and the 2LT and 3LT trim packages (3LT offers the V6 for the same price), which adds leather seats, take care of those who want a few extra interior options. This puts the Camaro square with their EcoBoost-ed competition from Dearborn, and throws down a hard-to-miss gauntlet for those pricing out the Toyota 86s, Subaru BRZs, Nissan 370Zs, and so-on. For someone thinking about an affordable, daily-driven track toy, or those who are already reading through autocross class rules, the Turbo 1LE is an attractive option.

 

Why the Performance Data Recorder is the Cheapest way to go Faster

If you’ve been racing long, you know that studying data one of the best tools for improving lap times. Learning how to better use the machine by adjusting the nut behind the wheel (the driver) can not only improve lap times by spelling out the obvious mistakes, but by quickly improving driver confidence, they’re more willing to commit and maintain speed around a course. Metaphorically speaking, you can learn more from watching one lap than driving three by removing yourself from the moment and analyzing it critically. GM’s Performance Data Recorder (PDR) is a factory-mounted video and data recorder that overlays high-resolution data from the CAN-bus. Everything from pedal pressure to steering angle is displayed, along with the venerable speed, G-force, and rpm readouts.

With that information, you can quickly decipher what you felt on track with feedback showing exactly what inputs you gave the car. Did a run that felt smooth, but slow, actually bring a lower lap time than a tower-buzzing, Hail Mary lap? The more you analyze and adjust, the more quickly you can memorize a course or fine-tune a bad habit. To use PDR, all you need is a standard SD card (Class 10 or higher, and as big as you can afford) to slide in the dash, and with Competition Mode, the car readies the screen to start recording or to mark a start-line (we goofed doing it in pit-row, set it during a warm-up lap and forget it). Better yet, the data file that downloads can be imported into the Cosworth Toolbox on your PC, which allows you to dissect it further. It doesn’t cost you anything but time to do the homework, but we’ll let you add up tires and fuel learning without it.

VIDEO AND MORE PHOTOS HERE

SOURCE: HOT ROD

AUTHOR: Phillip Thomas