Stinger GT to Camaro SS

[Maljey]

Yeah, 55k is not ideal at all, no matter what the features it has.

For another few grand, you're getting a m340i for example. Better in everything not named a hatch cargo.

Now if you're talking about lightly used CPO, that would take out stinger from the top 10 immediately.

Eh, if you want a stripped M340i then yeah you can get one on paper for 2k more or so. But you're gonna be custom ordering that car. The vast majority of M340i are starting at low 60K minimum, nationwide. They are topping out in low to mid 70k. If you want it comparatively equipped to a GT2 you're gonna be paying at least 9K+ more.

If you don't care about the missing features in a stripped/base M340i that's fine. But if you are realistically shopping available inventory nationwide you are starting in the low 60s for your car at best.

 

[turboAWD]

Yeah, 55k is not ideal at all, no matter what the features it has.

For another few grand, you're getting a m340i for example. Better in everything not named a hatch cargo.

Now if you're talking about lightly used CPO, that would take out stinger from the top 10 immediately.

I guess it depends on what you need. Base '24 m340xi starts at $59,600. Not sure what that comes with or not, but probably not power tailgate, HUD, 360 cameras, etc.

If I hadn't rode out the lease due to Covid, after lease cash, I would have paid ~$41-42K for my '19 GT1 AWD - and IIRC, some GT AWDs were bought for ~$35K OTD. No 340xi touches that. And how many trim options do you have to add before you get to something unarguably "better" than what I got in the GT1 (note: I wanted AWD)?

Even just adding basic features like Nav, basic driver assist and performance tires (ugh: run-flats I would have to replace right away), it's $63+K. With the desirable features like Msport suspension, etc, it's $69+K. Sure, it's probably 20% "nicer" than the Stinger - but my wife would just be more paranoid about any little scratch.

Stinger is already tight for my 2 teenagers (2 girls, 5'9" and 5'7") and sometimes mother-in-law (for short trips) in the back - pretty sure the F30 had less rear legroom. Not sure how much "more" legroom the G20 has - is it more than the Stinger, or "almost as much"? Also not sure if it was widely available in June '19 when I bought from one week to the next - my Subaru broke, and I needed a car. The only other option at the time I considered (I'd already done years of shopping and had ruled out the Q50 due to the sport seats just being impossible for me to sit in) was a Charger Scat Pack, and they were impossible to find with the adaptive suspension unless you wanted to pay like $55K for a fully loaded one.

Had already sat in Audis, and S4/S5 were too small, would have to go S6 (RS6? drool!) to get enough room. C-series also too small, and faster E-series were lots of $$$.

 

[AtomicGTL]

Even just adding basic features like Nav, basic driver assist and performance tires (ugh: run-flats I would have to replace right away), it's $63+K. With the desirable features like Msport suspension, etc, it's $69+K. Sure, it's probably 20% "nicer" than the Stinger - but my wife would just be more paranoid about any little scratch.

True, the add ons do pile up.

But I wouldn't say it's 20% better. It's 80% better. Suspension, engine, trans, tech, ride is vastly better than a stinger, rightfully so.

 

[turboAWD]

True, the add ons do pile up.

But I wouldn't say it's 20% better. It's 80% better. Suspension, engine, trans, tech, ride is vastly better than a stinger, rightfully so.

Fair enough. Stinger is the fastest / most expensive car I've ever owned. Although, I probably paid a similar amount in real $$ for my '05 Legacy GT Wagon. $500 under invoice at the time in Jan '05, around $32K - which comes out to $42K in adjusted $$ in 2019. If I had bought out the lease, that's roughly what I would have paid (both before tax).

Ok, the '94 Corrado I bought used in '97 or '98 would be $43K in adjusted dollars (going by MSRP).

 

[Chrismal]

I'll throw this in here to avoid a second Stinger to, or in addition to, a 6th Gen Camaro.

I bought the Stinger a few years ago now, as a CPO with 15K. At the time I had been searching for a micro blue base GT RWD. This was the lightest version of the 3.3, and still further up the luxury scale than I have been. The plan was to do minimum mods to make it a car I could drive on the street and still do the occasional (3 or 4) HPDEs.

The more I drive this car, the more I appreciate what it is. It is an incredible compromise car. Really good handling, great power, better cargo space than a lot of small SUVs, comfortable enough for me, my 6'3" son, and my 5'8" daughter to comfortably road trip in. I love the look of this car, and that I have yet to see my "twin" on the road. What it is not, for me, is a car that I have the urge to take to the track. It is more than capable of spirited driving on the street, but it is a heavy, automatic car, and even with coil overs, sways, and multiple alignment configurations, it just doesn't inspire me to take it to the track. So I am taking the coil overs back off, and putting it on strictly daily driver/road trip duty. I think it excels here.

With all that said, I have been looking at some additional options. My list was long and varied, but all the cars in question had track capability in common (yes I know that you can take almost anything with 4 wheels that passes tech to the track). A couple of weeks ago, I found a 23 2SS 1LE in Rapid Blue with 400 miles. Having driven a 5th Gen SS 1LE, I was interested. Then I drove it. It is an incredible car. I debated selling the Stinger, but in the end they are both great cars, and now stable mates.

The day I bought it, it was 15 degrees F, and it is still on the stock Supercar 3 tires. I was not driving it home in those conditions. So I picked it up Thursday and drove 4 hours home through torrential downpours. The tires weren't good for that either, but it's now in for PPF/ceramic/tint, and I am planning on taking it to Road Atlanta at the end of March.

 

[Transmetal]

I'll throw this in here to avoid a second Stinger to, or in addition to, a 6th Gen Camaro.

I bought the Stinger a few years ago now, as a CPO with 15K. At the time I had been searching for a micro blue base GT RWD. This was the lightest version of the 3.3, and still further up the luxury scale than I have been. The plan was to do minimum mods to make it a car I could drive on the street and still do the occasional (3 or 4) HPDEs.

The more I drive this car, the more I appreciate what it is. It is an incredible compromise car. Really good handling, great power, better cargo space than a lot of small SUVs, comfortable enough for me, my 6'3" son, and my 5'8" daughter to comfortably road trip in. I love the look of this car, and that I have yet to see my "twin" on the road. What it is not, for me, is a car that I have the urge to take to the track. It is more than capable of spirited driving on the street, but it is a heavy, automatic car, and even with coil overs, sways, and multiple alignment configurations, it just doesn't inspire me to take it to the track. So I am taking the coil overs back off, and putting it on strictly daily driver/road trip duty. I think it excels here.

With all that said, I have been looking at some additional options. My list was long and varied, but all the cars in question had track capability in common (yes I know that you can take almost anything with 4 wheels that passes tech to the track). A couple of weeks ago, I found a 23 2SS 1LE in Rapid Blue with 400 miles. Having driven a 5th Gen SS 1LE, I was interested. Then I drove it. It is an incredible car. I debated selling the Stinger, but in the end they are both great cars, and now stable mates.

The day I bought it, it was 15 degrees F, and it is still on the stock Supercar 3 tires. I was not driving it home in those conditions. So I picked it up Thursday and drove 4 hours home through torrential downpours. The tires weren't good for that either, but it's now in for PPF/ceramic/tint, and I am planning on taking it to Road Atlanta at the end of March.View attachment 84471View attachment 84472

Love the color of your car, I just couldn't bring myself to buy a 6th. The 5th gen looked way better imo. I was especially a fan of the ZL1. I kinda still want a 5th gen ZL1 but I'd definitely have to do something to upgrade the interior, talk about bargain bin. GM interiors are horrible unless it's a Cadillac. I think they did really good with the C8 though.

 

[Maljey]

Regarding Cadillac, I sat in the CT4 and CT5 sedans at a car show back in 2022. I was not impressed. They really didn't seem any better than the Stinger.

Granted, they are all around the same price range but I was really expecting more for a Cadillac.

 

[turboAWD]

I'll throw this in here to avoid a second Stinger to, or in addition to, a 6th Gen Camaro.

I bought the Stinger a few years ago now, as a CPO with 15K. At the time I had been searching for a micro blue base GT RWD. This was the lightest version of the 3.3, and still further up the luxury scale than I have been. The plan was to do minimum mods to make it a car I could drive on the street and still do the occasional (3 or 4) HPDEs.

Hey, if you can swing the additional vehicle, that's great for you. We already have 3 cars for 2 drivers and I have time for like 2-4 HPDEs per year. I don't need to win those, just have fun and be able to pass a few cars (which I certainly can!).

When the kids leave and the wife and I retire (5-10 yrs) and I still enjoy track time, I'll do something different then.

 

[Chrismal]

Love the color of your car, I just couldn't bring myself to buy a 6th. The 5th gen looked way better imo. I was especially a fan of the ZL1. I kinda still want a 5th gen ZL1 but I'd definitely have to do something to upgrade the interior, talk about bargain bin. GM interiors are horrible unless it's a Cadillac. I think they did really good with the C8 though.

Ha, yes. The camaro interior is a little
basic. Not terrible though.

The 6th gen is better looking to me than the 5th gen, but that's just opinion. More importantly to me is that it is lighter with better performance.

Hey, if you can swing the additional vehicle, that's great for you. We already have 3 cars for 2 drivers and I have time for like 2-4 HPDEs per year. I don't need to win those, just have fun and be able to pass a few cars (which I certainly can!).

When the kids leave and the wife and I retire (5-10 yrs) and I still enjoy track time, I'll do something different then.

That's the stage of life I'm in. My son is 25 this year and on his own, and my daughter just turned 18, and moved up to VA with her mom to go to school up there. I will be a household of 1 with a currently part time resident that may become permanent. She has her own car.

Kids school is taken care of, and I've been fortunate financially. However, since I don't want to drive the camaro every day, and enjoy the Stinger as my day to day, the tow vehicle will be older and not fancy, with an open deck trailer later this year. That's my trade off to keep the Stinger.

 

[turboAWD]

Ha, yes. The camaro interior is a little
basic. Not terrible though.

The 6th gen is better looking to me than the 5th gen, but that's just opinion. More importantly to me is that it is lighter with better performance.


That's the stage of life I'm in. My son is 25 this year and on his own, and my daughter just turned 18, and moved up to VA with her mom to go to school up there. I will be a household of 1 with a currently part time resident that may become permanent. She has her own car.

Kids school is taken care of, and I've been fortunate financially. However, since I don't want to drive the camaro every day, and enjoy the Stinger as my day to day, the tow vehicle will be older and not fancy, with an open deck trailer later this year. That's my trade off to keep the Stinger.

Yeah.. If I'm still living at this location, I don't know that I'd ever get hardcore enough to do a trailer.. Just get a used Mustang or Vette or something, and drive to the track.. It's 60-90 minutes to both Sonoma and Laguna - close enough to leave in the morning and get home at night.. I have a terrible time sleeping in hotels (especially the first night) - being sleep deprived is not the way to have fun at the track..

 

[Chrismal]

I'm a little jealous. Laguna Seca is on the list of tracks I would love to drive, but aren't local. Long way from GA.

 

[turboAWD]

I'm a little jealous. Laguna Seca is on the list of tracks I would love to drive, but aren't local. Long way from GA.

I know it's a historic circuit, but I actually prefer Sonoma (aka Sears Point or Infineon) - it's more challenging. A good miata can beat me relatively easily (I have 7 track days total) there. At Laguna, except for the corkscrew, it's 80% hp and brakes. Miatas can't keep up up the hills or the front straightaway all - the m3s, etc (and me) just blow past them.

I think most people around here agree, because it's much harder to get time at Sonoma. Laguna always seems to have Monday or Thursday sessions available that are still not full the day before - at least before the repave. Sonoma seems to fill up weeks in advance.

Edit: but, Laguna is still way better than no track day

 

[Volfy]

One thing great about GM, that Kia/Genesis/Hyundai cannot match, is the shared platforms that allow you to draw from an incredibly enormous OEM parts bin and aftermarket support base. Want to drop 6-pot Brembos from the latest C8 Corvette ZL1 into a Chevy truck or Cadillac sedan? If it isn't a direct bolt-on, somebody probably stocks an adapter kit to make to happen.

 

[Chrismal]

I know it's a historic circuit, but I actually prefer Sonoma (aka Sears Point or Infineon) - it's more challenging. A good miata can beat me relatively easily (I have 7 track days total) there. At Laguna, except for the corkscrew, it's 80% hp and brakes. Miatas can't keep up up the hills or the front straightaway all - the m3s, etc (and me) just blow past them.

I think most people around here agree, because it's much harder to get time at Sonoma. Laguna always seems to have Monday or Thursday sessions available that are still not full the day before - at least before the repave. Sonoma seems to fill up weeks in advance.

Edit: but, Laguna is still way better than no track day

Yep, Laguna is on the list, because Corkscrew.

One thing great about GM, that Kia/Genesis/Hyundai cannot match, is the shared platforms that allow you to draw from an incredibly enormous OEM parts bin and aftermarket support base. Want to drop 6-pot Brembos from the latest C8 Corvette ZL1 into a Chevy truck or Cadillac sedan? If it isn't a direct bolt-on, somebody probably stocks an adapter kit to make to happen.

Absolutely. If I get to that point in a few years, the ZL1 brakes and DSSV dampers are a direct swap.

That said, the idea is that this car is fully capable of full on track days with just a brake fluid swap, and then the consumables as required.