Comparison Tests
Even in their most superpowered forms, the Chevrolet Camaro and the Ford Mustang are paragons of affordable performance. The base prices of the 580-hp Camaro ZL1 and the 662-hp Shelby GT500 together add up to $111,290, or $2285 less than one 638-hp Corvette ZR1.
But the ZL1 and the GT500 are more than just gas-addled tire vaporizers. You should expect as much for their price tags, which more than double those of the base V-6 models. Both are engineered to stand up to the extremes of racetrack driving. They also come with sophisticated electronic aids to make their lofty power reserves easily accessible to rank novices.
No Camaro-Mustang comparo will convert the faithful from either camp, yet we are dutybound to look beyond the biases to find out which is the better car. In this round: real-world roads, proving grounds, a chassis-dynamometer test, and track lapping at Grattan Raceway in Belding, Michigan.
Before you troll on over to your favorite internet-message board to bemoan the injustice or glorify the wisdom of the decision that follows, consider that both the ZL1 and the GT500 are stunning automotive achievements, each worthy of bedroom-wall posterdom. Both deliver breathtaking performance and distinctive character. That’s enough for the love-fest: Let’s proceed swiftly and mercilessly to the results.
