2014 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Convertible is a muscle-car time machine that’s perfect for present day

Years of perfecting the muscle car have led to this: a ragtop Camaro with a performance pedigree. The 2014 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Convertible, which has a base price of $62,850, packs a 6.2-liter supercharged V-8 engine making 580-horsepower with either a six-speed manual or automatic transmission. It’s a retro convertible but has enough power and torque to boost it into the stratosphere of modern muscle car perfection.

GENERAL MOTORSThe 2014 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 is the most unabashedly powerful Camaro droptop currently for sale.

The first thing that you notice about the 2014 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Convertible is not its sinister, scowling face, or its shoulder-height belt line.

No, the honor goes to the inescapable rumbling, burbling exhaust note that follows the ZL1 Convertible —the most unabashedly powerful Camaro droptop currently for sale —everywhere it goes. It’s an unforgettable noise, an anachronistic throwback to the 60s and 70s, when a muscle car was defined by the unmuffled sounds that it made.

It’s fitting the acoustic onslaught accompanies the meanest, most potent Camaro that money can buy –save for the forthcoming, limited-edition Z/28 coupe.

And it certainly looks the part. A subtle update to the front fascia, including a revised grille, and layered fog lights, makes the ZL1 look meaner from the rearview mirror. A “ZL1”logo is prominently displayed on the large hood scoop.

The Camaro ZL1’s interior is much the same as lesser Camaros’are, but a full-color head-up display and optional suede upholstery make up for a lack of fancy soft-touch materials. There is an intuitive infotainment system, too, but there’s something retro and wonderful about getting lost in this retro convertible.

The top comes down in a matter of seconds, although you’ll have to be at or near a full stop to operate it. The tonneau cover is a cosmetic cover-up, but totally unnecessary; for the full effect, leave the top stacked behind the second row passengers —who have contorted their bodies for the privilege of bearing witness to the ZL1 Convertible’s tire-smoking abilities.

Behind the aforementioned snarling and rumbling is a 6.2-liter, 580-horsepower supercharged V-8, not dissimilar to the one found in the last-generation Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 and Cadillac CTS-V sedan, coupe, and wagon.

JEFFREY JABLANSKY / NEW YORK DAILY NEWSA bold "ZL1" badge appears on the convertible's hood scoop.

In those vehicles, it emits a refined but boastful thrum. The Camaro ZL1’s engine makes most of its power at low RPM, and the exhaust note is tuned to emanate junkyard dog sounds even while you’re puttering around town. A light touch on the accelerator is all it takes to impress the neighbors or, as it turns out, intimidate fellow travelers when pulling into a commuter rail station.

The Camaro ZL1 is available with either a 6-speed manual or automatic transmission —my test car was equipped with the auto —and it’s hard to play favorites. Even sports car purists could argue that the automatic makes a lot of sense in a car with this much power on tap. Launch control —which minimizes wheelspin in the rear-wheel-drive Camaro ZL1, and maximize forward thrust —is available only on stickshift-equipped models.

Keeping all the power at bay is perhaps the most difficult aspect of driving the Camaro ZL1 Convertible. The super slick tires, charged with routing a massive amount of power to the tarmac, have a difficult time doing so if not properly warmed.

JEFFREY JABLANSKY / NEW YORK DAILY NEWSA detailed view of the Camaro ZL1's super slick tires.

This proved only slightly problematic when the ambient temperature struggled to reach 50ºF, but resulted in painfully careful movements around the city and on the highway. Jump on the throttle, and the around-town rumbling turns to an all-out scream, amplified by the constant and unending stream of neck-straining power.

Under ideal circumstances, driving the Camaro ZL1 is a blast. Steering is heavy and direct, and the ride is firm but not overly so, thanks to Magnetic Ride Control, General Motors’customizable system of shock absorbers.

Unlike the track-oriented Camaro 1LE, which bridges the gap between the SS and ZL1 models, the wide Camaro ZL1 is a manageable city car —and quite a fun one, at that! You haven’t truly lived until you’ve attempted to scoot through holes in traffic in a droptop with more torque than three taxicabs’combined.

GENERAL MOTORSThe ZL1's interior is the same as other Camaros', more or less.

Straight-line acceleration is indisputably the Camaro ZL1’s main attraction. It’s estimated at under 4 seconds by the manufacturer, and (unfortunately) untested by the News. Despite the near-supercar performance specs,the Camaro ZL1 manages to be a refined overall package.

All of this goodness can be acquired for a smidgeon over $60,000, or about one crisp new Benjamin per horsepower. This easily makes the Camaro ZL1 Convertible the outright performance bargain of the decade, in a class of excellent, but pricey competitors.

Even with all the boxes ticked, the ZL1 won’t run you more than 70 grand —keeping it in line with the Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible, and cautiously close to Chevrolet’s own Corvette. But if you’re interested in the Camaro ZL1, chances are that you’re not looking for the new-found technological refinement of the latest Vette (and cross-shopping the Shelby is automotive sacrilege for many diehard Camaro fans).

What you —yes, you! —want is a rolling tribute of classic Americana, a sports car that could lead a Fourth of July parade at any given moment. The Camaro ZL1 is all of those things, all the time, and it makes quite a loud and powerful statement.

Vital Stats: 2014 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Convertible

Base price: $62,850 (includes $995destination chargeand $1,300 gas guzzler charge)
Drivetrain: Rear-wheel drive, 6.2-liter, 580-horsepower supercharged V-8, 6-speedmanual or automatic transmission
EPA fuel economy: 14 city / 19 highway mpg
Major competitors: Cadillac CTS-V, Chevrolet Corvette, Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible
Also consider: For just about the same price —between $60,000 and 70,000 —we located a handful of Aston Martin DB9s online, which boast four more cylinders and a much more refined driving experience.