It’s Not That Easy: 2010 Chevy Camaro vs 2011 Mazda 2

Good morning! We have a short week due to the holiday yesterday, so we’re going to keep things simple. We’ll do three pairs of cars, and then on Friday we’ll play “track, daily, burn” with the winners. Haven’t done that in a while. And since both of today’s cars are green, I’ll make the other two pairs match, too.

On Friday, beauty was in the eye of the beholder when we looked at two ugly, rusty old trucks that I thought looked perfect the way they are. It’s not often that I’m surprised by the outcome of a vote, but this is one of those times. I thought for sure the old Dodge pickup was going to win it. But the 4×4 International beat it, and by a pretty good margin.

I’d be happy with either, but I don’t need two Forest Service Green pickups, so I guess the Travelall would make more sense. I really like that old Dodge, though. Argh – I should have given you a “both” option. It’s only pretend money, right?

I feel like I’ve been neglecting the middle of the country a little bit, so this week I’m going to stay off the coasts and pick cars from “flyover states,” even though I hate that term. I’m an Illinois native myself, and I still love the Midwest. Today’s choices hail from Missouri and Nebraska. They’re the same price, and the same color, but that’s about all they have in common. Let’s check them out.

2010 Chevrolet Camaro LT – $2,600

Engine/drivetrain: 3.6-liter dual overhead cam V6, six-speed automatic, RWD

Location: Raytown, MO

Odometer reading: 156,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives well

The fourth-generation Camaro went out of production in 2002, not with a bang, nor a whimper, but sort of an overweight wheezy groan, like an aging rock star hobbling through yet another “farewell tour.” I know the fourth gen has its fans, but I’ve never been one of them, personally. It looked like someone overinflated a third-generation Camaro, and then went out of their way to make it hard to access the engine. In 2009, however, photos of an all-new Camaro began circulating: a retro-inspired design that could not be mistaken for anything else. The “small, vicious animal that eats Mustangs” was back.

Like most cars of this type, the fast V8 versions got all the press, but the tamer models made up the bulk of production. This Camaro is powered by the base engine, GM’s 3.6-liter “High Feature” V6, driving the rear wheels through a six-speed automatic. Even though it’s the slowest 2010 Camaro, with 312 horsepower on tap it could still blow the doors off that ’79 Rally Sport with the 305 that your buddy in high school was so proud of. Some of these engines did have some timing chain issues, but this one has reached 156,000 miles, which means it has already been repaired, or it’s one of the good ones.

The fifth-generation and later Camaros look cool, but they all suffer from the same problem: the interior is a cave. Take almost any other sporty coupe, and black out the top and bottom thirds of the windows; that’s a pretty good approximation of the outward visibility. And they all seem to be black inside like this one. The photos in this ad are terrible, but it looks like the interior is in decent shape at least.

It sure does have some curb appeal, though, with its acid-green paint and black stripes. I could do without the tinted windows, which of course, make it even darker inside. As good as it looks, though, you’d be wise to look underneath and make sure it isn’t rusty. Camaros are kind of useless in the snow, but a car like this one was probably somebody’s only car, so I’m sure it has seen some road salt.

2011 Mazda Mazda2 – $2,600

Engine/drivetrain: 1.5-liter dual overhead cam inline 4, four-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Lincoln, NE

Odometer reading: 148,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives well

I swear, there are about a hundred people in the US who really like small hatchbacks – and none of us ever buy new cars. We long for cars like the Honda City and Ford Ka, but then when an automaker actually gives us a little hatchback, nobody buys it, and after a few years the auto execs go “See? Nobody in America wants a small car.” Mazda offered its Demio hatchback here for a few years as the Mazda2, and the sedan version was available for a while from Scion and Toyota dealers, but nobody seemed to care. This little green Mazda2 is a rarity anywhere, but I imagine especially so in Nebraska.

The Mazda2 is powered by a 1.5-liter version of Mazda’s MZR four-cylinder, making only about a hundred horsepower, which would be plenty for a little hatchback like this with a manual, but nobody in the US buys those anymore either. This one has a four-speed automatic, which probably means its color is a whole lot more exciting than its driving experience. It does run and drive well, according to the seller, and gets good fuel economy, which is really the point of a car like this anyway.

The inside looks nice; Mazda has always done a good job with interior design. It’s in good condition, too. That seat fabric looks interesting, which is another thing I always liked about small cars. From Toyota’s plaid Tercel seats to the Hyundai Accent’s “Funfetti” upholstery, small cars have often made good interior choices. This one looks more like a wetsuit, or maybe Batman’s armor, but it’s still cool.

Outside, it’s pretty banged up – it has a salvage title from hail damage, but hail isn’t the only thing that has hit this car. The left rear door has a sizeable wrinkle in it, and there’s a crack in the front bumper. I imagine the hood is a replacement that just never got painted. Stick some big driving lights on the front and pretend it’s a rally car, I guess.

Neither of these is the best of their respective breeds – the Camaro has the wrong engine and the Mazda the wrong transmission – but I’d be hard-pressed to think of a better color for either of them. It’s not just the lack of colors that make most cars so dull-looking; it’s the lack of bold colors, really vibrant hues that smack you in the face. This bright green does mean you’ll never be able to blend into traffic, but you’ll never lose your car in a parking lot, either. So what do you think? Which one wears it better?