While the 5th generation Chevrolet Camaro with the V6 engine had a bit of grumble to it, all of the V6 muscle cars from Detroit have tried too hard to muffle the tone of their smaller engines. While some V6 Camaro owners might want their car to be quiet, many of them turn to the aftermarket to add a more muscular exhaust note but in the case of the 2016 Camaro – GM has done the work for those people.
Unlike the Ford Mustang and the Dodge Challenger with their V6 engines, the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro V6 is actually permitted to clear its throat a bit. Better yet, when new Camaro V6 buyers opt for the optional Dual Mode Exhaust system, the 3.6L engine really roars at wide open throttle while having a very pleasant rumble at idle and lower throttle inputs.
Truth be told, as V6 engines go, I absolutely love the sound of the new Camaro V6 with the Dual Mode Exhaust system. Sure, it doesn’t have the same deep tone as the V8 engines and it isn’t never going to, so if you insist on your muscle car sounding like a V8 – buy a V8. On the other hand, if you want a V6 muscle car that roars like a proper performance car, even with a slightly higher pitch than the V8 models, the Camaro answers the bell like no competitor on the market.
I recently spent a week behind the wheel of a 2016 Camaro 1LT RS Convertible with the V6 engine, Dual Mode Exhaust and the 6-speed manual transmission. To capture the exhaust tone, I mount a camera on the rear bumper, just below the taillight, where the camera and microphone are best sheltered from the wind. This provides the best possible sound samples, although the video isn’t the most exciting.
In the videos below, there are examples of my launching the 2016 Camaro V6 from a stop and running up to 60 mph or so. In the first video, I start from idle and run up to 60 and on the second video, I bring the revs up a bit before launching – resulting in a bit of wheelspin.
I have also included a video of the new Turbocharged 4-cylinder Mustang, which offers comparable performance to the Camaro’s V6, along with a clip showing similar footage with the 5th gen Camaro 1LE. The Mustang offers no sound in comparison and for the 1LE, it seems like the new V6 with dual mode exhaust might almost be louder than the V8.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
