Since then, Alex has reviewed nearly every new vehicle available in South Africa, travelled globally for high-profile launches, and even raced as a works driver for Toyota Gazoo Racing. He also led the digital division at CAR magazine (South Africa’s oldest and most respected motoring publication), building its online presence significantly through editorial direction and multimedia content.
In today’s car market, affordability is a rare commodity, especially when it comes to options on the sporty spectrum. Shoppers looking for an accessible way into American performance often find themselves pointed toward the 2025 Ford Mustang EcoBoost, which is the most affordable new American-made sports car currently on sale in the United States. It’s turbocharged, boasts impressive efficiency, and undeniably carries the iconic Mustang badge. Yet, for buyers willing to look beyond the new-car showroom, the used market holds an equally affordable but far more powerful alternative, one that trades four-cylinder efficiency for full-fat V8 muscle.
The caveat is that it isn’t new, but it does come with its own heritage, brimming with burly power and pop culture references that make it instantly cool.
In 2025, and for many other model years before, the most affordable way into American sports car ownership is the Ford Mustang EcoBoost. As the cheapest new American sports car, it offers turbocharged performance with modern tech at a price that doesn’t scare off younger buyers who don’t quite have the credit score for the 5.0 sauce.
However, there are other options, some that would have other enthusiasts at the car meet not scoff in disdain. The car in question is the full-fat, V8-powered 2010 Chevrolet Camaro 2SS. As of this year, the average market value of a clean 2010 Camaro 2SS hovers around $28,000 to $31,000, which is below the MSRP of a brand-new 2025 Mustang EcoBoost. Sure, it doesn’t come with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, an adaptive safety suite or other modern tech, but sometimes V8 soul constitutes more than all of that combined.
Thus, this price parity establishes a true dilemma for true enthusiasts shopping for an American sports car. On the one hand, the EcoBoost Mustang is modern, efficient, and still very much a Mustang in the sense of style and aesthetic occasion. On the other hand, the Camaro 2SS offers something Ford’s turbo-four simply cannot – the visceral rumble and raw torque of a naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V8. This could be a no-brainer for those who prefer muscle car authenticity!
Ford’s 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine is a marvel of modern efficiency and engineering. It churns out 315 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque, offering impressive acceleration for a four-cylinder. But in the world of muscle cars, numbers only tell part of the story. The 2010 Camaro 2SS left the factory with GM’s LS3 V8 under the hood (or an L99 with the automatic), producing 426 horsepower and 420 lb-ft of torque when paired with a Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual transmission. That’s nearly 100 extra ponies and a torque figure that dwarfs Ford’s modern EcoBoost.
2010 Camaro 2SS (Manual)
2025 Ford Mustang EcoBoost
Engine
6.2-liter V8
2.3-liter Turbocharged Inline-Four
Horsepower
426 hp
315 hp
Torque
420 lb-ft
350 lb-ft
0–60 mph
4.6 seconds
4.9 seconds
Top Speed
155 mph
145 mph
Despite the seriously impressive performance the Mustang’s four-banger puts out for a car that weighs nearly 3,600 lbs, the performance metrics clearly lean in favor of the Camaro. Now would be a good time to mention that this isn’t the first time the Mustang has omitted a V8 in favour of a smaller motor. In fact, the very first 1964 Mustang offered a modest inline-six as its base engine. This was a trend that carried through the early years for budget-minded buyers and into the current day, which was an undeniable contributor to its overall success in becoming the world’s best-selling sports car.
A lesser-known fact is that this isn’t the first time the Mustang has been outfitted with a four-cylinder either, because during the fuel-conscious 1970s, the second-generation Mustang II dropped the V8 entirely in 1974, offering only four- and six-cylinder engines in response to the oil crisis. To no surprise, the modest 2.3-liter naturally-aspirated inline-four cylinder was the least powerful Mustang ever manufactured, with a maximum 88 hp and 116 lb-ft. Fortunately, though, a small V8 returned the following year. In more recent times, Ford has kept the affordable and downsized tradition alive with EcoBoost turbo-fours and base six-cylinder options, ensuring the Mustang can truly remain a sports car for the working man.
With that history lesson done, it is time for another, but this time for the Camaro. When Chevrolet revived the moniker in 2010, it arrived at dealers as a stylish and affordable alternative to the Mustang GT and Dodge Challenger R/T of the time. The 2SS trim, with its LS3 V8, had an MSRP of around $34,000, which undercut many of its European competitors while delivering far more performance per dollar. Adjusted for inflation, that figure would be closer to $50,000 in 2025 money, showing just how much value Chevy crammed into the package at the time.
Back then, buyers were effectively paying less than $35K for 426 horsepower, Brembo brakes up front and at the back, a retro-inspired design, and a muscle car with modern amenities. It was a throwback to the muscle car formula of the late ‘60s, which means it had plenty of power for a relatively affordable sticker price. That affordability helped the Camaro become an instant hit, with Chevy moving nearly 80,000 units (of all forms) in its first model year.
Chevrolet not only ushered in the moniker that it owed so much of its muscle pedigree to, but fostered a cultural icon, too. Much of this popularity was fueled by Hollywood, with the Camaro taking center stage as Bumblebee in Michael Bay’s Transformers film franchise. Shia LaBeouf’s reaction to Bumblebee evolving from the ’70s Camaro into the 2SS was the entire automotive world, and it became a symbol of cool for a new generation. On that note, kids who grew up watching Autobots transform into Camaros are now reaching the age where they can buy one, fueling continued demand for fifth-generation models and making it one of the coolest Camaros of all time.
But beyond its star turn as Bumblebee in Transformers, the Camaro moniker also featured in countless other moments in pop culture. The forever cool 1969 Yenko Camaro famously hit the screen in 2 Fast 2 Furious, while Cameron Diaz’s ’69 Camaro brought one of Motown’s best to the screen with Charlie’s Angels in 2000.
The early naughties were a precarious time for Camaro-philes. After production of the fourth-gen ‘Catfish’ Camaro ran its course, Chev had no immediate replacement in 2002. It took nearly a decade to revive the model, which has since become known as the ‘comeback generation’ for a variety of reasons, but primarily for revitalising one of America’s most loved sports cars. Underneath its retro-inspired sheet metal sat a chassis derived from GM’s Zeta platform, which gave it handling dynamics far superior to its predecessors.
Durability has also played a role in the fifth-gen Camaro’s appeal. The LS3 engine is renowned for its robustness, and with proper care, it can easily log hundreds of thousands of miles. Aftermarket support is immense, too, and owners can unlock even more power with simple bolt-ons without needing to dive into serious modifications, which there are a plethora of. All of this adds up to a muscle car that has aged gracefully, and while prices have remained steady, in many cases, values are ticking upward, especially for clean, low-mileage examples.
For the price of America’s cheapest new sports car, some savvy buying and maintenance know-how would mean the 6.2-liter V8-powered Camaro 2SS will always be the winner. While the EcoBoost-powered Mustang makes a compelling case with modern amenities, it could never replicate the soul of a naturally aspirated V8, which would pull at the heartstrings of prospective enthusiast buyers.
Source: Edmunds, Ford, FastestLaps, Kelley Blue Book, Hagerty, GM Authority
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