Chevrolet Camaro vs Ford Mustang Mach-E

What's the difference?

Nobody really needs to drink beer and absolutely nobody needs to go skydiving. You don’t need tattoos nor to eat ice cream, nor put art on their walls, and absolutely nobody needs to play Stairway to Heaven, badly, on guitar. Likewise, nobody needs to buy a Chevrolet Camaro.

And there’s your answer if anybody has a go at you for arriving home in this big American muscle car, because if we only did things we needed to do, I’m pretty sure we wouldn’t be having as much fun.

The Chevrolet Camaro has been the Ford Mustang’s recurring nightmare since 1966, and this latest, sixth generation of the Chevy icon is available to continue the fight here in Australia, thanks to some re-engineering from HSV.

The SS badge is also legendary and was emblazoned on our test car, although it’s really a 2SS, and we’ll get to what that means below.

As you’re about to see, there are many good reasons to buy the Camaro SS and a few that might make you reconsider, but think about this – within the next two decades it’s entirely possible a car like the Camaro, with its 6.2-litre V8, may be banned because of emission regulations. Outlawed. You also never know how much longer HSV will continue to sell it in Australia. Maybe that’s reason enough to get one? Before it's too late.

Australian EV buyers seem to be missing the point of the Mustang Mach-E.

Yes, Ford’s exorbitant early pricing did not help – which the mid-sized EV has yet to recover from. And the V8-muscle-car image – and baggage – that the Mustang prefix brings no doubt confuses and even repels some people. Especially eco-conscious ones.

But it’s not that complicated. The Mach-E is merely meant to be a sporty, stylish and attainable family car, albeit with electric power.

Five years on from its US launch, does the 2026 Series II facelift keep up with newer and fresher electric SUV alternatives? And is it worth the premium that the Mustang badge commands?