With money in such a tight supply, do the new muscle cars like the 2010 Camaro SS add up to the best performance buy?

In spite of the bad economy, I’ve still been contemplating the purchase of a new muscle car—namely the 2010 Camaro SS or the 2009 Dodge Challenger R/T. In the case of the Camaro, I’m looking at 422 hp, a six-speed manual trans, 23mpg (hwy), and 3,860 lbs. of curb weight. Cost for all this? Camaro SS starts at $30,995, and runs up to around $34,180 for a well-optioned example and no dealer price gouging. The Challenger is similar at 376 hp, the same six-speed trans, 25 mpg (hwy), 4,041 lbs. curb weight, and priced starting at $29,995 (nicely optioned for $34,725).

You can tell I’m not terribly brand loyal—all I care about is bang for the buck. I bought a brand new Mustang GT in 2005 because it was a screaming deal then, just as it is now. But in this economy, just how wise is it to buy new? I starting looking into my main alternative—the C6 Corvette—and got a very pleasant shock. Autotrader.com had 453 listings for 2005 – 2006 Corvettes that had an asking price less than my target price of $34k. Presumably, you could buy all or most of them for less. In fact, I found several dozen under $29k, some of them with less than 30,000 miles.

To put this into perspective, the new Camaro SS has a performance quotient of about 9.15 pounds per horsepower. The less weight each hp has to accelerate, the better the straight-line performance. The Challenger R/T is a little softer at 10.75 pounds per hp. The 2005 – 2006 Corvette, on the other hand, offers 400 hp, weighs a scant 3,179 pounds, knocks down 28 mpg (hwy), and has a super-nice performance quotient of 7.95 pounds per horsepower. Mind you, it’s not the power level that’s killing the new Camaro and Challenger, it’s the bulky curb weight—which is part of the deal when you get seating for four, instead of just two.

A little deeper digging and I found a handful of used 2006 Z06 Corvettes—with the 505hp 7-liter mill—for under $50k. In fact, there’s one at a used car dealer only 46 miles from my home. It’s got 15,000 miles on the odometer, and they’re asking $48,893. With a curb weight of 3,179 pounds and 505 hp, that’s a Ferrari-like 6.2 pounds per horsepower. These Z06s have been known to break into the high 10s in the quarter mile with just drag radials and a cold air kit. Top speed: 198 mph. Fuel economy: 26 mpg (hwy).

I say let somebody else take the hit on depreciation, buy the used Z06, and go hunting for those heavy Camaros and Challengers!