Camaro Z28 Confirmed and Discussed
That's right, this bad boy's officially official now! Earlier this week Chevrolet called together representatives from its various Dealerships to have a little chat with them, and one of those dealerships (one Ms. BeckyD from Rodger's Chevrolet) has decided to share the good news with the Camaro loving public. The Z28, or the 'HP Model' as they refer to it in house, will be an absolute monster, outfitted (officially now) with a 6.2L Supercharged engine (can anyone say LSA?) and a lot of other goodies, and will begin its production in Janurary of 2012. The official news is that the Z28 will have these wonderful performance modifications with it:
- 2012 Camaro Z28 production begins January 1, 2012
- Internally referred to as the "HP Model"
- 6.2L supercharged engine
- Magnetic Ride suspension
- 285F / 330R tires
- Hood design to have louvre/slat design seen in spy photos (dealers in attendance were shown a gray Z28 model)
- Slight (not major) updates to the interior, with some brighter trimwork
Let's consider some of these things real quick. The 6.2L Supercharged engine is almost, without question, the same LSA that's in the Cadillac CTS-V. That LSA puts out 556HP in the Cadillac, and is easily good for a lot more. Maybe Chevrolet will tune it down a little bit for the Z28 release, maybe not, only time will tell, but either way the Camaro-loving crowd now has knowledge of the engine's incredible potential. The next thing on the list might be the most exciting of them all: Magnetic Ride Suspension(MRC, or Magnetic Ride Control as it's typically known)! MRC utilizes magneto-rheological fluid0based actuators in the suspension to provide the vehicle with a powerful, adaptive, and incredibly responsive race suspension that offers the vehicle an enhanced range of soft-to-firm damping capabilities, as well as real-time traction control functions. MRC is the same type of suspension system used in the Corvette and the CTS-V, and has been praised world-round for its incredible feel and responsiveness. The tires mentioned are incredibly intriguing as well, as a 285/330 configuration is just sick. The Camaro, currently, can't fit larger than 315 in the rear without having the wheel protrude from the well a bit, either, which means that the Z28 will almost undoubtedly be outfitted with widened rear quarter-panels as a means of fitting those wheels comfortably within the vehicle's body. The wider wheels (which are comparable to the wheel widths found on Corvettes) should really provide the Camaro Z28 with the grip necessary to hold the road as it pushes all 556(maybe) of its HP through the wheels and to the pavement. Ultimately, with the combination of GM's greatest race technologies and their greatest looking body, the Camaro Z28 should end up an absolute monster of a vehicle that will tear apart its competition with relative ease.
Future Camaro Speculation!
Well, GM officially announced that the Camaro would, at some point in the future, be switching to their new Alpha Chassis. The Alpha Chassis will allow for GM to build a lighter, more agile next-gen Camaro, and that's a good thing. Here's some more speculation concerning the future of the Camaro though! GM has announced that they have a new engine in the works for the next-gen Corvette, and apparently the C7 will be powered by a naturally aspirated, direct-injection 5.5L V8 putting out 440 Horsepower. While the displacement on this engine's smaller, the numbers are nice (and it supposedly vastly fuel efficient over its current C6 counterpart) , and I imagine we'll probably see this new Chevy Small-Block becoming the engine du jour of the next gen Camaro SS, in some fashion. To keep the Corvette price-tag in line, they'll probably tune it down some, but that still just means the engine's not far from unlocking all of those extra ponies. All in all, it seems like a nice step in the right direction of engine design by GM, regardless of the smaller displacement.
GM Putting $890Million in to new LS Development
Well, the LS line of engines are already one of the nicest and most popular in the world today, and GM is committed to ensuring that they remain such for a long time to come. Few things are as iconic as a Chevy small block V8, and GM just dedicated $890 Million towards the R&D on the next line of them. This is good news for Corvette and Camaro lovers everywhere, as the LS engine is a staple in those respective vehicles.
So, that's a lot of money you say. Yeah, it is, but is doesn't appear to be for naught. GM has plans to improve the build and technology for the new LS engine, beginning with the materials and constructing an all-Aluminum engine block. Adding to this the direct-injection technology and the fuel-efficient push GM is making, it's very likely that the new LS engine will be one of the most efficient (power/mpg) engines ever built. GM has also ensured that the new LS engine will E85 Ethanol compatability, certainly another move being made to continue to meet the risingly stringest fuel efficiency demands over the next decade without losing vehicle power.
Another positive of this move by GM is that guarantees to create or retain more than 1,600 jobs, which is something that can be much appreciated in the current economic situation. All in all, this is good news on the Camaro front, as we can expect to see the next generation of LS engine powering Camaros in the future, continuing to promote the vehicle's popularity and performance strong-hold against competitors. As time goes on I'm sure we'll see more and more information on the engine, but for now we can just speculate and dream. Is there any specific function or feature you would like to see included in the R&D of the new LS?
New GM LF3 Engine
Sorry I've been awhile for a while everyone. I went on vacation in my Camaro, but am very happy to be back and writing. An article concerning the trip itself will be coming soon. For now though, some GM news:
Apparently, the R&D boys over at GM have been hard at work (while I've been hard at play) putting finishing touches on their new, more eco-friendly, twin-turbo LF3. This V-6 TT engine is meant to be a direct competitor to the Ford 3.5L EcoBoost TT engine in both power and efficiency. At this point in time, no official HP or Torque numbers have been released, but it should be expected to be equivalent to or surpassing the 355 HP of the 3.5L Ford Ecoboost. This number doesn't seem too far-fetched either, considering the power that Chevy has been milking from their LS engines for so long now, and also applying the knowledge that this will be a Twin-Turbocharged monster. Of course, the TT does mean that some Torque will be sacrificed for the added HP boost. Only time can truly tell, but I can only imagine performance numbers of 350+ HP, possibly nearing the 400HP range.
Providing further merit to those HP speculations is the very recent (March 22nd) announcement from John Fitzpatrick, the head of marketing for the Camaro. Fitzpatrick hinted to MotorTrend that the 2011 Camaro's V6 HP numbers could exceed the numbers of the 2011 V6 Mustang. If not 2011, very soon. When asked if those HP matching numbers would be met in the next couple of years, Fitzpatrick was quoted as saying “you might see it sooner than that.” This show of faith in the future HP numbers of the Camaro engine lead me to wonder how those numbers will be achieved, and if the LF3 isn't destined for Camaro SS or Z28 designation as soon as it is finished and ready for production. I would love to see that LF3 hitting the Camaro sooner rather than later, but will also happily accept just some more HP from the base Camaro build. I do like the V8 and would be sad to see it leave, so I would hope that when the LF3 is done GM could find a means by which the two engines could live in harmony within the Camaro body. We'll see. Time will tell.