Chevrolet has unveiled its ‘new era’, with the introduction of the Camaro ZL1 as the new race car for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.
Set to race alongside the outgoing Camaro SS-branded entry, which has been Chevrolet’s NASCAR entry since 2013, the Camaro ZL1 will make its competition debut next February during Daytona Speedweeks, which kicks off the 2018 NASCAR season.
Seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson — driver of the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports — joined Mark Reuss, executive vice president of GM Global Product Development, to reveal the new race car at Chevrolet’s headquarters in Detroit.
“Chevrolet, Camaro and ZL1 are all synonymous with winning, both on and off the track,” said Reuss. “We are thrilled to run Camaro in NASCAR next year, with the time-honored and track-tested ZL1 badge, and we’re just as excited for our drivers, teams, fans and customers.”
“The new Camaro ZL1 is a great-looking race car with a lot of heritage behind it, which will make it a big hit with fans,” added Johnson. “And as someone who’s enjoyed the ZL1 on the street, I’m really looking forward to getting this new race car on the track.”
Chevrolet engineers employed an array of tools, including computational fluid dynamics analysis and reduced-scale and full-scale wind-tunnel testing, to optimize aerodynamic performance while maintaining the ZL1’s design character.
The Camaro ZL1 brings what Chevrolet describes as a ‘unique, track-focused legacy’ to NASCAR. The ZL1 name was originally bestowed in the 1960s on a Chevrolet-developed all-aluminum racing engine that became a dominating force in road racing. The new Camaro ZL1 race car builds on a winning legacy carried by the previous Chevrolet SS, which has scored 70 Cup Series wins to date and contributed to Chevrolet earning a record 39 NASCAR manufacturer titles — including 13 consecutive titles from 2003-2015.
