First Ride
arrow
Mr. Oppenheiser’s high-performance diet plan.
Like many of us, the Camaro entered its fourth decade carrying a little extra baggage. Thick in the haunches and laden with the obligatory accouterments of the modern automotive era, Chevrolet still managed to squeeze mind-blowing performance from it, namely in the form of the Camaro ZL1, a car that goes, stops, and turns better than any 4120-pound, 580-hp car has a right to. But for Al Oppenheiser, Chief Engineer of the Camaro program, that was just a warm-up. The next step in the shape-up plan was the Camaro SS 1LE, a lighter, tighter, track-tuned car, followed by the surprise appearance of the even more track-focused Z/28 at the New York auto show. Clearly, Mr. Oppenheiser is not only a man with a plan, but has the friends in high places to make it happen. To give us a taste of its most recent and lightest-weight efforts, Chevrolet invited us out to GM’s Milford Road Course to provide some ballast for a cadre of hot shoes for a Nürburgring-worthy workout in a trio of Z/28s.
Hang Tight
Moments into the first hot lap, it becomes apparent that grip was high on the list of the Z/28 team’s objectives. Halfway into the deeply dished turn affectionately known as “Pahrump 2” we’re pulling over 1g, and the chassis remains rock solid. Not only a test of the suspension, this corner was intentionally designed to starve engines of oil, a job it fails at miserably with the Z/28. While the driver and passenger strain to keep the horizon in their sights, the Z’s dry-sump system—the first ever in a production Camaro—remains unfazed, supplying the rotating assemblies of the 7.0-liter engine with a steady stream of motor oil.
Speaking of the engine, it’s no secret that the LS-7 was chosen because it’s 64 pounds lighter than the LSA found in the ZL-1. Producing 505 horsepower and 481 lb-ft of torque (ten more than it makes in the Corvette), its internals read like a who’s who of horsepower weekly: Mahle pistons, KN air intake and Pankl titanium connecting rods. Oppenheiser says the connecting rods survived a 50-hour torture test running at redline with little to no wear. Z/28-specific exhaust headers are fitted, funneling into a 3-inch exhaust that tapers 2¾ inches at the rear. Engine oil is cooled by the same liquid-to-liquid system found on the Corvette ZR1. Word is all Z/28 engines will be built at the new GM Performance Build Center in Bowling Green, Kentucky.