Ford’s Shelby is rumored to be thumping out of the factory with a 7.0L V8. Dodge’s 2018 Demon spits out truly hellish horsepower and torque numbers. It almost seems like, on paper, the 2018 Camaro ZL1 1LE is simply being left in the dust. We’re here to tell you certainly it isn’t.
source: chevrolet.com
7:16.03. That’s the time the 2018 Camaro ZL1 1LE edition posted at the Nurburgring. To put this insane number into context, that’s faster than a Ferrari Enzo, a 488 GTB, and a 911 GT2 RS. That’s fast. Super-car fast. In an American platform that’s over 50 years old. Yes, the Camaro ZL1 is holding its own just fine against Ford and Dodge.
The Powerplant: The Camaro is boasting *just* 650 horses under the bonnet – an impressive figure, but still quite a few digits shy of the numbers the Hellcat and Demon are putting out (and theoretically much less than the proposed motor being shoved into the new Shelby). Numbers aside, the ZL1 1LE’s 6.2L, supercharged V8 is providing an impressive power band through its quick-shifting Tremec MH3 manual transmission. But much more is helping the 1LE best some of Italy’s finest.
The Drivetrain: Chevy managed all that by shoving some serious track parts under the body and then putting the Camaro on a diet. The 1LE just nudges the scales compared to its competition, coming in at a welterweight 3,837 lbs. Having been stripped of all but the bare essentials – daytime running lights included – the 1LE is lean and mean. Multimatic DSSV dampers were stolen from F1 cars and incorporated into the drivetrain directly. There are literally no rubber bushings to speak of on the entire drivetrain – the only rubber the Camaro sports are the tires hitting the pavement. Speaking of wheels and tires, the 1LE sports some tire-ruining camber – negative 3.7 degrees, to be exact. All this F1 zaniness is coupled with a massive carbon wing and stupidly large front splitters and aerodynamic bits to take advantage of downforce and blistering road grip. While not the world’s most comfortable Camaro ever produced, the 1LE is easily the most track-designed muscle car Chevy has ever thought up in its regular production line.
The Comfort: Back to that whole comfort vs. performance thing. The 1LE is surprisingly comfy and well-appointed inside. We’re talking about beautifully double-stitched leather seats (not some fixed buckets at crazy 70-degree angles) and a modern LED interface that controls the still-included stereo, heat and air. The entire cabin is decked out in so much suede and carbon fiber that it could be mistaken for the very same galloping stallions and bulls it beat on the Nurburgring. While its competition is a bit dry in the features department, the Camaro plays off its track stardom at every opportunity – including the LED gauge cluster that posts lap times with +/- seconds for each lap. Sit inside and have a go, and you almost feel like you’re playing Forza.
Numbers Sometimes Lie: With the 1LE pumping out over 100 horsepower less than the Demon and upcoming Shelby, many were quick to dismiss the new Camaro as a failure to launch before the countdown even started. They were wrong by virtue of the car’s track times alone. Considering the 6.2L’s “just-right” power numbers and impressive features and suspension, the Camaro does not disappoint. The numbers do lie, in this case. Can the 1LE beat Shelby’s latest creation when the time comes? With how much power Ford’s rumored 7.0L V8 may produce, it could be difficult for the team over at the blue oval to tame all that power. The 2018 Camaro ZL1 1LE may reign as a track champion even still, and that’s a problem for the very much track-centric Shelby entering the field very soon.
