Automotive News, Media & Press - 2012 Camaro ZL1 Nurburgring 7:41

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=175148

Wow.

It beat the Lamborghini Murcielago. Ford GT. 06 Zo6. 1 second behind Porsche GT3. GM engineer driving. Jesus...

It's also within spitting distance of the Ferrari 458 and the current Nissan GTR when it debuted.

The ZL1 is the real deal folks.

VERY IMPESSIVE! 18 seconds faster then the CTS-V. Give it some sticky tires & its knocking on the mid 7 min mark. Its funny I guessed it would be in that territory when the CTS-V came out

Damn impressive.

I have a sudden change of heart about this car.

That is awesome man, yes the real deal! Now I know what my next car is, probably not for 10 years though lol!

I love how GM is building this car to not only go fast down the straight away but also perform very well on a circuit track, major props to GM.

I would like to point out that the Z06 and Ford GT got their times from a standing start.

Though, the ZL1's time is still insanely quick!

I would like to point out that the Z06 and Ford GT got their times from a standing start.

Though, the ZL1's time is still insanely quick!

x2 :nod:

I would like to point out that the Z06 and Ford GT got their times from a standing start.

Though, the ZL1's time is still insanely quick!

Did not know that, that definitely explains a lot of the reason as to why the ZL1 was faster than those cars.

Car is incredibly fast for what it is no doubt, it's not going to be cheap though. I bet the markups on this thing are going to be absolutely CRAZY.

It's also within spitting distance of the Ferrari 458 and the current Nissan GTR when it debuted.

The ZL1 is the real deal folks.

http://www.fastestlaps.com/tracks/nordschleife.html

I wouldn't call 15 seconds (09' GT-R) or 13 seconds (458 Italia) spitting distance on the Nurburgring. The LFA when it just came out would be lol. :D

Were the GT-R and Italia times from a stop or a flying start?

^^^ To my knowledge the only one on the Wikipedia page listed, "from a standing start" was the first Z06 time.

I just updated the Wikipedia page with the ZL1 lap :D

THIS CAR KICKS ASS.


wait till GM starts "stetching it out" as production continues.

I'm curious to know how quick the future CTS-V will be... whenever it comes out.

Just saw one today in the parking lot of Hot Rod magazine! :thumb:

too bad its a land barge :(. ugh 400lbs less and it would be bout perfect.

Impressive feat, the ZL1 is definitely a beast. My only wish would be about 500+ lbs of weight reduction.

Gm also stated the car was not driven by a pro, and there was a couple hundred punds of extra weight in the car with a cage and all there data equipment!

GT500 times??

Damn thing is quick.

Gm also stated the car was not driven by a pro, and there was a couple hundred punds of extra weight in the car with a cage and all there data equipment!

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=175148

Wow.

It beat the Lamborghini Murcielago. Ford GT. 06 Zo6. 1 second behind Porsche GT3. GM engineer driving. Jesus...

I'll take one of the car's designers over a "pro" driver if I'm trying to get my best time. Especially the guys that GM has.

^^^ So you don't think Ron Fellows, John Magnussen or Johnny O'Connell could have done better?

With practice, maybe. It depends on how much experience that GM tester has with that particular car.

Video has been posted.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mhjGERugh0&feature=player_embedded#!

Wow. Looks like they even had a passenger. I dont see a reason why this car cant hit high 7:30's with some more time and 300 lbs less weight (no cage, passenger or testing equipment)

Funny.. I didn't even like the 5th generation Camaro until seeing that number. Now I want a ZL1. That video reminds me of Forza.

Anyone know on average what a rolling start adds time wise for a car of this caliber?

Gotta love the ZL1! Now Chevy needs to bring out the track/street Z28

High HP vehicles love the ring. I'd like to see the ZL1 run on a shorter track like Laguna Seca. I bet its weight and size would show more.

Video has been posted.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mhjGERugh0&feature=player_embedded#!

That was pretty cool, it seems pretty well balanced. However, the exhaust on the car doesn't sound too good at all. I'm sure a set of LT's or a catless midpipe would change that easily though :cool:

Anyone know on average what a rolling start adds time wise for a car of this caliber?

I believe most if not all recent tests start out rolling and i believe its 45 or 60mph. The viper zr1 ect ect have started the timing this way. I will double check tomorrow so dont hold it as gospel. And to answer your question, if it takes the car 4 sec 0-60 then you would just add 4 secs?

I could be wrong, but it does look like the car has more left in it judging by the video.

Wow pretty nice run! I was kinda bumbed that they withheld the G-meter numerical readout.

Just out of curiosity what MPH did the Z06 and the ZR1 hit on the long straight?

Lol @ all the threads full of people saying it's heavy, wont handle well because of it, and cant touch the GT500....

The ZL1 isn't the disappointment everyone was hoping for...

With the pics Iv seen blown up it looks like its not the cup tires which shouls take another 7 or so seconds off easily on that run. Also it looks like it did a full lap of 20832m instead of 20600m. check out the list. Wiki says that its about a 7 second difference between the full lap and the non full lap. With that said you could take off another 14sec or so off the lap with optional cup tires and the partial lap that everyone else runs thats ahead of it on the list. That would put here right up there with the ENZO, GTR and the 2nd fastest ZR! time since they used the shorter lap!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_N%C3%BCrburgring_Nordschleife_lap_times

With the pics Iv seen blown up it looks like its not the cup tires which shouls take another 7 or so seconds off easily on that run. Also it looks like it did a full lap of 20832m instead of 20600m. check out the list. Wiki says that its about a 7 second difference between the full lap and the non full lap. With that said you could take off another 14sec or so off the lap with optional cup tires and the partial lap that everyone else runs thats ahead of it on the list. That would put here right up there with the ENZO, GTR and the 2nd fastest ZR! time since they used the shorter lap!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_N%C3%BCrburgring_Nordschleife_lap_times

The Enzo was only tested once. It has a lot left in it. As for the GT-R it has a little left in it and as for the ZR1, well we know what that's capable of.

With the pics Iv seen blown up it looks like its not the cup tires which shouls take another 7 or so seconds off easily on that run. Also it looks like it did a full lap of 20832m instead of 20600m. check out the list. Wiki says that its about a 7 second difference between the full lap and the non full lap. With that said you could take off another 14sec or so off the lap with optional cup tires and the partial lap that everyone else runs thats ahead of it on the list. That would put here right up there with the ENZO, GTR and the 2nd fastest ZR! time since they used the shorter lap!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_N%C3%BCrburgring_Nordschleife_lap_times

Please tell me you don't think it is actually close in performance to any of those cars.

Please tell me you don't think it is actually close in performance to any of those cars.

Why not? Im just looking at the facts. And lets be honest, 7 sec on a 13 miles course is not all that far fetched.

Lol @ all the threads full of people saying it's heavy, wont handle well because of it, and cant touch the GT500....

The ZL1 isn't the disappointment the ford boys and 5th gen haters was hoping for...



this car is going to silence alot of doubters.

Why not? Im just looking at the facts. And lets be honest, 7 sec on a 13 miles course is not all that far fetched.

You really think the ZL1 would match the Enzo around a track with similar drivers and tires? The Enzo is just as capable as the Viper ACR or ZR1, but since they are more rare and expensive, there is less of an opportunity to retest the car.

You really think the ZL1 would match the Enzo around a track with similar drivers and tires? The Enzo is just as capable as the Viper ACR or ZR1, but since they are more rare and expensive, there is less of an opportunity to retest the car.

And that would also mean that the ZL1 handles better than a Z06 or ZR1, cuz it definitely isn't as fast in a straight line. Does anybody really believe that?

You really think the ZL1 would match the Enzo around a track with similar drivers and tires? The Enzo is just as capable as the Viper ACR or ZR1, but since they are more rare and expensive, there is less of an opportunity to retest the car.

I understand that and have the utmost respect for all those cars. Im just looking at the numbers and the times. I know the Z is not an enzo or an acr. If you look at the times it is almost as capable as those above it is all im saying and to even be mentioned in the same sentence is an an amazing feat in itself. And if it had the cup tires like zr1, z06 and acr then it would have gone even faster.

This article goes a little more in depth about the lapping session.

http://www.insideline.com/chevrolet/camaro/2012/chevrolet-camaro-zl1-visits-inside-line-after-741-nurburgring-lap.html

Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Visits Inside Line After 7:41 Nurburgring Lap

Just the Facts:
A Camaro ZL prototype reportedly ran a 7:41.27 lap on the Nurburgring Nordschleife.
General Motors Engineer Aaron Link was the driver; he made 40 laps in three days.
GM's Mark Reuss drove the prototype to Inside Line's photography studio this week.

MARINA DEL REY, California — Hours after announcing the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 lapped the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 7:41.27, General Motors officials pulled up at Inside Line's Los Angeles photography studio on Wednesday in the very same ZL1 prototype. Mark Reuss, president of GM North America, was driving.

Equipped with a full cage and still wearing partial camouflage, the Camaro had genuine-looking grime, apparently residue from two weeks of testing in Germany. Reuss told Inside Line that one of the automaker's top engineers, Aaron Link, made 40 laps of the 12.9-mile course in the car over three days. During his lap sessions, he worked out the parameters for the second most aggressive of the ZL1's five Performance Traction Management driving modes, which govern the behavior of the stability control, electric power steering and adaptive magnetic dampers. Said mode will be called Full Race; it's one step below disabling the stability control entirely.

The car's supercharged, 6.2-liter LSA V8 was reportedly running in stock tune during the timed lap. In the ZL1, this engine is rated at 580 horsepower and 556 pound-feet of torque, making it the most powerful Camaro ever. Predictably, the prototype has the Tremec TR-6060 "MG9" six-speed manual gearbox, rather than the optional six-speed automatic transmission.

Reuss drew our attention to the Camaro ZL1's Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar G:2 summer tires, sized P285/35ZR20 in front and P305/35ZR20 in the rear. "This isn't a cup tire," he said. "This tire has some tread to it." He told us it was used throughout the lap sessions.



Later in the studio visit, Reuss spoke about future plans for the Camaro line.

"The next generation of these cars needs to be something that's quite different," he said. "More mass-efficient and certainly different powertrains. We won't change the car's DNA, but it will represent something quite different."

This quest for greater efficiency will likely result in the use of six-cylinders and forced induction in place of V8s in cars like the Camaro, but Reuss emphasized that GM probably won't go that route with the Silverado and Sierra half-ton trucks.

"Taking cylinders out and boosting it is one approach," he said, "but there are a lot of other approaches on an electrification basis that may be more compelling and I'm not sure they're full-blown hybrids, either."

You really think the ZL1 would match the Enzo around a track with similar drivers and tires? The Enzo is just as capable as the Viper ACR or ZR1, but since they are more rare and expensive, there is less of an opportunity to retest the car.

This is why these times don't usually mean much when comparing to other cars. They're not gospel and there are no "rules" at all. Street tires, rolling start, full lap vs. the slightly shorter one; the list of variables goes on. I take them with a grain of salt. Video and driver's impressions are more indicative than the manufacturer's published lap time.

this car is going to silence alot of doubters.

+1 either that or they'll be in denial no matter what testing will be done with the ZL1.

172 mph is pretty good.

That laptime is really impressive :)

172 mph is pretty good.

And that last part of that was uphill! lol

This is why these times don't usually mean much when comparing to other cars. They're not gospel and there are no "rules" at all. Street tires, rolling start, full lap vs. the slightly shorter one; the list of variables goes on. I take them with a grain of salt. Video and driver's impressions are more indicative than the manufacturer's published lap time.

http://www.speedsportlife.com/2008/10/01/avoidable-contact-17-cheating-nissan-bitter-porsche/

This expounds on my point perfectly

And I just quoted myself.

Plus, you can factor things like track conditions, weather, length of time since last rain (amount of rubber on the track), eetc, all of which can add up to several seconds on very small tracks, and are much mroe of a factor over a 7 minute run ;)