John Hennessey Races 2017 ZL1 Camaro vs. Z06 Corvette
John Hennessey, horsepower-crazed Texan and head honcho of Hennessey Performance, is no stranger to high-powered Chevy products. So it makes sense that in his possession are the two current top dogs in the Chevrolet performance family tree: the 2017 ZL1 Camaro and 2017 Z06 Corvette. Both cars feature versions of the supercharged LT4 V8 engine, and in this instance, both cars have manual transmissions – 6 forward ratios for the Camaro, and 7 for the ‘Vette. What happens when Hennessey introduces the two cars to his private drag strip?
It may seem like a definitive win for the Corvette on paper, as it is some 300 pounds lighter. Supposedly the Corvette’s and Camaro’s LT4 are both tuned for 650 horsepower, however, as is the way with these supercharged cars, any amount of heatsoak could be the difference between a win and a loss. Both cars have optimized aerodynamics, but the Z06 appears to be equipped with the Z07 aero package, which is really geared towards downforce, and has the unfortunate penalty of increased drag to match. These cars are hitting the top of 4th gear, which is some serious speed, so the downforce and drag numbers are definitely playing a hand in the battle.
All of that is well and dandy, but when both cars are using manual transmissions, the driver mod is what will distinguish these two otherwise stock Chevy sports cars. In this case, the Z06 seemed to get the jump at the start, but blipped the rev limiter and was slow on the up-change, giving the Camaro just enough to hang on and pass the finish right at the Corvette’s fender. Hennessey’s conclusion is surprise that the ZL1 stayed right with the Corvette the whole time. He states that they got up to the “mid-130’s” in the pulls and it was that close. His final guess is that at a larger run way event where speeds would be in excess of 150 the Z06 would begin to pull away from the ZL1.
