New heads, camshaft, headers and a 2.9-liter Whipple supercharger add about 300 wheel horsepower to this Camaro.
The video above comes to us from the Vengeance Racing YouTube channel and it features a sixth generation Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 stretching its legs on the dyno. This Chevy muscle car is equipped with the 10-speed automatic transmission, so in stock form, this ZL1 would make somewhere in the area of 570-580 rear wheel horsepower. However, this car is far from stock and its dyno numbers reflect that, with nearly 300 extra wheel horsepower on pump gas and roughly 350 wheel horsepower on E85.
The Build
The highlighted feature of this silver sixth generation Camaro ZL1 is the 2.9-liter Whipple that has replaced the standard 1.7-liter LT4 supercharger, but this car has far more than just a blower swap. Owner Jason Leiva initially came into Vengeance Racing for their in-house heads and camshaft upgrade package, along with long-tube headers, a cold air intake, new upper and lower pulleys, a methanol injection setup and the items needed to run E85.
With that build around the stock blower, this Camaro made 770 rear wheel horsepower, but Leiva wanted more power, so he headed back to Vengeance for some new upgrades. This trip included a 2.9-liter Whipple supercharger, a 103-millimeter throttle body, a vented catch can and some engine bay dress-up items. This setup includes a 3.5-inch upper pulley and a 9.1-inch lower pulley, leading to 16 pounds of boost.
Dyno Blast
The video is short and sweet, giving us a chance to watch and listen as this Whipple-blown Camaro ZL1 works out on the dyno. After the quick run up through the gears and the hard pull, we see the dyno sheet with some mighty impressive numbers.
On 93-octane pump gas, this Camaro ZL1 made 868 horsepower and 817 lb-ft of torque at the rear wheels, but with E85, the numbers jumped to 929 horsepower and 868 lb-ft of torque. Those are solid gains over the first build number of 770 rear wheel horsepower, while presenting massive improvements over the stock numbers.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
