2017 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Review – Video

 

The ZL1, available as a coupe and a convertible, shares with the Corvette Z06 its herculean powerplant, the supercharged 6.2-liter LT4 V-8. Internally, both mills are identical—right down to the titanium intake valves and forged rods and pistons. In this latest King of Camaros, however, a conventional oil pan replaces the Z06’s dry-sump lubrication. Surprisingly, a lack of packaging space demanded the change. But what matters is this: 650 horsepower at 6400 rpm and 650 pound-feet of torque at 3600 rpm. It’s all ­managed, aurally, by a dual-mode exhaust, which is now electronically controlled rather than vacuum actuated as it was on the last ZL1. Chevy offers two transmissions here, including a high-torque version of the six-speed Tremec TR6060 that’s available in the Camaro SS. A tailored gearset allows the manual-transmission–equipped ZL1 to hit 60 mph in first gear, while both fifth and sixth are overdrive gears. At 0.54:1, sixth gear is a true fuel-economy cog, though the 3.73 final-drive is still low enough to serve up shovel-to-the-spleen holeshots.