2024 Chevy Camaro ZL1 Garage 56 Edition Honors Historic Le Mans NASCAR Entry
This is the best part of the sixth-gen Camaro’s send-off, without a doubt.
This weekend, the 24 Hours of Le Mans will thunder with the sound of the modified Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Cup car that's ready to tear away from the field of pursuing GTE cars. It's the first stock car entry in the race in 47 years, which means it's kind of a big deal—and the perfect excuse to commemorate it with a special-edition Camaro that's sure to be one of the last and greatest of its kind: the 2024 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Garage 56 Edition.
The Garage 56 Edition pays homage to Chevy's one-off Le Mans entry on the basis of the ultimate sixth-gen Camaro, the ZL1. That means a 6.2-liter, 650-horsepower supercharged V8, linked to either a six-speed manual or 10-speed automatic transmission, all in a chassis that's still almost 20 seconds quicker around the Nürburgring than a Tesla Model S Plaid.
This version shares some parts with the extra-hardcore 1LE, using its dive plane-equipped front end but trading its tall wing for a NASCAR Cup car-style "wicker bill" spoiler. It's bedecked in new Riptide Blue paint and a livery derived from the Le Mans car, with badging honoring Hendrick Motorsports and NASCAR's 75th anniversary. It's modest as special editions go, though its unique aero and ties to this historic Le mans entry will make it appealing to diehards.
As for the Le Mans Camaro itself, it's based on the Next Gen stock car chassis used in the NASCAR Cup Series. It has been heavily modified with functional lighting, reduced weight, and enhanced aero, all while retaining a variety of the R07 small-block V8 used in NASCAR. The engine has also been turned up to 750 horsepower according to ESPN. Humble though its origins may be, it's truly quick, outpacing the GTE class by multiple seconds (though it trails the LMP2 prototypes).
It's only entered as an exhibition car, as the Garage 56 entry is a one-car class reserved for unusual racers such as this. Still, the presence of a NASCAR stock car at Le Mans is historically significant enough to justify this special-edition Camaro, of which only 56 will be built. They'll be available later this year as 2024 models, as part of the Camaro's final year as production winds down. It's been a good run, and at least the Camaro gets to end on this as a high note.
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