Chevy has been using a car that sort of looks like the Chevy SS in NASCAR since 2014. With the SS being killed off, Chevy has announced what it will use for NASCAR racing in 2018. That new racer will be the Camaro ZL1. It’s nice to have a muscle car in the lineup and I wonder if Ford will match Chevy with a Mustang for NASCAR.
Only the fiberglass shell looks like a Camaro, underneath, like all NASCAR racers, is a full tube chassis and lots of racing hardware. The car uses a 5.9L V8 that makes around 900hp. The first race for the Camaro will be at Daytona in February.
The Evolution of NASCAR Vehicles
NASCAR, which stands for the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, has evolved significantly over the years. Initially, the cars used in NASCAR races were actual stock cars that you could buy from a dealership. However, as the sport grew, the need for speed and safety led to the development of specialized racing machines. Today, the cars used in NASCAR bear little resemblance to their street-legal counterparts, aside from the fiberglass shells that mimic the appearance of consumer vehicles.
The Camaro ZL1 is a prime example of this evolution. While it looks like the muscle car you can buy at a Chevy dealership, it is, in fact, a highly specialized racing machine. The full tube chassis provides the structural integrity needed to withstand the rigors of high-speed racing, while the 5.9L V8 engine delivers the power necessary to compete at the highest levels of the sport. This engine, producing around 900 horsepower, is a far cry from the engines found in street-legal Camaros, which typically produce between 275 and 650 horsepower, depending on the model.
The Future of Muscle Cars in NASCAR
The introduction of the Camaro ZL1 into NASCAR raises interesting questions about the future of muscle cars in the sport. For years, NASCAR has been dominated by sedans like the Chevy SS and the Ford Fusion. The move to a muscle car like the Camaro ZL1 could signal a shift in the types of vehicles we see on the track in the coming years.
Ford, for example, has already announced that it will be replacing the Fusion with the Mustang in NASCAR starting in 2019. This move mirrors Chevy’s decision to replace the SS with the Camaro ZL1 and suggests that muscle cars could become a more common sight in NASCAR. This shift could bring a new level of excitement to the sport, as muscle cars are often associated with high performance and aggressive styling.
However, it’s important to note that the cars used in NASCAR will continue to be highly specialized racing machines, regardless of their outward appearance. The fiberglass shells may look like Camaros and Mustangs, but underneath, these cars will still feature the same tube chassis and racing hardware that have become standard in the sport.
I wish the “stock cars” used in NASCAR actually had more in common with the street cars they represent than stickers on a fiberglass shell. I also wish the races were more exciting, maybe then ratings would go up.
via Autoblog
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