[1] Today marks the first of two press days for the 2011 Chicago International Auto Show, and the day that we are to finally, finally, finally see the mystery Camaro that GM has been teasing us with for the past two years. Rumors had pegged this vehicle as the next Z/28, but rumors are rarely right because this is no Z/28, friends.
According to Camaro5 [2], what GM has up its sleeve is a supercharged Camaro called…wait for it…the ZL1. They’ve captured some images of GM’s multimedia presentation for the new model during a rehearsal while the booth was being set up, and there are a few surprises to go with what we already knew.
Yes, this historic name hearkens back to the origins of the muscle car wars, and it is truly a worthy successor to the original ZL-1 Camaro, which had an all-aluminum 427 big block engine under the hood and remains among the rarest and most desirable muscle cars on the planet.
The new ZL1 Camaro is sure to do the name justice, packing a supercharged 6.2 liter V8 engine under the hood with an as-yet-undetermined amount of horsepower (though it will be at least 556 ponies, based on the rated output of the LSA as installed in the Cadillac CTS-V). The ZL1 Camaro will be getting quite a few parts from its big brother, the ZR1 Corvette, including Magnetic Ride Control, a heavy duty driveline, race-ready cooling system, Brembo brakes and we’re sure much more.
[3]As far as styling goes, this is one aggressive muscle car, with Transformers 3-style bumpers, a vented cowl hood, special wheels, red accents, and the whole shebang. GM hasn’t officially lifted the curtain on this special Camaro, but the pictures don’t lie. Ladies and gentlemen, get your checkbooks ready, because this awesome car is gonna cost you, but it will be worth every penny. We have to ask though; do you like the ZL1 name, or would you have still preferred Z/28?