The Specs For The Brand-New ZL1 Are In And They Are Amazing!

It’s official! Over the weekend we reported that a document from Chevrolet had leaked showing the 2017 ZL1 will, in fact, have the exact same 650 horsepower and 650 ft.-lb. rating its LT4-powered big brother, the Z06, received. Today, Chevrolet issued the official press release confirming that not only would the ZL1 receive the same power rating, it is capable of some pretty amazing feats of acceleration in its own right.

The new ZL1 will start with a base price of $62,135 for the coupe and $69,135 for the convertible. And while the MSRP may not be all that shocking, remember, that is around the same price you’d pay for a well-optioned base-model Corvette, but this thing is far more capable than the General’s flag ship model— at least sans Z06.

ZL1(4)

 

According to Chevrolet, the new ZL1 will tip the scales 220 pounds lighter than the previous-generation ZL1— which means it will weigh about the same as its naturally aspirated 2SS counterpart. We estimate that it will be in the neighborhood of 3,600 pounds, making for a power to weight ratio of 5.54 pounds per horsepower.

The Specs

But what does that mean for real-world numbers? It means the brand-new ZL1 is capable of sprinting from naught to 60 mph in just 3.5 seconds. The quarter mile is dispatched in a— by our estimations— conservative 11.4 seconds at 127 mph; a good set of drag radials should have this thing going 10s in a jiff with that mile-per-hour number. Hulking 15.4-inch two piece rotors, pared with six-piston Brembo calipers, reign in all that speed and bring this beast to a halt from 60 mph in just 107 feet.

The Magnetic Ride Suspension, which comes as standard equipment on the ZL1, allows it to pull up to 1.02 g of continuous cornering force— needless to say, we are expecting a new Nurburgring record to be announced sometime soon.

ZL1(2)

As you can see, much like its Z06 sibling, the ZL1 offers world-beating performance for relatively little money. Just ask the Challenger Hellcat, which starts out at $62,495 (more than the ZL1), and weighs almost 800 pounds more. While the Hellcat has the ZL1 beat on horsepower, that is about the only place it will be beating one— even when it comes to straight-line acceleration, which is about the only thing the Hellcat is good at anyway.

Steve Majoros, the director of Chevrolet marketing, had this to say about the new model, “The Camaro ZL1 offers supercar performance with daily-driver refinement, a combination that stacks up against any other sports coupe – at any price – around the world.”

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For $62,000, you are basically getting a four-seat Z06 (which starts at $80,395)— similar suspension, the same motor and frankly a better transmission. The transmission used in the ZL1 is a 10-speed automatic that was developed in conjunction with Ford and is capable of shifting up to 36 percent faster than a Porsche PDK dual-clutch transmission.

Sure the Camaro weighs a couple hundred pounds more, but with the money you save on the initial purchase price, combined with the amount you’ll save on insurance premiums, a ZL1 could be faster than a Z06 in no time.

1LE

However, if $62K is a little too rich for your blood, Chevrolet also just announced the specs on the 1LE sixth-gen. It will get virtually all of the ZL1’s underpinnings, aside from the LT4 and 10-speed automatic transmission options.

ZL1(3)

You will, however, still get the larger Brembo brakes, Magnetic Ride Suspension and substantial weigh savings over the previous generation model. As with the fifth-gen, all 1LEs feature a flat black hood, upgraded wheels and other track-focused amenities. The 1LE option will only set you back $6,500 on an 1SS model and just $4,500 on a V-6 LT model, a first for the brand (we’d suggest sticking with the V8).

With the 1LE option box ticked, you’ll get a car capable of paralleling the ZL1s cornering gs at 1.02 and stopping just as well. While acceleration may be reduced with the “lower output” 455-horsepower LT1, the car will still scoot to 60 mph in just 4.2 seconds in 1SS trim. As with previous generations, the 1LE puts the focus on all-out track performance.

1LE

“Building on Chevrolet’s well-established recipe for track-focused performance, the new 1LE packages expand the performance envelope of the Camaro SS and, for the first time, the Camaro LT,” said Al Oppenheiser, Camaro chief engineer. “You’ll be hard-pressed to find more track-capable cars in their respective classes for the money.”

No matter what model you decide to go with, we’re sure you won’t be disappointed. We can’t wait to get our hands on one of these things for a test. Stay tuned for more in depth coverage of the ZL1 and 1LE.

For more ZL1 action, check out the video below as Chevrolet puts the all-new 10-speed transmission through its paces and listen to the LT4 whine.

Article Sources

About the author

Chase Christensen

Chase Christensen hails from Salt Lake City, and grew up around high-performance GM vehicles. He took possession of his very first F-body— an ’86 Trans Am— at the age of 13 and has been wrenching ever since.
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