Camaro ZL1 Top Speed Exceeds 200 MPH in Testing
Camaro ZL1 Hits the Track in Germany and Proves It’s No One-Trick Pony
Spoiler alert: The new Camaro ZL1 is fast. Like really fast. In news that should surprise no one, Chevrolet discovered just that while testing a 10-speed automatic equipped ZL1 at Germany’s Automotive Testing Papenburg GmBH proving ground. On the 7.6 mile high speed oval, they reached speeds of 202.3 miles per hour in one direction and 193.3 mph in the other direction for an average of 198 mph.
The track features 2.5 mile straights and 1.3 mile turns with a steep 49.7 degree banking on the top lane. That banking allowed ZL1 test drivers to stay on the throttle through the turns, with no need to lift. The car used was completely stock, save for safety and data logging equipment. Testing was conducted on production Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar 3 tires set at 44 psi.
And with just a couple of minor adjustments, the ZL1 managed to improve on that average, according to Al Oppenheiser, Camaro chief engineer. “After testing the car in standard settings, which produced the 198-mph average, we set the front and rear camber adjustments to 0 degrees and the tire pressures to the maximum allowable sidewall pressure, and saw the ZL1 average over 200 mph.”
The impressive top speed performance further proves just how well rounded the Camaro ZL1 really is. The 650 horsepower, supercharged beast is no one trick pony. The 10-speed equipped car logged a 0-60 time of 3.5 seconds and ran the quarter mile in 11.4 seconds. And it turns and stops just as well, pulling 1.02 g’s on the skidpad and going 60-0 in 107 feet.
That’s a heck of a lot of performance for a reasonable base price of $63,435 (manual) or $65,830 (automatic). Obviously, we can’t wait to see how it stacks up against the (mostly more expensive) competition.
