New Camaro ZL1 Video Feature - Phase Four: Aerodynamic Testing

[ShnOmac]

Originally Posted by OldJedi

Does anybody know the Cd of the Camaro?

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

Here's a dedicated thread to talk about it. I'm curious to see what you guys think of it.

Camaro V6: .36
Camaro SS: .35

And a few cars to compare it to.

Mustang GT500: .38

Corvette Z06: .34

4thgen Camaro: .33

EDIT: and a poll for fun

[Sour DeeZ]

So the ZL1 gets good paint. And we get the razor thin. YAYYYYYYYYYY unbelievable

[DGthe3]

Originally Posted by 2010SLVRBULIT

..'while other engineers are sleeping'..here's an idea, lose some weight, drop the price, and watch sales fly.

If it were that simple, don't you think GM would just do it? They could cut weight by replacing things with aluminum, fibreglass, or carbon fibre. But all those materials are more expensive than steel. They could go with less robust components, to save weight & money, but then it will break more often. They could lower the overall performance so that those parts don't break, but then you won't meet the customers expectations. They could decontent the car, but that would turn away more buyers than it would attract.

Engineers are not magicians. Balancing things like weight, performance, durability, and price (not to mention a whole host of other things) are what they get paid to do. Improvements in one area will almost always come at the expense of another. Take the GT500 for example. Yes, its lighter (and probably cheaper) than the ZL1. But its chassis rigidity, ride quality, and handling ability all suffer because of it. There is no free lunch

Originally Posted by toilets

Not to go off topic, but why do you think that GM decided not to put a true racecar driver to lap the ring? I am just curious. I do not know the background of the driver who did the 7:41 but I know its not a racecar driver. Im almost willing to bet that this car very well could have done a 7:35 or so.. In any event, extremely impressive time coming from someone who does not race cars for a living!!!

I believe that all of GMs performance test engineers have a racing license, and since they get paid to drive high performance cars at their limit around race tracks ... its not too much of a stretch to consider them to be race car drivers

And if he was the involved in doing development work on the ZL1 prior to going to the 'ring, his experience with the car would probably make up for any lack of skill behind the wheel compared to an actual professional race driver.

[tooslow]

.

[tooslow]

Why is the chassis rigidity of the GT500 assumed to be worse than the ZL1? Is there any facts to back up this assumption? Seems I remember reading somewhere where the S197 chassis was a pretty stout unit.

[DGthe3]

Originally Posted by tooslow

Why is the chassis rigidity of the GT500 assumed to be worse than the ZL1? Is there any facts to back up this assumption? Seems I remember reading somewhere where the S197 chassis was a pretty stout unit.

Ask JusticePete about the chassis rigidity of Camaros vs Mustangs

[Kabul SS]

Originally Posted by tooslow

Why is the chassis rigidity of the GT500 assumed to be worse than the ZL1? Is there any facts to back up this assumption? Seems I remember reading somewhere where the S197 chassis was a pretty stout unit.

The article below from Hot Rod magazine in Dec talks a little about the rigidity of the mustang vs the camaro. As usual most things can be improved with the right aftermarket parts. I prefer my camaro but both the mustang and camaro (especially when moded) provide a lot of performance for the money so to each his own (as long as you don't buy a prius).

http://www.peddersusa.com/news/1/article21

[IOMZL1]

Originally Posted by kaneda

I can't help but roll my eyes a bit at the over-hype marketing machine called GM these days. This video makes it sound like there's something revolutionary going on here. It's more like GM is finally catching up with where other performance manufacturers have been for years. All this hoopla for a front splitter and spoiler? Seriously guys, this is all marketing fluff. These are the kinds of videos that encourage guys to go crash their cars cause they feel like the car was designed to stick to the ground. This car is planted because it weighs 4,200 POUNDS. I mean, great job with the fat ass downforce chevy.

I’ll be the first to admit they are making a big deal about things that go on all the time in the industry. I do think it is a great marketing tactic though. Did they run the GT500 in the windtunnel? Probably, but maybe the spoiler is just for looks. Did they spend hours upon hours tuning the GT500 suspension? Probably, but maybe they just changed the springs and called it a day. Is this just propaganda? No, it is an informative look at the ZL1s development because they feel they raised the bar with what they’ve done.

The fact is that for some people being informed about these ‘behind the scenes’ engineering efforts will sway them to buy the ZL1. You think GM is just ‘catching up’? Seriously? Just because they are only now openly advertizing it doesn’t mean it is their first rodeo.

It isn’t exactly hoopla either. You might add a splitter and spoiler that create lift. Just winging (pun intended) it doesn’t work with aerodynamics. Many times aero components don’t behave as you’d expect. They must be tested in multiple ways to prove their effectiveness.

Yes, another weight comment. How original. The fact is that Chevy has made the ZL1 perform despite the weight by utilizing all of these engineering efforts and they want you to know that.

[69NMYSS]

Originally Posted by DGthe3

If it were that simple, don't you think GM would just do it? They could cut weight by replacing things with aluminum, fibreglass, or carbon fibre. But all those materials are more expensive than steel. They could go with less robust components, to save weight & money, but then it will break more often. They could lower the overall performance so that those parts don't break, but then you won't meet the customers expectations. They could decontent the car, but that would turn away more buyers than it would attract.

Engineers are not magicians. Balancing things like weight, performance, durability, and price (not to mention a whole host of other things) are what they get paid to do. Improvements in one area will almost always come at the expense of another. Take the GT500 for example. Yes, its lighter (and probably cheaper) than the ZL1. But its chassis rigidity, ride quality, and handling ability all suffer because of it. There is no free lunch


I believe that all of GMs performance test engineers have a racing license, and since they get paid to drive high performance cars at their limit around race tracks ... its not too much of a stretch to consider them to be race car drivers

And if he was the involved in doing development work on the ZL1 prior to going to the 'ring, his experience with the car would probably make up for any lack of skill behind the wheel compared to an actual professional race driver.

Well said!!

[GoldenBear]

Originally Posted by kaneda

This car is planted because it weighs 4,200 POUNDS. I mean, great job with the fat ass downforce chevy.

The 65 pounds of down force provided by the front end and hood design at 150 MPH has nothing to do with the 4,120 pound curb weight of the ZL1. From your comment it appears that you don't have a design or engineering background.

[Rice Killer]

Originally Posted by 69NMYSS

Well said!!

+2

[johndawg]

White looks great!

[litle88]

Ok why can't I see the VIDEO?!?!
It takes me to the Chevy site!!

[slick rick]

Originally Posted by litle88

Ok why can't I see the VIDEO?!?!
It takes me to the Chevy site!!

The video in the first post is not embedded and links you to the Chevy site where the video is.

Chevy posted the video to youtube now