GM Removed ‘Restraints’ for Exotic-Killer Chevy Camaro Z/28

SOUTH HAVEN, MI – Chevrolet Camaro Chief Engineer Al Oppenheiser says the nameplate’s new Z/28 model is no answer to the Ford Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca edition; instead, the most racetrack-capable Camaro ever built takes aim at paddock royalty such as the Porsche 911 and Nissan GT-R.

“We wanted to take a leap beyond the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro competition and shoot for the exotics,” Oppenheiser tells WardsAuto during a media event for the Z/28 at GingerMan Raceway here.

“Shoot for the 911s and GT-Rs, and see if we can’t be in the same conversation with those cars, because our leadership took off the restraints and let us do a track car,” he says. “We had no restrictions on what we needed to do to make the ultimate track-capable Camaro.”

That meant General Motors engineers were encouraged to tap into the latest lightweight and performance technologies, and if a vehicle feature kept the car from going faster and was not required by law, it was stripped out or offered as optional equipment.

For example, floor mats are not available and neither is a tire inflator kit, except in two states where it is mandatory. Air conditioning is a stand-alone option. The Z/28 also was absolved of any CAFE contribution, and because it would sell only in the U.S., its market-specific requirements were narrowed.

Internal profitability targets took a back seat, too, Oppenheiser says.

“We’re not doing this to help the bottom line. The ZL1 does that for us,” he says of the Z/28’s supercharged, more daily-driver-oriented stable mate. “The ZL1 has been such a hit and so profitable, it allows us to do a car like the Z/28.”

The $75,000 Z/28 employs a number of technologies appearing for the first time on an OEM vehicle, such as its Pirelli Trofeor tires and Multimatic DSSV suspension dampers. Unique parts or designs appear on each of its vehicle systems – from the Pankl titanium connecting rods inside its 500-hp engine and the Torsen helical limited-slip differential of the driveline, to the 150 lbs. (68 kg) aerodynamic downforce and lightweight, fade resistant Brembo carbon ceramic brakes.

Fascia Redesign, Special Bonding

The Z/28 also leverages out-of-the-box thinking.

Each variant of the fifth-generation Camaro, for example, uses the same rear quarter panel. But the 19-in. wheel-and-tire package engineers wanted for the Z/28 created a tire-to-body gap beyond the tolerances of GM design chief Ed Welburn.

“You get the roller-skate look with a small wheel and tire and a large quarter panel,” Oppenheiser says. “So we put on wheel flares.”

However, the wheel flares could not be attached using simple fasteners, so GM used a specialized but more costly bonding process. GM hired a company to perform the bonding, as well as rocker panel and front splitter installation, inside an empty truck plant across from the Camaro’s assembly line in Oshawa, ON, Canada.

The front fascia also underwent a redesign to accommodate the unique fender flares, making it a piece attached to the frame separately from the front quarter panels. That way, if a Z/28 owner crashes at the track, a new fascia can be screwed on without replacing both front fenders as well.

“Car programs just don’t get away with that stuff,” Oppenheiser says.

All the freedom added up to a car the automaker would never have built a few short years ago, Oppenheiser admits, and he points to product czar Mark Reuss and CEO Mary Barra.

“No, we wouldn’t have done a car like this,” he says. “The priorities were different. Unless you have (leaders) like Mark and Mary, who grew up knowing what performance means to Chevrolet, you’d never execute the Corvette, the (Chevy) SS and the Camaro strategies. No way.”

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