Say what you will of the Camaro Z/28.R – you can’t deny it’s got plenty of horsepower … and punctuation.
The Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R will bring a historic name back to the track when it debuts at the Rolex 24 at Daytona later this week.
As you might have guessed, the Z/28.R is a racing version of the 2014 Camaro Z/28, itself a revival of a classic nameplate that began as a homologation special for the SCCA Trans-Am racing series back in the 1960s.
Stevenson Motorsports and CKS Autosport will campaign Z/28.Rs in the GS class of the IMSA Continental Tires SportsCar Challenge.
Turning a Z/28 into a race car apparently doesn’t require much. The racer uses the same aerodynamics package as the stock Z/28, including its front and rear spoiler, hood extractor, rocker and wheel house extensions, and belly pan.
The 7.0-liter LS7 V8 is also the same, although power output may be changed to conform with class rules. The Z/28.R also uses the stock Z/28’s limited-slip differential.
Many race cars have little in common with their stock counterparts, but Chevy’s choice of the Continental Tires SportsCar Challenge means it can field a car that’s pretty close to what customers can actually, reinforcing the Z/28’s credentials as a purpose-built track weapon.
While the original Camaro Z/28 raced muscle cars like the Ford Mustang Boss 302 and Dodge Challenger T/A in Trans-Am, the new version will go up against a wider variety of competition, including Mustangs, Nissan 370Zs, and Aston Martin Vantages.
The racing action at Daytona kicks off this Friday at 1:45 p.m. Eastern, and the Z/28 goes on sale soon with a base price of $75,000.
