Showing posts with label Daytona 500. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Daytona 500. Show all posts

Saturday, January 26, 2019

2019 Daytona 500 Gets A Pace Truck: The First Time Ever For The 500

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2019 Daytona 500 Gets A Pace Truck


For the first time in the 61 year history of the Daytona 500, there will be a truck leading the pack. A bright blue 2019 Chevrolet Silverado pace truck will be driven by none other than a legend to the sport, Dale Earnhardt Jr.


Earnhardt Jr. has won the Daytona 500 twice, once in 2004 and again in 2014. He also won two Daytonas in July making it a total of four wins for him on the famous race track. Jr. completed his racing Daytona days with 13 top 5 finishes and 19 top 10 finishes with a total of 36 Daytona starts altogether.


“I’ve had a lot of fun and a lot of success at Daytona over the years, and now I can’t wait to get out on that track in a Silverado,” says Earnhardt Jr. “Away from the track I’ve driven Chevy trucks all my life, and I’m excited to have this unique experience of pacing the Daytona 500 with the Silverado.”


This new Silverado pacing The Great American Race marks the 12th time that Chevrolet will take the pace car honors at Daytona. The Camaro took pace car duties 7 times and the Corvette 5 times.


The Silverado has a 6.2-liter V8 that pumps out 420 horsepower and cranks 460 lbs.-ft. of torque, the type of power the veteran race car driver can surely handle.


“Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the perfect choice to pace the race because of his enthusiasm for the sport, his long history with Chevrolet and his love of trucks,” says Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. vice president of Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. “It’ll be exciting to have Dale lead the field to green in the strongest, most advanced Silverado ever.”


The Daytona 500 will be held on February 17th, and as always will be one more Great American Race.

Saturday, February 25, 2017

2018 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE Pushing Limits No Camaro Has Before



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Looks like the picture is stretched, right, but it's not, that's the new 2018 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE! Revealed the day before the Daytona 500 at the Daytona International Speedway, this Camaro could be Vehicle Chief Engineer of Camaro, Al Oppenheiser's, best yet. 

This Camaro in its disguised form was many times throughout the winter mistaken for the next Sixth Gen Z/28. When Oppenheiser was asked why not a Z/28? His reply was if and when that next Z/28 does happen it will only come back out as a naturally-aspired vehicle the way it was attended to be when it was created. He also went on to say the car was built for the track but is a little bit more streetable than the last Z/28.  

This new 2018 Camaro ZL1 1LE gets around the GM proven grounds track three seconds faster than the last ZL1. But make no mistake, it's not because of a new drivetrain, this new track car will still be using last years ZL1 power source, the 6.2-liter supercharged LT4 connected to a six-speed manual transmission. (no automatic available

So what makes this monster so much better than the previous year's ZL1? The 1LE track package of course. For the first time in a long time Camaro is going to ditch the already very effective Magnetic Ride Control Shocks and upgrade to a set of Multimatic Spoiler-Valve Dampers. With a stiffer frame and the largest tires to every be found on a factory Camaro, this suspension should hug corners like your grandma hugs her grandkids.    

There is more to the equation. The body is outfitted with large dive planes in the front and a huge Carbon Fiber spoiler in the rear. The body also host a new and bigger front-splitter and a larger grille to help get more air into the engine compartment. Six-piston front, four-piston rear Brembo brakes will help you stop while those larger tires will be a set of Goodyear Eagle F1 3R's to help grip the asphalt in just about any track conditions. 

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The new version of the 1LE still gets some of  the old styling with the satin black wrapped hood, black side mirror, and blackout taillights. This new version will also come with other ZL1 perks such as the eLSD Positraction Management System with the same line-lock and launch capabilities. And all ZL1 1LE Camaros will come with the Performance Date Recorder (PDR). 

So what will this 2018 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE cost you? Well, if you are lucky enough to get your hands on one, the suspected MSRP will probably be somewhere around the $68,000.00 mark.