[vtirocz]

I had a great time at this event and just wanted to share my notes.

Spoke to engineer responsible for validating/certifying the CAI intake and GMPP exhaust:
CAI: He mentioned the tune corrects the MAF linearization table and was critical. Going through cert process with agencies is why it's taking long for them to release it. Without tune, you could see some level of power gain initially, but once system is in a learned state you will not see much of a gain at all. With their latest tune, they are not seeing enough of a gain in power to advertise anything (maybe up to 3hp). This speaks volumes to how good the stock airbox really is. I personally would keep the stock airbox, but if I was in the market for one I would definitely go with the GM part that comes with a tune and corrects the MAF signal.

GM PP exhaust: He indicated from a flow standpoint, the GM PP (Borla) muffler is in between the base exhaust and NPP exhaust. Neither NPP or the GM PP exhaust provide any significant gain in power over the base unit - not enough for them to advertise any power benefit. They will instead be advertising the pressure drop benefit.

NPP exhaust: Has special tuning to inject small quantities of fuel on decels to cause the crackle and pop sound. This was Al's request. He did not believe the standard exhaust had this. I agree it sounds cool, but would really prefer to have the option to turn off that feature.


Spoke to cooling system engineer:
ZL1 cooling package: On SS/1LE, there's one main coolant radiator and two aux coolers (both for coolant) - we've known this for a while. The aux coolers are to meet the "10hr on track without overheating" criteria. On the ZL1 though, the setup is similar except one of the outboard coolers is to cool the supercharger coolant. Does this mean SS/1LE has better (coolant) cooling than the ZL1?


Spoke to 1LE/ZL1 program manager (2nd "Tech Talk" speaker, Al was first):
Asked if 1LE and SS cooling package is identical: He indicated the only difference in the cooling package is that the 1LE comes with a diff cooler and the SS does not. This can't be right - SS comes with a diff cooler too. My assumption then is that the cooling package on the 1LE is identical to the SS. I'm a little surprised he was not more familiar with the base SS content, but give him the benefit of the doubt that maybe he just misspoke in all the excitement of the event.

Asked If lower control arm balljoint and setup on SS and 1LE are the same: He indicated the 1LE has a "cross-axis" balljoint on lower control arm front and rear, where SS does not. I thought SS did as well so will need to check into this. If I remember correctly, the SS they had on display on it's side had two lower control arm balljoints. If anyone knows for sure, let me know.


Spoke with Chassis Group Lead:
He indicated ZL1&1LE suspension and brakes are "basically identical". There were some differences initially, but with recent changes they are nearly identical.

Lap times: Not allowed to talk about this, but they do have the #s from MotorTrend / Laguna Seca track test.


1LE:
I'm most interested in either a 1SS or 1SSw/ 1LE package, so was very happy that they had a SS 1LE there that we could sit in. The car looks awesome in person - I prefer its looks over the ZL1. Here's some other on the 1LE:

1LE Recaro seats: I'm 6'2" / 180lb (tall/skinny) and the Recaro seat was a bit tight in my upper back area. Otherwise it was very comfortable with excellent bolstering. It almost reminded me of the Focus ST Recaro seat, but it's been a long time since I sat in an ST.. I just remember that being tight as well. The ZL1 was supposed to be essentially the same seat but felt a little bit bigger in my upper back area. Probably awesome seat on track.

1LE shifter: I think the 1LE and ZL1 had a slightly shorter shifter than the SS, but it was hard to tell. The shifter did not feel as tight/precise as the optional factory Hurst shifter in my '00 Z28.

1LE Wheels/Tires: Wheel/tire pokes out about 1/2" or so in the front, but not in the back. The chassis engineer claimed the 1LE ride height was "slightly lower" than the SS, but I sure could not tell by looking at it. IF it ends up higher, it's probably to prevent the tire from rubbing on the front Fender. The ZL1 would not have this issue with the wider front fenders (they are wider for cooling purposes according the the 2nd tech talk speaker). The wheels look awesome in person. They did a spectacular job on these. I forgot to ask about wheel weight though.

I wish the Recaro's and NPP were optional to keep the cost down a little.


Plant Tour:
As a mechanical engineer in the industry, I was very excited for the opportunity to see the Camaro and ATS get built. Overall I walked away very impressed - this was truly an awesome experience to see the whole process. I do have two small pieces of constructive feedback though (maybe nitpicking, but I'll throw this out there anyway):

1. There's one spot on the line where someone is in charge of closing the trunk and checking alignment. The car he was looking at was an ATS at the time. It was hard to tell what criteria he was using as pass/fail, but he "tweaked" / bent the ATS trunk (I cringed when I heard it creaking as he was doing this) until it apparently was acceptable. There has to be a better way to get it aligned right the first time.
2. There's a lot of variation in the end of line brake test. Some drive slow, some drive fast. One guy drove quickly (probably showing off), braked abruptly, and skid for ~10-15ft or so on the smooth factory floor. From where I was standing it looked a little unsafe for the team standing in front of that area.

Back Seat:
I sat in a few cars and adjusted the seat as far forward as possible. It's clear to me now that the back seat (foot/shin area) is a bit smaller than my 4th gen. Most people don't care about this, but I take my two kids on short rides and this is important to me. This is my main gripe about the car and possibly even a show stopper. With that said, I'm 6'2" and was able to adjust the front seat, then sit in the back seat (barely), but would be doable for short rides. The rear headroom might even be a bigger concern!

This was probably low on the team's priority list, but I hope it get's improved for Gen7. It really doesn't appear any worse in this regard than the Mustang.

[vtirocz]

Oh yeah, forgot to mention: Thanks to Becky (Rodger's Chevrolet) for the hat! Saved my head from getting burnt on Thursday.

[vtirocz]

I inadvertently posted this in the 1LE section. Intended for it to go in the General section. Can one of the mods move it to the correct location?

[Memphis43]

They do the same thing with the Corvette for tour purposes (speeding off the line doing a burnout sometimes) As well as doing spot checks on a Dyno and sending it through simulations tests that are designed to mimic their test track.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[GrimReaperSS]

Interesting bits of info, glad to see some other questions being raised. I feel ya on the back seat room. I sat in a V6 model in the Chevrolet display at Road America for the ALMS series races. I adjusted the passengers side front seat to what I felt would be comfortable for me in that seat, then sat in the back. I am 5'9" 185 lbs, and I would only be able to handle short trips. The leg room wasnt as bad as the head room. I had to have about a half an inch of clearance. I would also agree that I have more room in my '01 SS, not by much.

[BradfordCamaro]

Originally Posted by vtirocz

1LE shifter: I think the 1LE and ZL1 had a slightly shorter shifter than the SS, but it was hard to tell. The shifter did not feel as tight/precise as the optional factory Hurst shifter in my '00 Z28.

1LE Wheels/Tires: Wheel/tire pokes out about 1/2" or so in the front, but not in the back.

I though the shifter was shorter as well. Could be the Suede is just more comfortable. Compared hand position later to mine and it's the same.

Here is a pic of the front Wheel poke. It looks awesome.

[vtirocz]

Originally Posted by BradfordCamaro

I though the shifter was shorter as well. Could be the Suede is just more comfortable. Compared hand position later to mine and it's the same.

Here is a pic of the front Wheel poke. It looks awesome.

Thanks for posting that picture. It looks awesome, but I think it will get in the way if anyone is looking to lower it. I'd keep it at stock ride height if I end up getting one.. 1LE in Hyper Blue would be perfection

[FNxR3DNECK]

I want to see more pics of the black one in actual sunlight! Looks so freakin mean, but I think HBM is still #1 on my list right now.

[booyaa56]

Wondering why the front is sticking out more than the rear?

[Davy_Baby9]

I'm on Wodward and can't find any new 1LE's here. Just ZL1's.

[fzr100098]

Originally Posted by vtirocz

CAI: He mentioned the tune corrects the MAF linearization table and was critical. Going through cert process with agencies is why it's taking long for them to release it. Without tune, you could see some level of power gain initially, but once system is in a learned state you will not see much of a gain at all. With their latest tune, they are not seeing enough of a gain in power to advertise anything (maybe up to 3hp). This speaks volumes to how good the stock airbox really is. I personally would keep the stock airbox, but if I was in the market for one I would definitely go with the GM part that comes with a tune and corrects the MAF signal.

Good advice - more people in the bolt on section need to read this before dropping $500 for 2-3 hp

[SS 1LE]

Originally Posted by booyaa56

Wondering why the front is sticking out more than the rear?

Technically it's not, at least I think...

Rear wheels/tires are wider, I just think the rear fenders are wider then the fronts.

[SS 1LE]

Originally Posted by BradfordCamaro

I though the shifter was shorter as well. Could be the Suede is just more comfortable. Compared hand position later to mine and it's the same.

Here is a pic of the front Wheel poke. It looks awesome.

According to the press release the 1LE has a short throw shifter.

[its a syn]

Artic Blue Metallic is going to be an interesting color to play with as far as options go. Looked totally different out in the wild on Woodward Blvd. Blacks an chromes will be cool done in the right places.