NASCAR’s foray into the world of endurance racing is one crossover act in motorsports no fan thought would happen. Yet, American stock car racing’s governing body teamed up with giants of their industry to give the world what was undoubtedly one of the most iconic mixes of American grit meeting European finesse.
Advertisement
The promotion teamed up with Hendrick Motorsports, Goodyear, IMSA & Chevrolet to develop a version of the Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Cup Series car to participate in the Garage 56 entry at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. After a successful run at the iconic French track in 2023, the highly unusual creation now rests at a Hendrick Motorsports Museum as a part of owner Rick Hendrick’s collection.
A year on from the program’s debut at the Circuit de la Sarthe, fans still remember the car dubbed as ‘The Beast’ amongst a host of much smaller and quieter LMP prototypes and GT sportscars.
.@MotorTrend averaged 161,000 viewers for this past weekend's WEC @24HoursOfLeMans race in France, up 59% from 101,000 last year. pic.twitter.com/r0zRQA3AyW
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) June 13, 2023
The Garage 56 Camaro ZL1 was also showcased at numerous events after its debut at Le Mans with some of the most notable mentions being a show run at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England as well as demo laps leading up to this year’s MotoGP race at the Circuit of the Americas.
With big names drivers such as 7-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson and F1 World Champion Jenson Button piloting the machine, not only did the machinery attract eyeballs from all over the world, but the drivers did as well in what was one of motorsports’ greatest crossovers in history.
How was the NASCAR Garage 56 Camaro ZL1 different from the Next Gen Camaro ZL1 Cup car?
Despite being based on the Next-Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, the Garage 56 Camaro that ran the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2023 was a completely different animal.
Stemming from the same base, the Garage 56 car’s distinctive addition of working headlights and taillights was one of the key differentiating factors from a NASCAR Cup car, owing to the need to run on an unlit track at night.
In addition to the same, key differences came in the form of an aerodynamic package focussed on more downforce and cornering ability with the addition of strakes on the rear fenders alongside the ducktail spoiler.
.@alex_albon, looks a little bit different, doesn’t it? pic.twitter.com/7xFmjxR0Hw
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) July 16, 2023
The car was equipped with special Goodyear racing tires with a square setup i.e. the same size of tire on all four corners along with specific ride height and alignment to specifically run road courses.
Interior changes came in the form of a revised seating position as well as a newer, faster steering rack and wheel better suited to the twists and turns of the Circuit de la Sarthe.
However, one thing that remained the same was the quintessential NASCAR pushrod V8 which roared life into an otherwise relatively quiet field of smaller, hybrid-engined racecars.
