Manual Lingenfelter 'Heartbeat' ZL1 for sale
The ZL1 was already a monstrous Camaro with 650hp - this one has another hundred on top...
It’s hard not to admire the commitment of those who import and use left-hand drive cars in the UK. Or buy one of those cars that was only ever LHD, in fact. While there’s the obvious stuff around overtaking and ticket barriers, a lot of the left-hand-drive offerings that come to mind - we’re thinking of the American stuff, basically - must cost an absolute fortune to run at the moment. And they never would have been exactly cheap. But hopefully it all still seems worth it, because there’s nothing quite like a Corvette, Challenger or classic Mustang to brighten your day.
Because this is PH, a Camaro ZL1 would probably brighten your day as well, though it’s easy to imagine plenty running for cover at first sight of this Chevrolet. The sixth-gen Camaro was a masterpiece of muscle car design, traditional and recognisable yet really handsome as well. In Z1 spec, there was absolutely the firepower to match the aesthetic, too. There had been mean-looking, powerful Camaros before this - think 7.0-litre Z/28 - but none quite like the ZL1. Thanks to a supercharged version of the 6.2-litre V8 (known as LT4), peak power for the ZL1 was 650hp. There was 650lb ft of torque as well, all channeled to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual. This was all in the past decade, too; this isn’t some '90s throwback when everything was better. As proven by the option of a 10-speed (!) auto.
Big power Camaros weren’t really a new thing, though. Camaros as good to drive as the ZL1 were a relatively new phenomenon, though, and that’s what made the supercharged car so appealing: it looked incredible, it went like stink, and it could really make use of the power. The PH first drive praised the Camaro for its chassis, brakes and steering; of the latter Mike Duff said that it was ‘an object lesson in how sports cars are meant to do it.’ So there - brute force, and delicacy.
This one has covered just 13,000 miles since 2019, and has been in the UK long enough to have had all its MOTs here. It’s also some way from standard, just in case a 650hp ZL1 wasn’t thrilling enough. Thanks to the good people of Lingenfelter (famed of course for their Corvette upgrades), this Camaro is now producing 743hp and 783lb ft - all through a manual gearbox still.
The Lingenfelter ‘Heartbeat’ performance pack (probably it should be called ‘Heart Attack’) includes a new cam, ported heads, a shorter supercharger pulley, high flow cats and new headers for the extra power. Here it’s been supported by uprated fuel and oil pumps to keep the monster V8 lubricated. Quite whether the ZL1’s smartly judged balance of attributes has been retained with another 100hp remains to be seen; certainly it promises to be memorable…
The asking price is £70k, or pretty much exactly what a similar car cost three years ago; it would seem like the ZL1’s reputation rather precedes it in terms of residual values. It seems unlikely that much money would be lost (apart from to the local fuel station) in trying out a crazy Camaro - and then maybe deciding it was a tad too intimidating. But for those that always believe that you can’t have too much of a good thing - and the speed very much does matter - then there can’t be much better for sale on PH. Hold on tight…
SPECIFICATION | CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1
Engine: 6,162cc V8, supercharged
Transmission: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 659@6,400rpm (tuned to 700hp+)
Torque (lb ft): 650@3,600rpm (stock)
MPG: 16 (US EPA)
CO2: N/A
Year registered: 2019
Recorded mileage: 13,000
Price new: $64,485
Yours for: £69,995
Not a bad price either on it.
I have a 2019 Camaro SS that is an official UK car from Ian Allan. It has just ticked over 20k and always feels special when I take it out on the weekend. It's surprisingly easy to live with in the UK (except for the usual car park/drive through issues!) and on a motorway run using 6th gear, it will do over 30mpg. Not that it spends a lot of time on the motorway.
Servicing is easy and relatively inexpensive and insurance isn't too bad either. You need to be cautious in the classifieds though - there's quite a few US import cars with opaque history and dubious mods to them. I'd love a ZL1 but not sure if spending an extra 30k over a good SS is worth it - 455bhp is certainly plenty enough for me!
Or is it just EVs, that have "too much power"?
This will light up rear tyers all the time, and here "too much power" is actually too much. At least EVs can put that power down...
I had a supercharged Mustang with lots of chassis mods and it was at it's best with 675whp and a well sorted chassis. Playful and fun. Much more fun than 400bhp and the standard chassis.
But they at least red
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