The boys over at Lingenfelter Performance Engineering look to be on the short list of recipients of the new Chevy Camaro ZL1. And, like any good tuning house, the first thing they did was strap them -- yes, they have two -- down and run them on the dyno.
The big get here is the NOISE the ZL1 makes when pushed hard indoors. It is nothing short of glorious. Unfortunately, Lingenfelter doesn't show us the results of the dyno. Likely that's coming after they release the follow up video detailing the modifications they've done to the 580-horse Camaro. Modifications like a supercharger pulley, reflashed ECM, 160-degree thermostat and an LPE ported and polished air intake.
We know about these mods thanks to the boys over at Hot Rod who were called in to watch Lingenfelter attempt to be the first to launch the ZL1 into the 10s.
Beyond the power upgrades, LPE added a set of skinny front drag tires and Nitto NNT05R drag radials in back. Previously, the car had run an 11.03 @ 130 at Muncie Dragway. On this day at Milan Dragway in Michigan, the first run was an 11.22. See how the rest of the day went over at Hot Rod.
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When you get an email asking if you can be at the track tomorrow to photograph the first 2012 ZL1 Camaro breaking into the 10s, you don’t ask too many questions. When we rolled into Milan Dragway in Milan, Michigan, and met up with Mike Copeland of Lingenfelter Performance Engineering (LPE), the questions we figured you would want to ask started flowing.
The ZL1 that wore the Lingenfelter banner at the track had minimal modifications. The only underhood upgrades was the LPE was outfitted with were a supercharger pulley to bump up the boost, reflashed ECM, 160-degree thermostat and a LPE ported and polished air intake leading to a K&N air filter. The only other modifications to the car were swapping out the street performance tires for skinnies up front and Nitto NT05R drag radials out back.
This very car had run 11.03 at 130 mph at Muncie Dragway. With great air temperatures and the Milan track team prepping the starting line, it looked like a promising day.
The first pass was decent, posting an 11.22. During the next series of passes, an assortment of launched styles, shift points and tire air pressure showed varied results.
Although no one was complaining about making passes at a dragstrip for a couple of hours, the team could only capture an 11.11 at 128 mph during this track outing.
So, the illusive 10-second ZL1 Camaro is still illusive! But the crew at Lingenfelter vows to be back, and soon, to try to be the first!
Read more: The Race to the 10s! - Hot Rod Magazine Blog
from nothing at all. 
