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Originally Posted by Runin11z
I don't think the ZL1 is a loser, it's a great GT car very much like the CTS-V.. This is where I think GM got lazy they took all they have learned through the V's production and transferred it into a Camaro.. The V2 is a very worthy opponent to the German sedans it was chasing in its V1 stages. As a matter of fact I'm pretty sure the V2 decimated the competition when introduced.. So instead of thinking ahead they rested on the credentials of the V to make the ZL1...
By the time they dropped the LSA into the Camaro they should have done a revamp to the engine for increased output, especially knowing Ford was going to protect the Mustang with a hard push back (but it was all about turning a large profit).. The potential to make an epic Camaro was there with the LS9 in the parts bin but I think they were afraid to shoot themselves in the foot kind of like what's happening with the Z/28.. This site alone should have reassured them that a high dollar Camaro would sell (just like you're planning a LPE700 package which will put the ZL1 into super car territory) if the performance was above and beyond the competition and I'm not only speaking of road course times (which do matter also)..
We live in a world now where we can have our cake and eat it too... Maybe I'm jaded because I knew what the moniker ZL1 meant before it's latest incarnation, and IMHO the new nameplate doesn't live up to the heritage...
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From a post I made in another thread
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Consider this (please)  . Development of the ZL1 began in 2009. The goal was to answer the 2009 GT500 that made 500HP and cost $47,950. Assume GM knew the upcoming 2010 GT500 would make 550 HP and cost $48,175.
Available engines* were the LSA ($11,210) and LS9 ($20,410). Delta $9,200. Chevy chose the less expensive LSA but increased its power to 580 HP.
When the ZL1 was introduced at the Chicago Auto Show in February 2011 with a base price of $54,995, it surpassed the GT500 on both the strip and track but was expensive.
You argue that Chevy protected the Corvette by withholding the LS9 yet they introduced key C7 Corvette technology on the Camaro first.
- ZL1 introduced Gen3 magnetic ride control.
- Z/28 co-developed carbon ceramic brakes with the Corvette team and introduced them ahead of the C7 Z06
I would like a LS9 ZL1 too but recognize that given its standard content, it would have pushed the base price into the 60's. That didn't meet the market conditions AT THAT TIME. Ford was ready and one upped them in 2013 but doesn't mean they made it weak to protect the Corvette
* Prices listed are for crate engines on Pace Performance. The LSA (19260164) is the 556 HP version. LS9 (19260165)...
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Your overlooking that the ZL1 is an old, and soon to be obsoleted platform and engine series. Mod it to 700 HP and it will be timelessly satisfying.