Month: June 2012

After a four-year hiatus, Detroit is abuzz this weekend with the return of GRAND-AM and IndyCar racing at the city’s 2.1 mile road course on Belle Isle.

Armed with a title sponsorship, Chevrolet will have the opportunity to show off its latest performance cars which will be serving pace car duties for the two major series races.

The 2013 427 Convertible Corvette will pace the Chevrolet IndyCar Grand Prix which will be held Sunday while the 2012 Camaro ZL1 will pace the Chevrolet GRAND-AM 200 which is scheduled for Saturday afternoon.

Chevrolet calls the 2013 Corvette 427 Convertible the fastest and most-capable convertible in Corvette history. It’s powered by the 427 cubic inch 7.0-liter LS7 from the Corvette Z06. Rated at 505 horsepower and 470 ft-lb of torque, it is the most powerful engine ever installed in a production Corvette convertible. With gratuitous use of weight-saving materials like carbon fiber, the 427 convertible weighs in a 3,355 pounds.

The 2012 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 that will pace Saturday’s Chevrolet GRAND-AM 200 is the most powerful Camaro ever produced. It’s supercharged LSA 6.2 liter V8 delivers generates 580 horsepower and 556 pound-feet of torque and has a top speed of 184 mph. Last year on the famous 12.9 mile Nurburgring, the Camaro ZL1 put down a blistering lap time of 7:41.27.

“With Corvette and Camaro, Chevrolet has two of the most popular, and most iconic, performance cars in the industry,” said Chris Perry, vice president, Chevrolet Global Marketing. “It will be very exciting to see them leading the field as racing returns to Detroit.”

Pacing races is not the only place where Chevrolet’s portfolio of performance cars leads the pack.

With cars like the 427 Convertible Corvette and the Camaro ZL1, Chevrolet has become the performance brand for sports cars in the US. Camaro and Corvette accounted for one out of every three sports cars sold in 2011 and that pace looks to continue in 2012.

Total sales for Camaro lead its nearest competitor, the Ford Mustang, by 13 percent through April. For the same period, Corvette sales are 39 percent higher than its nearest competitor, the Porsche 911.

Source:
General Motors

Related:
Corvette Racer and Car Sponsor Ready for Saturday’s GRAND-AM 200 at Belle Isle
GM Unveils New 2013 Corvette 427 Convertible and 60th Anniversary Package
[VIDEO] 2012 Camaro ZL1 Runs the Nurburgring in 7:41.27

 

The Quest documentary chronicles the beginnings of Corvette Racing at the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans and then follows Corvettes at Carlisle co-founder Chip Miller as he searched, found and restored the class-winning #3 Briggs Cunningham Corvette racer. Chip had a goal of taking the car and its driver to Le mans in 2010 for the 50th Anniversary of Corvette’s first win, but his plans were cut short when he passed away suddenly in 2004.

The Quest isn’t just a documentary about an old race car. There are a number of sub-plots revealed during the telling of the #3 Corvette and Chips goal to reunite the car and driver at Le Mans. The story culminates with Chip’s son Lance fulfills his father’s wish by returning to Le Mans in 2010 with the Corvette and driver John Fitch.

Corvette enthusiasts who are attending this year’s Bloomington Gold Show at Pheasant Run will have the opportunity to watch “The Quest” at the Mainstate Theater on both Friday and Saturday afternoons. The screenings will be held at 2pm on each of those days and tickets will only be available at the door. Admission is $20 per ticket with all net proceeds going to the Chip Miller Charitable Foundation and the fight against Amyloidosis.

We saw “The Quest” in a theater last year at Corvettes at Carlisle and I can tell you that watching this emotional and heartwarming story surrounded with other Corvette enthusiasts made this a night to remember.

If you’re not attending Bloomington Gold, you can still get “The Quest” on DVD. With Father’s Day rapidly approaching, “The Quest” is a great gift for dads who love Corvettes. You can buy the video at www.QuestDocumentary.com.

Once again, here is the trailer to “The Quest”:

Jay Leno says “The Quest is a love story from beginning to end. Everyone can relate to it, but especially Corvette enthusiasts.”

We whole-heartily agree!

Source:
The Quest Documentary

Related:
[VIDEO] Filmmaker Michael Brown Shows Off His Texas Corvette Collection
[VIDEO] “The Quest” Filmmaker Vies for Chevy Super Bowl Ad Contest
[VIDEO] 1960 #3 Le Mans Corvette Documentary ‘The Quest’ to Premiere in Carlisle on May 6, 2011