The decision to enter a Gen 7 Chevrolet Camaro NASCAR into the FIA World Endurance Championship race at Le Mans was something of a surprise when it was announced in March 2022. Much of the ensuing controversy surrounded the fact that the Garage 56 entry is meant to be for experimental technologies, and there was no way the Camaro met that criteria. There was an attempt to introduce hybrid technology to the car but, due to a shortage of available parts and time, as well as the added weight and complexity involved, that plan was shelved.
The car did ran on standard biofuel for the WEC, developed by TotalEnergies, yet there was more technical development on this car. The story went much further, with a complete re-work of the car by Hendrick Motorsports, Dallara and suppliers including Goodyear, to bring the Camaro up to FIA safety standards needed to run at Le Mans.
Walk the line
Development of the Camaro focused on the reduction of weight. A typical NASCAR weighs in at 3500lb, nearly 1600kg, and with the car boasting a power output of more than 500kW (around 700bhp) there was a high chance that if it crashed heavily, the barriers would not be able to easily contain it.
There was also the issue of class stratification. The NASCAR was an invitational entry, so could not interfere with other cars
