We learned something interesting about Chevrolet’s 2010 Camaro ZL1 recently that might surprise you.
Each of the LSA engine blocks used in these cars will be deck-plate honed before final assembly — a relatively meticulous process that you might not expect from the company that once sold less-than-meticulously built cars like the Chevrolet Celebrity.
Deck plate honing is akin to honing the cylinders with the heads on, thus replicating the forces on the block and the distortion created when the head is bolted down.
As the name implies, an aluminum plate, with holes cut out for each cylinder, is bolted to the decks of the bare engine block prior to the final cylinder bore and hone. With all 10 headbolts in place, the cylinders are distorted to the shape they will take when the heads are torqued down. The final hone brings the bores to 4.06 inches within a tolerance of .00031 of an inch. The deck plates are left on, while the crankshaft bores are honed, as well.
GM deck-plate hones its supercharged engines to ensure that the cylinder heads seal properly to the block and that the pistons don’t rock in their bores and scuff the cylinder walls. Apparently this Corvette ZR1 and Z06 blocks are also deck-plate honed. The 6.2-liter supercharged LSA engine in the ZL-1 uses a 319T7 aluminum block with cast-in-place cast-iron cylinder liners.
Chevrolet announced at the Chicago Auto Show that it would build a supercharged ZL1 Camaro for the 2012 model year to go head to head with the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500. Using a version of the LSA engine currently in the Cadillac CTS-V, the ZL1 will have an estimated 550hp on tap. As presented, the only transmission available in the ZL1 will be the Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual, and the car will also have Magnetic Ride Control, an innovative suspension system optional on the Corvette for several years and standard on the Corvette ZR1.
For images and info about the soon-to-be highest performing production Camaro check out the ZL1 page on Chevrolet.com.
