The whole team at Corvette Racing is always hard at work trying to figure out how to win the next race and how to stay ahead of their competitors. In the latest episode of the Corvette Racing series, you’ll learn exactly what “cascade engineering” is and how the team uses it to make sure that the next production Corvette is closely modeled out of the team’s experience and uses race-derived production parts. It’s a great way to spend 5:27 seconds of your day so check it out after the jump.

The team at GM Performance Parts has a few screws loose if you ask us – but that’s just the way we like them. Without their noggins being properly bolted together, they come up with performance packages like the new LS9 Supercharger Package which just screams insanity. If you’ve been searching for some type of power adder to bolt up to your LS3-powered Chevy since you drove it off the lot, the search is over. This bad boy of a kit will make your factory monster LS3 V8 seem docile as the package can make your seemingly stock Camaro or Corvette put out up to 650hp with the properly paired components.

The official press release hasn’t hit the wire yet, but we know some people that know some people and we got the hook up for you all so you can be the first at the parts counter to order yours and surprise the heck out of your friends. When you step up to the counter just tell them you need part number 19244103 and make it snappy, there’s fresh tires on your car that you need to break in! The kit will include all of the components to make the kit work right out of the box of course and will carry the same warranty that all GMPP carry which make this kit knock the funk out of the competition.

When the official release gets out, we’ll update you all here with the full statement for your enjoyment.

Thanks GMPP - Let’s kick the tires and light the fires!

 

Roll into the parking lot of your local burger joint on a Friday and you’re bound to hear the old “there’s no replacement for displacement” line spewed out of someone’s mouth that more than likely is wearing a faded t-shirt with a big number 3 on it. Racing legend-fanbois aside, what once was an adage you could take to the bank, now will only come back denied. On the horizon is a new way to look at performance engines and the Corvette C7 Bank is open for business.

The team behind the C7 is staying pretty tight lipped about their intentions with the next generation of America’s staple supercar. However, the new mainstream small block from GM has some details being leaked out that would surely worry any underwriters at Corvette Financial. The main concern for any of the well dressed interest gougers would surely be the price tag on the new engine program which is slated to be around $890 million greenbacks. That’s money well spent though as the new GM small block will feature direction injection, for fuel economy and added performance; an aluminum block and heads, for weight savings; and a new combustion system.

Target horsepower for this next-gen V8 is more horsepower per liter than ever before in a Chevy small block – 440hp (80hp/liter). Those ponies will be created with only 5.5L of space to suck-squeeze-bang-blow too, which is quite the improvement over the outgoing LS3 workhorse that cranks out 430hp out of 6.2L. There’s no cooking the books with the new small block either as the Corvette will be staying with its classic pushrod configuration which means that the motor will be economical to produce and still fit underhood in even the tightest engine compartments.

Even with all these changes it seems like the C7 engine isn’t selling its soul to the market and is going to be welcome addition to the GM family. This new small block will also provide an even more efficient platform for tuners to start making more go-fast goodies for, so you know what that means – an empty bank account.

Day 4 of the HOT ROD Power Tour brought the party to Bowling Green, KY. The show was held on the airport grounds so there was plenty of space for everyone to spread out and show off their rides. As a special treat, those participating in the tour got to take a tour of Corvette plant and the Corvette museum. There was also a decent share of oddballs at this stop that you’ll just have to check out the gallery to see.

One of the aforementioned oddballs was a car built by someone that who, let’s just say, has a very eclectic taste. This hot rod has street signs and license plates inside instead of floor boards and the entire vehicle has some deceased woodland critters affixed to various body panels and fixtures. The saving grace here is that this machine is powered by a 454 big block engine. That engine does use dryer ducts for fresh air inlets but what else would you expect from this creation?

The other featured ride is one called the “Lost Sol”. We don’t think this one is lost at all, but if it ever was, it wouldn’t take long to find the right way as its rear wheels are motivated by the mighty LS7. If we were to ever swap out the stout LE5 for an engine in a Solstice, we would have to agree that an LS7 would be a nice trade.

Motor Medics patients continued to flood in with repairs today. Jobs included fixing a LT1 engine in a Caprice wagon that was only running on 4 cylinders, setting an axle pinion gear clearance set, and even a few front spindle replacements.

Since the event was at an airport, and the show all about hot rods, it was only fitting that a 1929 Ford Tri-Power airplane touched down to take some attendees on a trip above the tour stop. Seeing the entire show from up high is a great way to really get some perspective on just how large this caravan of car enthusiasts is.

We have some great pictures from the event, courtesy of Bill Duncan, who is leading the GMPD charge at the HOT ROD Power Tour in his Synergy Green Camaro. Check out all of his shots below.

 

Last week we got word that famed race car driver and former Assistant Chief Director for Corvette and Director of the GM Performance Division John Heinricy would be driving around in a Cobalt SS Turbo that was fitted with the upcoming LNF Stage 1 kit. Upon hearing that, we reached out to you to send us questions that you would like to see John answer about his thoughts on the LNF Stage 1 kit. We compiled those questions and shot them over to John, who after spending some time getting to know the Stage 1 Cobalt SS better, answered them for the GMTS fans. We're excited to have John on here for you guys so without further ado, here is his take on the Cobalt SS LNF Stage 1 kit and answers to just about all of your questions.

That’s right. The guys over at Hennessey are at it again with an idea that will make any gear head drool with envy. They decided that the 426 hp LS3 that comes in the Camaro SS just wasn’t good enough and that perhaps a little more persuasion via a 705 hp LS9 would help the tires put down a better patch of rubber. We couldn’t agree more and the rest of the package they’ve put around the new ZR1-sourced motor makes this the hottest Camaro we’ve seen by far.

After almost a decade of trouncing every competitor, the reign of supremacy for Corvette Racing in the GT1 class is over. With no foes left to battle, the team at Corvette Racing is ready to draw blood again, even if they have to change classes to do it. Out of the GT1 ashes comes a GT2 phoenix and might we say, this phoenix is a looker. Not only does the new C6.R make us do a double take but it also is ripe with new hardware on the inside to meet GT2 class requirements. That being said, it’s a big day for Corvette Racing and an even bigger day for their new GT2 competitors, as they have to start worrying about exacting what the Corvette Racing slogan "Take No Prisoners" entails.

GMTunerSource.com focuses on the youth automotive genre, which usually means focusing on the Sport Compact/Tuner market. Don'€™t let that fool you completely! We are car nuts and when our bigger brother does something this cool, there is no reason not to talk about it!

"Take No Prisoners." That's the mentality of the Corvette Racing team and part of the reason the team has been able to be so dominate in GT1 class of the American Le Mans Series. This way of thinking is so ingrained in the team that the aforementioned slogan was actually emblazoned on the wall of the Corvette pit during the 2004 Le Mans race. To show their competition what they were up against, the Corvette Racing team decided to take a very classic approach to instill fear in their competitors, by utilizing skull icons as a symbol of their no-holds-barred, take-no-prisoners attitude.

Well the 2008 SEMA Show has come and gone and we had a blast. We saw some very cool cars all week, including hooked up Vue'€™s and G8'€™s and a ton of brand new performance parts from GMPP. The 2008 SEMA Show encompassed over 2 million square feet and featured 1568 exhibitors all while more than 100,000 people roamed the various halls at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

We could barely walk at the end of the week, as we tried to check out all of the cars at the show. On the last day though it was all worth it, as we found a C6-R Compuware Corvette hiding next to the North Hall and of course we stopped dead in our tracks and took some pictures of it. Due to popular demand, we also headed back over to where we found a Corvette ZR1 earlier in the week and took some more shots of the new supercharged €˜vette.