A (40-lb!) chip off the NEW block...

Like a Hollywood starlet, the mighty Camaro is mill dieting... think of it as a "crash diet", but on a CNC machine. The goal is 2700-lbs (about 70-lbs less than someone whose name rhymes with "Dozy O'Ronnell"), and by golly, we're not leaving anything to chance.



Project "Sick Seconds" is racing toward its debut at the SEMA Show (see it live in the Gear Vendors booth!), and a big part of the assembly process has been removing things... namely any pesky poundage. As a testimony to the serious approach being taken in this respect, imagine looking at the engine block and thinking "yeah, we can lose a few pounds there, too", and then milling 40 lbs. from the brand new piece? That's just what the gang at LSM Systems Engineering did, chiseling with fine precision at the outside of the block, working toward the valley tray:



As KMP Performance and Machine (the engine builder) said, "It's almost too nice to use!", and I think you'll agree with the photos here!

You can read more in the June 2009 Popular Hot Rodding Magazine, and be on the lookout for this monster on the show floor, the track... and even the street! The Camaro will be running 1,200 miles between tracks as part of Drag Week, so you'll have plenty of time to check it out in full race set-up, as well as street guise, wearing a set of absolutely killer Bilet Specialties wheels (16x16-inch beadlocks on the strip, and massive 20-inch rollers for street use) on Mickey Thompson rubber! More updates coming soon over on Studio PCK...