Chevrolet and 16-time NHRA champion John Force recently introduced the all-new 2016 Camaro SS Funny Car that he’ll race at the NHRA Kansas Nationals, in Topeka, Kansas.
The new Funny Car body is the first based on the sixth-generation Camaro SS. Force’s teammates Courtney Force and Robert Hight will introduce new Camaro SS Funny Cars later this season.
The team conducted computational analysis and scale-model wind tunnel testing to help give the new body the airflow management qualities necessary to deliver the downforce required by the 10,000-horsepower supercharged race car, as it accelerates from 0 to 531kmh in less than 4 seconds – and in a mere 1,000 feet.
Among the unique aerodynamic elements is a new, integrated front splitter that helps direct more air over the body to increase downforce. The design also incorporates new, dual blow-out – or “burst” – panels, safety devices that relieve underbody pressure to help keep the body on the chassis in the event of an engine failure.
Additionally, the new body, which is lighter than John Force Racing’s previous Camaro Funny Car bodies, carries the distinctive styling signatures of the 2016 Camaro SS’s front- and rear-end designs.
“The 2016 Camaro has been a great success in the showroom and Chevrolet is proud to contribute to its debut in NHRA’s Funny Car class,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. vice president of performance vehicles and motorsports. “It joins the 2016 COPO Camaro in the Sportsman classes, strengthening Chevrolet’s presence in drag racing, which dates back nearly 60 years.”
