In terms of power on four wheels, how much is enough? If you’re referring to a semi, it’s torque rather than power that matters. In the world of Camaros, the Big G didn’t dare give the sixth-gen pony car more than 650 horsepower and 650 pound-feet (make that 881 Nm) of tire-shredding twist.
Not phased by the Detroit-based automaker’s decision to cap the ZL1’s engine at the aforementioned figures, the aftermarket is much obliged to level up the blown small block to a scarcely believable 1,000 horsepower. Then again, Dodge surpassed that figure by 25 ponies with the limited-edition $96,666 Challenger SRT Demon 170.
Hennessey’s almighty Exorcist was recently treated to a special edition of its own. A grand total of 57 vehicles will be produced, after which the H1000 upgrade for the likes of the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing mid-size sedan will have to suffice. 1,000 horsepower, on the other hand, is peanuts for a lesser-known tuning company from New Jersey.
Specialty Vehicle Engineering is what them peeps are called, and SVE currently holds the rights to the Yenko nameplate. Don Yenko would be proud to see his name on the outfit’s latest Camaros, which range from pretty wild (750 horsepower) to borderline insane (1,500 horsepower). Indeed, the punchiest upgrade kit available offers 1,500 ponies from a force-fed small block enlarged to 427 CI.
Or 7.0 liters if you prefer the metric system. The 1,500-hp makeover is called Stage 3 in SVE vernacular, and to whom it may concern, the peak torque rating at the crankshaft is a heavy-duty diesel pickup truck-shaming 1,350 pound-feet (1,830 Nm). For reference, the high-output Power Stroke in the Super Duty makes 1,200 lb-ft (1,627 Nm).
Photo: SVE
As per the brochures attached below, Sunoco 260 GT Plus 104-octane racing fuel is required to achieve said numbers. If you give it 93-octane gas, expect lower figures. Even so, it’s pretty obvious that the Stage III Yenko/SC Camaro produces in excess of 1,000 ponies on premium dino juice.
Lower down the spectrum, the Stage II offers 1,200 horsepower. Based on the Camaro SS 1LE with either the 10-speed automatic or 6-speed manual, the Stage 1 promises 1,150 horsepower at full chatter. The Stage II and Stage III are auto only.
Only 50 units of the Stage I and 50 more of the Stage II will be produced for the 2024 model year, along with 100 examples of the 1,500-horsepower Stage III Yenko/SC Camaro. As for the 750-horsepower version, Specialty Vehicle Engineering intends to build no more than 50 on the LT1, 1SS, or 2SS in coupe and convertible flavors with either tranny.
As with all things coming from SVE, pricing for these no-nonsense machines is available on request. Still, we do know the 1,150-horsepower package carries a starting price of $85,995 excluding the cost of the donor vehicle. In other words, you’re looking at way more than $100k for a Yenko/SC Camaro.
Last but certainly not least, we should address the elephant in the room. General Motors originally intended to end sixth-gen Camaro production in January 2024 after a very short 2024 model year, but that estimate was changed to December 7, 2023. There’s no internal combustion-engined successor in the offing, but General Motors did hint that this long-running nameplate will be used for an EV.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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