On February 25, 2016 Hennessey Performance (HPE) propelled their 2016 Camaro SS to a top speed of 202.1 mph. Driven by Brian Smith at the Continental Tire Proving Grounds in Uvalde, Texas, the Hennessey Camaro, powered by a 751 HP LT1 V8 engine, became the first 2016 Camaro to break the 200 mph mark.

The run was made on the 8.5-mile high-speed oval at the Continental Tire Proving Grounds located in Uvalde, Texas. This is the same test track where the Hennessey team ran their HPE750 Supercharged Mustang to over 200 mph with Jay Leno’s Garage in 2015. During both tests, speeds were validated with Racelogic’s VBox 3i GPS data logging system.

“We are an equal opportunity performance business”, said president and company founder, John Hennessey. “Last year we built and tested one of our specially-prepared Ford Mustangs to over 200 mph. So it just seemed natural to take the latest Gen 6 Camaro SS and try to push the boundaries of performance. In this case, we felt like breaking 200 mph would be a great way to validate our 2016 Camaro SS performance upgrade program.

The team from Hennessey Performance (HPE) increased the factory LT1 V8 engine from 455 bhp to over 750 bhp by the tried and true method of increasing airflow through the engine. Starting with their HPE600 naturally-aspirated engine upgrade, the Hennessey Camaro benefited from CNC ported cylinder heads, camshaft and valvetrain upgrades,

Kooks 1 7/8 inch long-tube stainless steel headers with high-flow catalytic converters, high-flow intake manifold, engine management recalibration and chassis dyno tuning. The resulting power increased to 605 bhp at 6,500 rpm. A nitrous-oxide kit from Nitrous Outlet was added to increase power by another 146 bhp. The net combination provided 751 bhp at the engine which equated to 649 rear wheel hp on the HPE Dynojet chassis dyno.

Additional modifications included a lowered suspension system from Chevrolet Performance Parts which works in conjunction with the factory magnetic-ride suspension and lightweight 20-inch Hennessey H10 wheels (20×9.5 in. front & 20×10.5 in. rear) shod with Continental ContiSportContact 5P tires (255/ZR40-20 front and 295/ZR35-20 rear) combined to keep the Hennessey Camaro planted to the ground at 200+ mph.

Hennessey Performance also now offers their HPE750 Supercharged engine upgrade which delivers the same power level without needing to re-fill nitrous bottles. Both packages are currently available from HPE and production is limited to just 100 units of each for the 2016 model year. The 2016 HPE750 Supercharged Camaro SS can also be ordered from authorized Hennessey Chevrolet dealers, including Parkway Chevrolet located in Tomball, Texas.

“We are so excited about the incredible performance vehicles that are being built in America today”, said Hennessey. “Take your choice of 2016 Camaro SS, Mustang GT and Hellcat Challenger, and we can upgrade all of them to performance levels that meet or exceed some of the fastest exotics from Europe.”

For more information, check out Hennessey Performance at www.hennesseyperformance.com.