When I flew to Michigan in late May to sample Katech's LS7-powered Camaro, it was another track test in another city. Fly in, meet the crew, check out the ride, burn some rubber, have a few laughs, fly home. And this trip was starting out much easier than usual. My departure delay out of New York's LaGuardia airport was measured in mere minutes-a feat I'll be submitting to the Catholic church as an official miracle. My luggage was the first bag out on the belt in Detroit. The mapped directions were actually right for a change as I breezed through light traffic. And the good folks at Katech, in addition to arranging a shop tour, renting out Milan for a day, and pretty much giving me free reign with its LS7-powered Camaro, had also suggested a hotel close to its Clinton Township facilities. It had free cookies and drinks, and upon entering my third-floor room, I found it to be clean and deathly quiet-musta got a room facing away from the street. There were no horns honking, none of the noise typical to a hotel room near a major intersection. Elated with my continued good luck, I moved over to the window and drew the shades to inspect my surroundings. There was a road in the distance, some big shade trees-and hundreds of headstones right under my window.
Despite the restful benefits of sleeping next to a cemetery, I've seen enough horror films to know that this type of omen shouldn't be ignored. You don't go into the woods alone at night, you don't skinny dip at the creepy summer camp-pretty self-explanatory, right? The big question now was: Do you dismiss the superstitious stuff as simple coincidence, or are there repercussions of sleeping next to a boneyard if you are drag-testing the Frankenstein of LS7s the next day?Let's consider what I'd be up against: an LS7 is a force to be reckoned with in factory form, displacing 427 cubes, making 505 horses and 470 lb-ft of torque, and revving past 7,000 rpm in the blink of an eye. The LS7-powered Z06 is capable of mid-11s with enough traction and nerve, a bone-stock rocket with the torque to twist you sideways at every prod of the throttle. Now let's consider the company that modified the LS7 currently sitting in this Camaro's engine bay. Katech Inc. is best known for building the engines for the GM Racing Corvette team-yes, those Corvettes. The C5-Rs and C6.Rs have dominated the GTS/GT1 class of American Le Mans since 2001, laying waste to such rivals as Aston Martin, Saleen, Viper, and Ferrari. They won six ALMS championships between 2001 and 2006, and in that timeframe the Corvettes collected an astonishing 51 victories, including 34 1-2 finishes; multiple LeMans, Sebring, and Petite LeMans wins; and a boatload of ALMS records that may never be eclipsed.
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Katech's Street Attack LS7 in its unnatural habitat. The dry sump oil tank was shortened 3 inches at the expense of one quart of oil capacity, and integrated into the original battery location for a stock appearance. All of the warning signs are here: LS7 coils, MSD wires, 90mm UMI throttle body, 1.75-inch TPIS headers. But things get really scary under those blue valve covers. You could beat Bigfoot to death with the cam they threw in this thing, and the heads are the mutant half-brothers to those under the hoods of the C6.R Corvettes. Think big lift, big flow, 640 horses, and 555 lb-ft. |  |