Dan Mihalascu is an accomplished automotive journalist with over two decades of automotive media work both internationally and in his home country of Romania.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, and he has reviewed (sometimes even raced) cars for most of his professional life.
Prior to joining HotCars.com in July 2025, Dan worked as a news writer and editor for InsideEVs.com, CarScoops.com and Autoevolution.com. He also has bylines at DriveMag.com and ConsumerAffairs.com, among other international media outlets.
In Romania, he wrote for car magazines, sports newspapers and even a TV news station.
Writing and cars aside, he loves reading, cycling, hiking and spending quality time with his family.
The Chevrolet Camaro has been relegated to the history books since late 2023, when the last Camaro was built, a 2024 ZL1 1LE in Summit White, featuring a six-speed manual transmission – sweet spec, right?
That particular car marked the end of the sixth-generation Camaro, but General Motors said that was not the end of the nameplate, as a successor may be developed in the future. Mind you, the automaker did not provide any details or a timeframe for the Camaro’s return.
That’s why everyone was very surprised recently to learn that Chevrolet is giving a facelift to the Camaro ZL1, a car that hasn’t been in production for two years. Wait, what? Well, the reality is the facelift is for the Camaro LZ1 race car that, for some reason, Chevrolet still uses in the NASCAR Cup Series. The facelifted Camaro ZL1 will make its 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season debut in February at the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray.
So, what updates has Chevrolet given the Camaro ZL1 NASCAR racer? The most prominent changes are a larger hood power dome, a revised front grille and more pronounced rocker panels along the sides of the car. The updated styling mirrors the new Camaro ZL1 Carbon Performance Package accessories kit that Chevrolet Performance Parts recently released for owners of the sixth-generation Camaro ZL1 production car.
The package for the road car includes a carbon-fiber hood insert and rocker panels, plus a Camaro ZL1 1LE-spec front grille and splitter. The changes made to the Camaro ZL1 NASCAR racer were developed by Chevrolet and its NASCAR teams. Chevrolet’s involvement in the NASCAR Cup Series dates back to 1955, with the automaker having competed with 14 different nameplates in the stock car racing series. It has won 34 Driver Championships and 44 Manufacturers Championships, including the past five Manufacturers titles; that makes Chevrolet the winningest manufacturer in the series’ history.
Will we ever see a new Chevy Camaro?
All that sounds great, but why does Chevy still keep the Camaro as its NASCAR contender? Well, the automaker doesn’t really have an alternative at the moment. The Corvette raced in NASCAR only a handful of times in the 1950s and 1960s, but at that time the sports car had a front-engine design. The current C8 Corvette, which has a mid-engine layout, wouldn’t be accepted by NASCAR as the organization mandates that all Cup Series cars use a front-engine, pushrod 358-cubic-inch (5.8-liter) V8 design.
As for other Chevrolet passenger cars that would fit the bill, well, there aren’t any. Besides the Corvette, the bow tie brand’s current lineup consists exclusively of crossovers, SUVs, pickup trucks and vans. So this explains why Chevrolet is still running the Camaro in NASCAR.
Unfortunately, there’s very little information about a future Chevy Camaro. We do know that GM intends to use the Camaro name on a future vehicle, but the body style remains a mystery for now. GM President Mark Reuss told MotorTrend last year that he would like the next-gen Camaro to attract a broader group of customers beyond performance-minded enthusiasts.
Frankly, that’s not an enticing prospect if you’re a Camaro fan because it most certainly means that the Camaro won’t be a coupe/convertible anymore, but rather a four-door sedan or crossover designed to appeal to a more mainstream audience. There have been rumors about the next Camaro going all-electric too, so we can’t rule out a battery-powered Camaro sedan or crossover either, something in the vein of the Ford Mustang Mach-E, for example.
Chevrolet admits muscle car sales are slipping, but hints the Camaro may return – if the right formula and enough demand can bring it back to life.
There is a ray of hope for Camaro enthusiasts, though. GM is working on a new-generation Gen 6 small-block V8 engine, which is expected to debut for the 2027 model year in SUVs and trucks. The new engine, which is expected to be more powerful, torquey and fuel-efficient than the current Gen 5 generation, is likely to offer performance versions destined for the Corvette and potentially the future Camaro, with rumors suggesting potential displacements of 5.7 and 6.6 liters.
Finally, a recent rendering spotted in a GM Design Instagram post fueled speculation about the automaker exploring a design direction for a new Camaro. The image showed a never-seen-before two-door coupe with a striking, low-slung appearance, the proportions of front-engined coupe – a long hood and a fastback-style design – and Camaro-style high waistline and thick rear pillar. Time will tell whether this cool concept previews a future Camaro or is just a design exercise.
Source: Chevrolet
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