Chevy had a 9-second quarter-mile time in its sights, and the electric eCOPO Camaro has done just that. The electric drag racer has clocked a 9.837-second run.
Thanks to video published by DragZine on Monday, we can see how much the eCOPO has improved. Just a few weeks ago, the electric eCOPO Camaro was able to make a few passes with its best time being 10.14 seconds. However, that was with power juiced up to only 80 percent of its potential. It's unclear how much juice Chevy was giving the eCOPO in the video here, but the applause and cheers as the car crossed the line must have felt good for those involved in the project.
The eCOPO Camaro debuted at the 2018 SEMA show last October with a fully electric powertrain. It takes its design cues from the standard COPO Camaro, which is offered by Chevrolet to private racers to compete in the NHRA Eliminator class. The eCOPO Camaro even borrows its gas-powered sibling's 3-speed automatic transmission and solid rear axle. Two electric motors take in power from four 200-volt modules spread throughout the car for ideal weight distribution. Output is rated around 780 horsepower and 780 pound-feet of torque.
As we can see in the video, the eCOPO Camaro's instant torque pushed its front wheels into the sky as it left the line. The car was eerily quiet, too, both during the burnout and at launch. It then rocketed down the dragstrip and went through the traps at a speed of 134 mph.
After a run, the eCOPO takes advantage of an 800-volt charging system for quick charging times—an important facet when it comes to elimination rounds in drag racing.
Check out the eCOPO Camaro strut its stuff in the video above.
