As adept as they are at planning and fabrication, CRP leaves engine disposition to Cronin Racing Development in nearby Concord, North Carolina. The base insert is an LS2 engine. Displacement remains 364.4 ci via a 4.00-inch bore and 3.625-inch stroke. Since longevity is the key to performance in road racing, the rotating assembly includes a Callies crankshaft, Dyer steel connecting rods, and JE 12:1 pistons fitted with Total Seal ring packs. Although a COMP hydraulic roller is used, its specifications remain proprietary, but a Cloyes timing set joins crankshaft with camshaft. The miracle of CNC is visited upon the LS3 cylinder heads, thus equalizing port and combustion chamber dimensions. The Xceldyne titanium valves are wrapped with psi springs; pushrods and hardware are COMP issue. Rocker arms are tough OE. A Dailey Engineering wet sump conversion ensures adequate lubrication on the race course and allows the C6 to become intimate with the tarmac as possible for a proper coefficient of drag. Lithium Products batteries power the Bosch ignition and MoTec engine management modules. An OE composite intake manifold takes air from a 90mm throttle body and exhaust spending is extracted by PRO-FABrication stainless steel headers with 13/4-inch diameter primary pipes. As the car weighs just 3,050 pounds, the output of the LS2 has been rated at a nominal (but quite effective) 480 lb-ft of torque at 5,800 rpm and 560 hp at 7,200 rpm. To physically transfer this largesse, CRP incorporates a Tilton 51/2-inch triple-disc clutch assembly and matching flywheel. Torque is processed through a Holinger (Victoria, Australia) six-speed sequential gearbox thence to a C6/Z06 Getrag differential with 3.90:1 gears and a limited slip. This unit offers a strong, low-friction link. Final drive ratio depends on the weather and specifics of each venue. Beefy halfshafts and ends supplied by The Driveshaft Shop (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania) put the power where it does the most good—usually without fail.
Hey, it’s a race car and not liable to detail before each appearance. Road rash and battle scars all become part of the aura. In essence, the C6 is a “panel car” and wears widebody carbon-fiber parts. Ira Carlisle (purveyor to Cup teams) in Hickory, North Carolina, did the paint and bodywork. Red Eye Design (Harrisburg) applied the always-critical graphics.
It’s deceptively simple: a web of white chromoly and Race Tech custom seats sans covering; the shifter jutting from the floor was once meant for a Hurst OE application. There’s a small phalanx of toggle switches but no instrumentation save for the all-inclusive MoTec data acquisition module floating in the middle of the carbon-fiber dash and instrument panel. Mike Skeen thumbs the oddly shaped, well-worn Sparco oblong steering wheel. The small tape flap on it is to remind of something important.
All fabrication was charted and completed at CRP Racing and included a rollcage integrated with the chassis proper. The main rails are C5 Corvette and segue neatly into the structural rigidity afforded by the ’cage and its stringers. The less deflection in the chassis, the more accurate the steering and the better the handling qualities will be. CRP applied custom-built uprights, fitted them with SKF Racing hubs, tubular control arms, Hypercoil springs with CRP/Penske coilover dampers, and a custom antisway bar. At the rear of the C6 we find another Hypercoil/Penske agglomeration and fabricated antisway bar.
The relatively low mass of the C6 allows CRP to use AP 13.77-inch diameter rotors at each wheel and six- and four-piston calipers fitted with Hawk racing pads. The prototype Cragar modulars are 18x10.5 and 18x12, respectively, and host 305/645 and 315/675 Pirelli P Zero race rubber. Compound and tread (slick surface or sipes) are dictated by the course and the weather. CHP