Fifty years after the original COPO Camaro special order performance models were introduced, Chevrolet’s eCOPO Camaro Concept demonstrates an electrified vision for drag racing. The concept race car was unveiled during the 2018 SEMA Show in Las Vegas on Monday, October 29.

Developed by General Motors (GM) and built in partnership with the pioneering electric drag racing team Hancock and Lane Racing, the concept race car—based on the 2019 COPO Camaro—is entirely electric powered, driven by an electric motor providing the equivalent of more than 700 horsepower and 600 lb-ft of torque.

Chevrolet estimates quarter-mile times in the 9-second range. Testing is ongoing.

“The eCOPO Concept is all about where we go in the future with electrification in the high-performance space,” GM Performance Variants, Parts and Motorsports Director Russ O’Blenes said. “The original COPO Camaro program was all about pushing the envelope, and this concept is an exploration with the very same spirit.”

800 Volts
Just as the original 1969 COPO Camaro models relied on creative engineering to make them successful in Stock Eliminator drag racing, the eCOPO breaks new ground with its unique motor and GM’s first 800-volt battery back.

The electric motor is based on a pair of BorgWarner HVH 250-150 motor assemblies, each generating 300 lb-ft of torque, and replaces the gas engine. It is connected to a conventional racing-prepared “Turbo 400” automatic transmission that channels the motor’s torque to the same solid rear axle used in the production COPO Camaro race cars.

The all-new 800-volt battery pack enables a more efficient power transfer to the electric motor and supports faster recharging, which is important for the limited time between elimination rounds in drag racing.

“Eight hundred volts is more than twice the voltage of the battery packs in the production Chevrolet Volt and Bolt EV, so the eCOPO pushes into new technological territory,” O’Blenes said.

Electric Crate Motors
The eCOPO Camaro’s electric motor has the same bell house mounting pattern and crankshaft flange as the popular LS-family engines in Chevrolet’s crate engine portfolio. That allows it to bolt up to just about any General Motors transmission. The transmission, driveshaft and other drivetrain components remain in the same locations as in a gasoline-powered COPO Camaro race car, meaning the electric motor simply bolts into the engine compartment in place of the gas engine.
 
“The possibilities are intriguing and suggest a whole new world for racers,” O’Blenes said. “Chevrolet pioneered the concept of the high-performance crate engine right around the time the original COPO Camaro models were created, and the eCOPO project points to a future that could include electric crate motors for racing, or even your street rod. We’re not there yet, but it’s something we’re exploring.”

For more information, including specifications and photos, visit the GM website here.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series has announced the 2019 schedule with a lineup featuring a record-breaking 65 feature events. The ambitious agenda is set to visit 37 different venues across 22 states.

The 2019 tour will launch with nine events during Georgia-Florida Speedweeks, including February 1-2 at Golden Isles Speedway, February 4-9 at East Bay Raceway Park, and February 10 at Bubba Raceway Park. As is tradition, the 2019 championship battle will conclude October 18-19 at the 39th Annual Dirt Track World Championship at Portsmouth Raceway Park.

Three tracks on the 2019 tour will host the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series for the first time, including 411 Motor Speedway in Seymour, Tenn. on April 5, Kokomo Speedway in Kokomo, Ind. on September 20, and Raceway 7 in Monroe Center, Ohio on October 4.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will return to North Georgia Speedway in Chatsworth, Ga. for the first time since June 2009, on April 6. The 34 Raceway in Burlington, Iowa also returns to the Lucas Late Model Dirt Series slate, for the first time since May 2010, on May 16. On May 17, for the first time since May 2008, the tour will visit Farley Speedway in Farley, Iowa.

The 2019 campaign will be highlighted by a generous number of the industry's richest events, including Lucas Oil Speedway’s Show-Me 100 ($30,000 to win); I-80 Speedway’s Silver Dollar Nationals ($53,000); Florence Speedway’s North/South 100 ($50,000); Batesville Motor Speedway’s Topless 100 ($40,000); Mansfield Motor Speedway’s Dirt Million ($100,000+); Tyler County Speedway’s Hillbilly Hundred ($30,000); Knoxville Raceway’s Late Model Nationals ($40,000); Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway’s Pittsburgher 100 ($20,000); and Portsmouth Raceway Park’s Dirt Track World Championship ($100,000).

For the complete 2019 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series tour schedule, visit the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series website here. For more information on the Series, visit lucasdirt.com.

Summit Racing Equipment has announced that Scott Peterson has been named President and Chief Operating Officer of the company effective January 1, 2019.

Peterson succeeds longtime President Ray Tatko who is retiring at the end of 2018. Tatko will remain on Summit Racing Equipment’s Board of Directors and act as an advisor to company officers. Tatko’s leadership over the past 30 years has been one of the keys to Summit Racing’s success, especially his talent to identify and hire the best leaders for the growing company.
 
Peterson was hired in 1995 as Summit Racing’s Operations Manager. He was instrumental in improving the efficiency of the company’s order fulfillment center, leading to quicker shipping times and order accuracy for its customers even as order volume increased.
 
Peterson was promoted to General Manager in 2008, and guided Summit Racing Equipment through the turbulent period of the Great Recession, helping it emerge stronger than ever. Under Peterson’s leadership, Summit Racing will continue to focus on its customers, the key to another 50 years of growth, according to a company release.
 
Before joining Summit Racing Equipment, Peterson’s professional career included serving as a Marine Corps officer and various management positions with Gander Mountain and FTD. He received his BS and MBA from Northern Illinois University and enjoys driving his 1968 Camaro Z/28 whenever Ohio’s weather allows.

For more information, visit summitracing.com.

PRI exhibitor Motor State Distribution has announced the addition of K1 Race Gear, another PRI exhibitor, to its product offerings.

K1 Race Gear has been producing high-quality racing suits, gloves, shoes, and related driver safety gear products since 2003. With products for both auto and kart racing, K1 offers a diverse mix of race clothing and accessories, including protective gear, headsocks, undergarments, rain suits, and gear bags, in a variety of eye-catching styles for both adult and youth racers.
 
For additional information, visit motorstate.com or k1racegear.com.

The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) has announced that the 2019 schedule for the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service has been released and features 12 stops across the country.

The year will kick-off at the traditional season opener at the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla. on March 14-17, and continuing with two consecutive race weekends including the NHRA SpringNationals at Houston, April 12-14, and then will race four-wide at the NGK Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway on April 26-28.

The series will race into Atlanta Dragway, Georgia’s House of Speed for the NHRA Southern Nationals on May 3-5. The Virginia NHRA Nationals in Richmond, Va. will play host to the category for their fifth event of the year on May 17-19.

A trio of events starts at the Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals on June 7-9. The NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals will follow during Father’s Day weekend, June 14-16, at Bristol Dragway in Bristol, Tenn. The stretch concludes with the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, June 20-23, at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports in Norwalk, Ohio.

The wildly popular Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals is set for Aug. 28-Sept. 2., while the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals at Gateway Motorsports Park is set for St. Louis, Sept. 27-29.

Finally, the visit to St. Louis the series returns to zMAX Dragway for the NHRA Carolina Nationals, Oct. 11-13 and the champion will be crowned at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas on Oct. 24-27.

For more information, including the complete 2019 E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service schedule, visit here.

After two successful years hosting a “must attend” race, PRI exhibitor Motor State Distributing has decided to rebrand its popular 1/8-mile No Prep event. Moving forward, the No-Prep Triple Crown presented by Lane Automotive will be known as the Motor State KnockOut.

Motor State KnockOut—set for Saturday, June 15, 2019, at US 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan—will continue to be supported by some of the most well-known aftermarket parts manufacturers in the performance automotive aftermarket.

The 2018 event awarded a total of $50,000 to the top performers in the three classes: Big Tire, Small and Tire & True Street.

Event officials expect to draw even more racers and spectators to US 131 Motorsports Park for “a wild and ruckus time at Michigan’s fastest dragstrip” because of the rebranding.

For more information on the event, visit here.

Atlanta Motor Speedway is resealing its track surface in the effort to preserve one of the oldest surfaces currently on the NASCAR schedule.

Officials at the 1.54-mile quad-oval made the decision to postpone the track repaving that was set to be completed in 2017. The track has not been repaved since 1997.

The resealing process, which began on Monday, was slated to finish throughout the week.

“This is a process we’ve undertaken every October since the Speedway was repaved in 1997,” Atlanta Motor Speedway president Ed Clark told the Henry Herald. “The attention to detail and careful maintenance by our operations crew has allowed us to keep our track surface race ready for over two decades.”

NASCAR’s tire test and the 2019 race package test will take place at Atlanta Motor Speedway next Tuesday, October 30, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is open to the public.

Babcox Media’s Engine Builder Magazine announced its Engine of the Year Contest has returned for 2018. Engine builders, customers and fans are invited to nominate their favorite custom engine builder for an Engine Builder of the Year title.

Engine Builder, along with title sponsor Fel-Pro Performance Gaskets and several other brands from Federal-Mogul Motorparts, will announce the names of the 2018 Race, Diesel and Vintage Engine Builders of the Year just before this year’s PRI Trade Show in Indianapolis, Indiana in December, during the Engine Builder PRI Party.

Among the 10 nominated engines are an NHRA Pro Mod engine, a Late Model dirt engine, a Big Block Chevy marine engine, a supercharged Top Sportsman engine, a twin-turbo LS engine, a 1963 Corvette engine, a big bore LS engine and a twin-turbo V6 Nissan GT-R engine.

Voting closes at 12 a.m. EST on November 2, 2018. Along with the official announcement at Engine Builder’s PRI Party, winners will be announced on Engine Builder social media channels.

For more information, and to vote on an engine, visit enginebuildermag.com/engine-year-contest.

Universal Technical Institute (UTI) recently opened its thirteenth campus—the first in the Tri-State Area—in Bloomfield, New Jersey this week. UTI-Bloomfield will give students high-tech, hands-on training in automotive and diesel service technology and prepare them to fill high-demand careers in the transportation industry.

During the event, Ford Motor Company announced that the company would offer its Ford Accelerated Credential Training (FACT) at UTI-Bloomfield. This 15-week advanced program trains students to work with Ford's exclusive technology and state-of-the-industry computer diagnostics, electrical and diesel technologies. Students are eligible to take Ford FACT after they complete UTI's core automotive or diesel programs. Since Ford and UTI launched FACT in 2000, more than 25,000 students have graduated from the program.

UTI-Bloomfield's grand opening celebration featured tours of the 108,000-square-foot facility and remarks from key personnel.

In addition to providing high-tech training and career opportunities for up to 800 students per year in the Tri-State area, UTI-Bloomfield will serve local employers' urgent need for trained technicians and play an important role in building the region's skilled workforce.

Businesses in the New York/New Jersey area—and across the nation—are facing critical skilled labor shortages. According to projections by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be, on average, more than 120,000 job openings in the automotive, diesel and collision repair industries each year from 2016 through 2026.

The campus represents a more than $11 million investment by UTI in the region. At full capacity, it will employ over 60 educators and other personnel. Students can be ready to work in as little as 11 months in the 45-week diesel program or the 51-week core automotive program.

PRI exhibitor 3rd Dimension Industrial 3D Printing will be moving facilities in late December 2018 to allow room for expansion of both staff and equipment. The company will remain in Indianapolis, Indiana.
 
In addition to a new Additive Industries MetalFAB1 system, the company will be installing new equipment to broaden its offerings and improve quality, lead time and costs. The new facility is critical in allowing 3rd Dimension to pursue NADCAP accreditation in 2019, the company said.
 
Any customers with "hot" end-of-year projects are asked to contact 3rd Dimension immediately so they can plan accordingly.
 
For more information, visit print3d4u.com or visit 3rd Dimension Industrial 3D Printing at Booth #5055 at the PRI Trade Show, December 6–8, 2018, in Indianapolis, Indiana.