Chevrolet has announced that it will replace its current Impala SS NASCAR Sprint Cup race car for the 2013 season, and that the new car will be based on a vehicle and nameplate new to the brand’s lineup. Although Chevrolet is playing it close to the vest, a PR representative confirmed the following to us: “Neither the car nor its name will be a derivative of an existing one, such as the new Malibu or the upcoming redesigned Impala, but the Chevrolet race car will closely resemble the production version.”
Signs point to the street car possibly being based on the platform of the rear-wheel-drive Holden Commodore, which was sold here with V-6 and V-8 power as the dearly missed Pontiac G8. Chevy already plans to offer a long-wheelbase version of that vehicle for North American police duty as the Chevrolet Caprice PPV. That said, Chevrolet declined to confirm whether the new vehicle will be both rear-wheel drive on the track and street. But when the company says that customers will be “able to own [a street car] just like [the NASCAR version],” it would seem a bit disingenuous to sell them a car that doesn’t drive the rear tires with an optional V-8, no?
According to the company, both race and production versions will be unveiled in the coming year. In our conversation and without prompting, the Chevy spokesman added this provocative statement: “The consumer car and the race car would not be unveiled before the upcoming New York auto show.” We note the use of the word “before,” as it could indicate the cars will drop in just a few weeks in the Big Apple.
Beyond getting enthusiasts like us excited at the prospect of another rear-drive thumper in GM’s lineup, it’s in Chevrolet’s best interest to take advantage of new NASCAR rules for 2013 that encourage race cars that share styling with their showroom brethren. (Ford and Dodge have already revealed their redesigned Fusion and Charger Cup cars, and they follow that philosophy.) But if it does go the rear-drive, Holden-platform route for the roadgoing model, Chevy might want to think twice about using the Caprice name. There may be too many folks here in the U.S. who remember the “not quite a Cadillac,” public-golf-course rep of previous civilian Caprices.
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