Le Mans Garage 56 unveiling highlights Goodyear’s innovation and experience

NASCAR has officially unveiled the Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and livery it plans to race as the Garage 56 entry in the Centenary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The livery underlines Goodyear’s role in bringing together technology from the worlds of NASCAR and Le Mans. The Garage 56 project is anticipated to be approved for entry by l'Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) in the coming weeks. 

Goodyear’s involvement in NASCAR covers an incredible eight decades and is one of the longest relationships in racing history. Goodyear also has a long history of success at Le Mans, including 14 overall victories. 

Garage 56 is reserved as a single-entry class for innovative technology. This allows the Le Mans organisers to showcase creativity by allowing a future-thinking project to race alongside the diverse grid of prototype and GT cars. For 2023, Goodyear is collaborating with NASCAR, Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet in developing the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, combining the team, manufacturer and tire with the most wins in NASCAR’s 75-year history, to race in the French endurance classic on 10-11 June, subject to entry confirmation.

The Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 sports prominent Goodyear branding, demonstrating the collaborative nature of the innovation and technology required for Le Mans between Goodyear and NASCAR.

The systems and components of the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 are largely unchanged from the Next Gen race car that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. Among the changes made to prepare the car for an endurance race are Goodyear Eagle tires designed specifically for the challenges of racing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. 

“From the beginning of this project, it was important to us that the car we bring to Le Mans is a true NASCAR stock car,” said Jim France, NASCAR Chairman and CEO. “While there have been some adjustments to allow the car to compete in a 24-hour endurance race, fans in Le Mans will be treated to the full NASCAR experience.”

On-track testing for the project began last August at Road Atlanta (US) with two-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Mike Rockenfeller, who will be joined by seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and 2009 F1 world champion Jenson Button behind the wheel at the upcoming 100th anniversary of the world-famous endurance race. Altogether the test car and its previous iteration have logged more than 3,600 miles (5,800 km) at six separate tests in the US (Road Atlanta, Virginia International Raceway, Goodyear Proving Grounds, Carolina Motorsports Park, Sebring International Raceway and Daytona International Speedway).