Getting to Know Callaway’s Newest Monstrosity, The Camaro SC610

The game has changed, gang. The Camaro is now a bonafide player in every dimension—speed, agility, leanness, ‘aliveness.’ No longer is the Mustang the sole purveyor of ponycar sinew. Even the vaunted Corvette now has a serious rival right under the same dealership roof. General Motors has just taken us to DEFCON 1. Let the ultimate ponycar wars begin.”
That’s how our very own Arthur St. Antoine ended his review of the all-new 2016 Chevrolet Camaro late last year. The sixth generation of Chevrolet’s Camaro is now a sports car that can handle just as well as any BMW, but still roars like those V-8s from the late ‘60s. But what about the owners who still value burnouts, all-out speed, and house-shaking exhaust rumble above all else?

Fortunately, Callaway Cars has those drivers covered with its new psychotic 610-hp Camaro. It’s a car ready and willing to set off every car alarm within in a ten-block area. The Callaway Camaro SC610 is a special kind of lunatic, a car deeply rooted in the company’s horsepower-mad past, but one that doesn’t trade in its current sports car credentials in the quest for Hellcat-stomping supremacy.

The heart of the Camaro SC610 is Callaway’s GenThree, TripleCooled supercharger system. This innovative design uses a primary intercooler on top of the supercharger and two secondary intercoolers alongside the 2300cc Eaton TVS rotor pack. The goal is to reduce the chance of power-sapping heat soak, a problem that’s been known to plague the 1.7-liter supercharger found on the LT4 engine in the new Corvette Z06. Furthering that goal, Callaway purposely designed the supercharger to just barely protrude beyond the car’s hood, “exposing it to ambient temperature” that should keep it chillier.

In total, the new Callaway Camaro SC610 makes 610 hp from its supercharged LT1 6.2-liter V-8 engine, 155 hp more than the factory Camaro SS. And although it makes more horsepower than a McLaren 570S supercar, as stated above, Callaway didn’t intend for this package to be a track-use only deal. “For forty years, we’ve earned our reputation through our engineering and competition prowess…We designed this package for enthusiasts who want race car performance with perfect daily drivability,” said Reeves Callaway, the company’s founder.

The Callaway Camaro SC610 package also features a new air intake system to help improve air flow to Callaway’s supercharger. As for its appearance, as standard, the Camaro SC610 comes with a carbon fiber engine cover, a plaque placed under the hood with a Callaway VIN, both interior and exterior badging denoting its significance, Callaway door-sill plates, and embroidered floor mats. The Camaro SC610 also comes with a standard 3 year/36,000 mile warranty that can be had concurrent with GM’s powertrain warranty. Horsepower however, doesn’t come cheap.

When the SC610 package goes on sale, customers will be able to choose from two options. Buy a fully built Camaro SC610 directly from a Callaway authorized dealership for $54,290, which includes the base Camaro SS. Or purchase the SC610 as a package after the fact, for $16,995 — atop the cost of buying your Camaro. Whichever way you do it, the upgrades can be had in either a manual or automatic transmission. Despite the fact that the price is relatively steep given that the cost of a regular Camaro SS starts at $37,295, when you consider the performance added to the already brilliant chassis, Callaway’s newest monster becomes a bargain. Especially when pitted against Dodge’s (admittedly slightly more powerful) Hellcats.

Performance figures outside of the Camaro’s horsepower haven’t been released, but given the Camaro’s new lighter chassis and Callaway’s horsepower increase, the Camaro SC610 is assuredly one of the fastest road-legal Camaros ever built. We’re eager to try Callaway’s latest creation, and we’ll be getting the keys soon so we can report back just what a 155-hp boost does to the “game-changer” that is the new Camaro.