Manoli Katakis 
Chevrolet Performance is still a thing. In fact, it shows little sign of going away. After all, Chevrolet has basically monopolized the market when it comes to crate engines. Even as Ford Performance has stepped things up with the Godzilla (and soon Superzilla) crate engines, as well as Mopar with the 1,000 horsepower Hellephant, it’s still Chevrolet when it comes to giving you the most options for the money. So even as the clouds of an All Electric Carmageddon creep forward, the immovable mountain that is the market is still firm on what it wants. And just last year, Chevrolet Performance pulled the sheet off of a new crate engine: the LS427/570, which is based on the legendary LS7 V8, but pushes out even more power. But by the end of the week, it’s looking like the next chapter in the Chevrolet Performance crate engine portfolio is about to turn.
Teased in the video below, we’re promised by Chevrolet that “something big” is coming on Friday, July 30, 2021. Filmed from the grounds of Mid-Michigan Motorplex, we hear the irreplaceable howl of a GM small block V8 of some kind absolutely sending it down the drag strip. It’s guesswork at the moment in regards to the details, but we think we have an idea.
During SEMA360 last year, Chevrolet Performance announced a 6.6L L8T crate engine block. But that was just it: only the block. But as the video explains below, you can understand why the L8T is special.
The 6.6L L8T V8 can currently be found in the 2021 Chevrolet Silverado HD as well as the 2021 GMC Sierra HD as the standard engine. Pushing out a stout 401 horsepower at 5,200 RPM and a stalwart 464 lb-ft of torque at 4,000 RPM, the L8T makes just over 11 percent more horsepower and over 21 percent more torque than the 6.0L L96 V8 it replaces. And unlike the rest of the LT engine family, it’s a cast iron block, as opposed to aluminum. The superior strength and density of iron means that the L8T engine block can take loads of power, and/or abuse.
Is Chevrolet Performance about to debut a fully-built L8T V8 engine? A new COPO Camaro? A COPO Silverado? Give your best guesses in the comment section below.
