NASCAR’s Garage 56 Le Mans Racer Completes First Test at Virginia International Raceway

The project crew at work preparing the Garage 56 entry

NASCAR’s Garage 56 project was announced back in March of this year, but it still feels like a fever dream. The project revolves around entering a modified version of the Cup Series’ new NextGen stock car into the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans, the centennial anniversary edition of the iconic race. Hendrick Motorsports, 14-time NASCAR Cup Series champions, are developing the Garage 56 entry with the expressed support of NASCAR itself, IMSA, Chevrolet and Goodyear.

The Garage 56 NextGen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 hit a track for the first time for a two-day test at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) earlier this week. Photos taken at the test show several significant differences between the Garage 56 Camaro and the standard NextGen Camaro seen in the Cup Series this year.

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Dramatic dive planes have been added to the front fascia and the rear quarter panels, as well as side-view mirrors. Beyond the obvious changes, Project manager Chad Knaus told motorsport.com about additional modifications. He said, “From the chassis standpoint, it’s different. The engine is different. The suspension components are quite a bit different.”