Classic Camaro Z/28 drag car covers quarter mile in a hurry, but it struggles to stay in the groove.
The video above comes from the Jmalcom2004 YouTube channel and it features a wicked first generation Chevrolet Camaro drag car making a few hard runs down Dorchester Dragway. This car rockets down the track, but the driver has a fight on his hands when it comes to keeping the car pointed straight ahead. In fact, one run nearly ends with the muscle car kissing the wall.
The Machine
There are no details on this Chevrolet Camaro drag car in the video details, but it is clearly modeled after the 1967-1968 RS Z/28 with the hide-away headlights. It looks like the majority of the body panels are comprised of lightweight fiberglass, with composite windows, a huge pro stock-style hood scoop and a big drag wing out back.
That big hood scoop feeds a monster V8 that exhausts through the front fenders and if you look carefully, you can see the nitrous purge tube sticking up on the driver’s side of the hood scoop, while also seeing the carburetors through the opening in the hood. If we had to guess, we would say that there is probably a big block Chevy under the hood, but whatever engine is at work is making monster power.
Finally, this classic Camaro race car has wheelie bars, a parachute and a set of big, fat M/T racing slicks out back. You would think that those massive tires would lead to great traction, but as the video shows, you would be wrong.
Struggling with the Groove
After a solid burnout, this nitrous-fed Camaro eases to the starting line and blasts down the track in impressive fashion. The car moves out hard, wandering a bit to the left before the driver points the car back towards the finish line. We don’t get to see a time, but the car got down the track in a big hurry.
For the next run, we get to watch the massive burnout from several different angles, seemingly leading to sticky tires and good grip. However, shortly after the launch, the car begins to dance and the Camaro shoots across the center line, lifting before it got too close to the far-side wall.
We get to watch this run from a variety of angles and in each, you can see the point at which the car began to head for the other lane. Fortunately, there was no car running in the left lane on this run and this video shows why some tracks prefer to run crazy-quick cars by themselves.
While this video nearly ends in disaster, this bottle-fed Camaro is a beast, so crank up your speakers and enjoy!
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
