'71 Camaro
Burnt Burner
Could you image landing this '71 Camaro as your first car? Being driven to the DMV for your license test, then driving your early second-gen Camaro to school the next day? Well Greg Meredith of Allendale, Michigan, was that lucky. The car wasn't in the shape it's in today, but Greg got a hold of this car on his 16th birthday in 1981. It started out as a father-son build, but unfortunately Greg's father passed away the next year. He didn't stop working on the car though, and transformed it into a real-life street-driven drag car.
Greg replaced the baby small-block that came in it with a Dart Little M fortified, 374-inch, blown pump-gas motor. The car still has the same headliner, door panels, and dash as it did leaving the factory. He kept great care of this car, and kept it all metal, minus the Glasstek hood for clearance. This thing is a serious drag car though; don't let the stock body and simple interior fool you. He's got all the necessary safety equipment needed to run 9s, which it does consistently. So far, his best run is a 9.80 at 140 mph-very respectable especially since he hasn't sacrificed its streetability. "Everything works. The dome light, wipers, blinkers, cigarette lighter, and even the license plate light above the wheelie bars," Greg says proudly.
Recently, he broke his transmission, but is using the time down as an excuse to make some improvements. He hopes to get deeper into the 9s with a little more boost, some water/methanol injection, and some race gas.
By The Numbers
| 1971 CHEVROLET CAMARO |
| Greg Meredith • Allendale, MI |
| Performance: 835 hp at 6,800 rpm |
| ENGINE |
| Type: | 374-inch small-block Chevy |
| Block: | Dart Little M |
| Rotating assembly: | Eagle crank and |
| | H-beam rods, |
| | Wiseco 8.5:1 pistons |
| Cylinder heads: | Edelbrock 23-degree |
| | Victor Jr. port matched |
| Camshaft: | Steve Morris custom |
| | grind solid roller |
| Valvetrain: | COMP springs, |
| | solid roller lifters, |
| | Crane stud girdle, |
| | and Manley 2.08- |
| | and 1.65-inch valves |
| Induction: | Edelbrock Super Victor intake, |
| | 750 Holley CSU-prepped |
| | blow-through carb, |
| | CSU bonnet and |
| | ProCharger F1R supercharger |
| Ignition: | MSD Digital 6 Plus, |
| | Pro Billet distributor, |
| | Blaster HVC coil |
| Fuel system: | MagnaFuel ProStar |
| | 500 pump, Aeromotive A2000 |
| | boost referenced regulator |
| | with Aeroquip braided line |
| Exhaust: | Lemon’s Custom Headers |
| | stepped headers, |
| | Flowmaster race mufflers |
| DRIVETRAIN |
| Transmission/shifter: | BTE race TH400, |
| | B&M Pro Ratchet shifter, |
| | Mick’s Performance custom |
| | 9-inch converter |
| Rear axle: | Ford 9-inch |
| | with Motive 3.89 gears, |
| | Moser 35 spline axles |
| | and Strange spool |
| CHASSIS |
| Front suspension: | Moroso Trick springs, |
| | and Competition Engineering |
| | three-way adjustable shocks |
| Rear suspension: | custom ladder bar |
| | with QA1 12-way |
| | adjustable coilovers |
| Brakes: | Wilwood Pro Street discs |
| WHEELS/TIRES |
| Wheels: | Bogart Racing; 15x3.5 and 15x14 |
| Tires: | M/T Sportsman 28x7.5 front |
| | and Hoosier QTP 31x18.5 rear |