"Big Red" is a 1969 Camaro Z/28 built by Dan and RJ Gottlieb, racing since 1987. It's been called the original outlaw racer, been banned from La Carrera Clásica for being too fast, made a cameo in the Fast & Furious franchise, and starred in its own eight-episode docuseries, The Original Outlaw Racer, on NBC Sports Network. Hot Rod magazine first put it in print back in 1989, and it's held the title of one of the fastest Camaros ever built — up to 266 mph at Mojave Magnum.
We started working with the Big Red crew on a ProCharger blow-through carbureted setup. From there, the car moved to Holley Dominator EFI — and that's the combo that set records.
Pikes Peak
Getting Big Red ready for the Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb meant reconfiguring a road-race car for a 12.4-mile course that climbs from 9,390 feet to 14,115 feet at the summit — thin air, icy switchbacks, and a 156-turn run to the clouds. We were on-site for testing, checking data every time the car came back to the pits.
"Brian Macy from the EFI Store and Eric Rhee from Westech Performance Group were both on hand to help with fuel injection and other tuning duties. ... The Holley EFI did really well with the elevation."
— bigredcamaro.com, official race recap
Big Red's best qualifying time on the lower section was 4:42.073, racing at a curb weight of 3,550 lbs with driver. The car ran what the team calls "The Beast" — a 940 hp small-block — up the mountain.
Bonneville & the Standing Mile
Bonneville meant adapting a vintage muscle car for a surface with almost no traction and a horizon with no reference points — running a boosted setup north of 1,600 hp. We tuned the EFI for that combo too, and it's where the car set a record: 253 mph in the standing mile, with a Bonneville speed record to match.
On Video
Real footage from the Pikes Peak testing and race runs, from the official Big Red Camaro channel: