1967 396-375 Camaro: On The Street For the First Time Since ’68

Sometimes we wish the cars themselves could write these stories. Not only would it save the authors a lot of time, but they could fill in all the gaps that have been lost to time. Our feature car (known as Big Red) is one of the earliest L78 396/375-horse Camaro SS ever built, and its tale begins in Southern California, where it was sold new. It was then driven cross-country to Connecticut, stolen, and recovered in The Bronx, then acquired as a theft-recovery in 1968 by Joey Spino of Jersey City. 

Joey and his brother, Mike, were the proprietors of a shop called Neighborhood Garage, which was a fairly large, second-generation family business. They sold gasoline in front, did general repairs, sold used cars, etc., but it was also the place where hot rodders, street warriors, and hardcore racers went for speed parts, custom-built engines, and high-octane race fuel. Big Red, once abandoned in a dying area of New York City, got a new lease on life. Its L78 396/375 — already wearing non-stock L89 aluminum heads — was eventually replaced by an L88 427, and the F-body was reborn, terrorizing the dragstrip (and competition) at Raceway Park in Englishtown.

Big Red only got few options besides the SS L78 deal when it was ordered: RS package, tilt wheel and a fold-down rear seat. No console, no gauge package, no nothing. It stopped via four-wheel manual drum brakes and a four-speed rowed the gears. A 3.55 Posi-equipped 12-bolt is how it left the factory. Only 3,600 miles were on the odometer. 

”It was missing the front and back seats, shifter, and steering column,” according to Joe Spino Jr., the current owner. ”It was also missing the intake, carb, distributor, and radiator, but the rest of the car was intact.” 

That the original aluminum-headed L78 and trans were still in it is remarkable, but check out what Joey Sr. did to get it.

“My father actually traded a brand new blue-on-white top/inside ’68 RS/SS convertible 350/automatic with a column shift and bench seat,” Joey Jr. recalls. It had factory air and power windows — another car that would be worth a bazillion bucks now. He swapped the vert for the red car as it was, put it back together, and drove it around the street for a couple months before turning it into a race car.”

Joey never really cut the car up; it still retains most of the original interior, lights, wipers, glass and an all-original steel body. The chassis was moved in wheel tubs added to fit big tires — what people refer to as mini-tubbing today — and a cage installed, but that’s about it. 

The old man was never satisfied with the performance of the L78 (Big Red was one of only 1,138 so equipped). Valve springs, cam swaps, intakes, and different carbs were tried, but the best it would run was 11.20 at 123. Senior literally called it a pig. Out came the 396 and in went a real-deal L88. The car instantly went mid-10s and he broke every Muncie, Super T10 and Hemi 833 four-speed he tried. Eventually, he found success with a GER-prepped Ford Top Loader. This is back in the beginning of 1969. 

What happened to that L78? It was sold when the L88 went in. Originality? That was totally unimportant when the Beatles were still recording new music.

Big Red Goes Racing

Big Red was raced until 1976 in mostly A/Modified production. Its best run was a 9.87 at 138. Spino and race partner Patty Machitto had tremendous success with Big Red, setting records and winning the track championship a couple of times. They regularly garnered enough points to finish in the Top 10. They also campaigned a ’69 Camaro called “Born Free” in Pro Stock when that became a class. 

As the vagaries of life often do, Big Red’s competition days came to an end and it was parked in a corner of Neighborhood Garage.

It was like a time capsule to 1970s drag racing, its signature whitewall skinnies on Center Line wheels sticking out from under the cover.

For a decade it sat. People — your author included — would go there to buy the latest goodies for their hot rods, fill up on race fuel (we were so cool), glean whatever information we could from the old man, and take a peek at than incredible Camaro. Joey continued doing his thing, which by then was building the meanest engines (often with nitrous) for area street racers — Fords, Chevys, Buicks, Oldsmobiles, even Cadillacs. Joey could touch anything and make it scream.

Still, as time went on, those visiting the shop always wondered if Big Red would ever turn a tire again. The years passed and the dust got thicker. Finally, in 1984, a month after Jr. was born, the old man took the old Pro Stock engine and trans from the Born Free Camaro and went to the track. Made one pass and forgot it was a Doug Nash five-speed. He over-revved it and lost the motor on the big end. Still, the car did roll to 10.16 113 mph. He felt it would have gone 9.40s.

The Next Generation Comes Calling

When Joey Jr. was about 13, he naturally got the urge for his first car. Meanwhile, Big Red was sitting in the back of the shop, only to get pushed outside every Fourth of July for its annual wash and wax, then get rolled back inside to sit. 

“In 1997 I found a ’67 Camaro RS. It was white with black interior, a real 327/Powerglide RS car with factory AC. It ran and drove, and was a total pile. I could buy the car for $1,200. And I’d buy 25 of them at that price now if I could. The old man said, ’That car’s a s**tbox; you ain’t buying it. We have one and will put it back together,’ So that’s what we did.” 

The father-son team went at Big Red together, putting a Posi in it, replacing the 5.38s in the Dana 60 with 4.10s. A 454 LS6 crate engine and TH400 were in there for a while. It went a best of 11.18 at 120 in street trim with the automatic. The 454 was fitted with a Crower solid flat-tappet cam, the specs of which went to the grave with the old man. A Holley 850HP carb sits on a Holley Strip Dominator intake and Hooker 2 ⅛-inch headers carry away the fumes.

”The old man would take the car to shows and even my mom would drive it when the old man lost his eye sight,” said Junior. 

A pro-shifted TREMEC TKO600 five-speed is behind the LS6 now, part one of their master plan. Joey Jr. just grabbed a set of original ‘67 Camaro seats to replace the race buckets. 

“Funny how life works. I’ve made a lot of changes over the years to make the car safer and more comfortable to drive. But I didn’t want to ruin the total history of the car,” he explains. “My dad’s wish for the car was a pump gas 555, five-speed with overdrive, tailpipes, Caltracs, a repaint, and a radio. So far I have done most, minus the 555 motor and radio. 

”I currently have a 496 going together and maybe someday it will get some paint and a radio. It has a lot of character and battle scars, which makes me skeptical of repainting the car. But it needs to be done before it gets too bad and I can never afford to fix it.”

Next Up

The 496 is getting Air Flow Research 325 heads, 11:1 compression, and a mechanical roller cam, among other things. Horsepower is expected to clock in at 800, meaning it will be more powerful on the street than it ever was on track.

Today, the mileage stands at 19,999 miles. It is all original metal and mostly factory paint — just some touch ups in key areas.

”We lost pop on November 14, 2014 at 11:21 p.m. He left a hole in everyone’s heart who knew him. And so much knowledge and history was buried with him, including one of the six Englishtown Top 10 jackets he won with Patty,” Joey says. “These guys were the real deal — number one in the Top 10 for a few years straight, number one in bucks and cups. I have 8mm film converted to DVD with over two hours of footage of the car and Born Free ’69 I still have one of the Top 10 jackets I keep in the car as a passenger seat cover.” 

People in New Jersey still recognize Big Red when they see it out and about. It made that kind of an impact in racing circles 50 years ago that is is revered today. Now it is going back to its roots as an incredible street machine. It is captivating an entire new generation of enthusiasts, cementing its place in history.