Sportsman Spotlight: Frank Coscarelli And His ’67 Camaro

Frank Coscarelli of El Monte, California, is a true Bow Tie guy and an avid fan of drag racing. Coscarelli has several projects, but his current race car is a ’67 Chevrolet Camaro with a 572ci big-block, sniffing a little bit of giggle gas.

Photo Provided By Frank Coscarelli

Photos courtesy Frank Coscarelli. Frank heats up the 17 x 33 Hoosier tires in the burnout box.

Every project starts somewhere, be it a barn, a lead from a buddy at work, or in this case a classified ad on a webpage. Frank was on the hunt for a tube-chassis car when he happened upon a listing for a  Camaro “roller” on the PSCA website.  To get the project running, it took Frank a year to put the engine together and get it ready for the strip.

Like most drag cars, the interior on the Camaro is sparse. Sitting next to the driver is a large bottle of giggle gas that feeds the single-stage fogger system on the big-block.

Frank has helped the car shed some weight by installing fiberglass doors, a complete front end, and a decklid. Even with the weight-saving options, this beast still comes in at 3,030 pounds when driven across the scales. It also garnered a Wally in 2013, captured second place overall for the 2013 NMCA West Nostalgia Street Car Class, and managed a few runner-up finishes as well. To date, the best timeslip for the ’67 shows a 7.83 1/4-mile e.t. at 175 mph. “The car is consistent and goes straight and is very easy to drive,” he added.

Photo Provided By Frank Coscarelli

Photo courtesy NMCA. Frank launches the Camaro during an NMCA West event at Auto Club Dragway in Fontana, California.

The red Camaro has been in its current form for about four years, but Frank is already planning some future upgrades, including a larger 632ci big-block engine. His current setup includes a single-stage fogger system that gives the big block plenty of happy gas. A Rossler Turbo 400 transmission helps distribute the power to the Strange 9-inch differential filled with 4:11 gears. Helping the Camaro stick to the track surface is a set of 17 x 33 Hoosier rubbers wrapped around 15×15 Weld wheels. When it comes to slowing this nitrous-fed Camaro, Wilwood disk brakes on all four corners bear the burden of stopping this 175 mph machine.

Currently, the Camaro is powered by a 572ci big-block, but Frank is contemplating a 632ci big-block for the future.

Frank is responsible for building the current engine and plumbing the nitrous and fuel systems. This current setup features a Dart block with a Lunati crankshaft, Oliver connecting rods, Edelbrock Victor Series heads, Jesel rockers, and Ross pistons. A pair of 1050 Dominators prepped by Performance Carburetor feed this hungry beast. In naturally aspirated form, this combination has secured 900 horsepower, and 1,600 horsepower with the nitrous system. Coscarelli Racing takes care of all of the maintenance before and after events.

Frank attends an average of five events per year – depending on his budget, but the car is driven every month to keep everything in working order. Don’t tell anyone, but this takes place on a private section of pavement because the Camaro does not meet the California DMV’s requirements for being street-legal.

Photo Provided By Frank Coscarelli

Are you a sportsman racer? Do you want to read about other Sportsman racers? If so, click here and check out the rest of our weekend warriors. If you want to be a part of our Sportsman Spotlight, tell us all about your car by contacting us at [email protected]

About the author

Lauren Camille

Lauren is a graduate of California State University Fullerton, and has experience working for several enthusiast publications. She enjoys drag racing, classic Fords, and vintage Lincolns. She currently races a 1965 Ford Mustang Fastback, and has a soft spot for 1960’s Lincolns. Currently, her collection includes: ’04 Cobra Convertible, ’65 Mustang Fastback, ’04 F350 6.0 diesel, ’96 Jeep Grand Cherokee, and a ’87 Jeep Wrangler. She provides insightful content as a freelance writer for Power Automedia.
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