Dan Fletcher (Dan Fletcher) is one of only three people in the history of drag racing. He won more than 100 NHRA victories, putting him ahead of many legends in the sport, and competing with John Force and Frank Manzo ( Frank Manzo) became an exclusive club. He is also the only one who has swept the West Swing twice.
From the first Super Stock championship won in Columbus in 1994 to the runner-up of Super Stock at the NHRA National E-sports spark plug in 2020, the car that made Fletcher a lot of success is this iconic 1969 Chevy Z / 28 Camaro. It is the most victorious car in NHRA history and the most victorious Chevrolet in all motorsports. No other bow tie has won more competitions in any form of competition. period. What is so special about this car that has won so many victories in such a competitive field? Is it a man? Is it a machine or is there really no separation between the two?
In many cases, the key to success is to start before everyone else, and the racing pedigree of the Z/28 can be traced back to the first day. Camaro was born as a legal Crossram air intake, 302-liter, V-8, four-speed car. This kind of machine made for competition, and the kind of car that is being eliminated in the collector’s market today.
Fletcher said: “My father actually bought a brand new car, drove it home, and spent his entire life racing.” The only mileage he saw on the street was the mileage that had to be passed from the dealer. Every mile is clicked on towed aircraft across the country.
Fletcher’s father drove the car in modified production in the 1970s, and then parked it for a while. When Fletcher was approaching driving age, he said that he dragged his father back to the racing track in the 1980s and turned Camaro into a carriage car, and then used it in the early 1990s. Modified to participate in the Super Stock competition. When asked about the secret to the success of this car, Fletcher said it was a ruthless fusion of “hard work and perseverance.” He said he got his professional ethics from his father. Fletcher said: “I think I am a very hard worker, but my father will make me feel ashamed.” “He is a very hardworking and detail-oriented person.” The kind of person who naturally knows what it takes to win victory. People.
So, what details are important to Fletcher and his Camaro? He focuses on the work of making cars faster and more predictable, not parts. This is a bulldozer with many sliding covers on it. We couldn’t help but notice the many well-tuned speed parts on Camaro, almost nothing we would describe as “exotic”.
Fletcher told us: “I am a creator of a habit, and I try to keep everything simple.” He admits that he has many buddies to buy the best things for their cars, but he is not that guy. He has been driving this car long enough that he came up with high-quality parts, but there are very few highest-priced versions on this car. “I’m not the boss of the week. I’m not trendy. I’m just cliché,” he told us.
Between these suspension towers, Chevrolet installed its 302cid Crossram dual quaternary competition engine. Since then, it has become the home of various small and large engines and even SB2 NASCAR engines. There is now a 350-cylinder COPO engine equipped with LS7 aluminum block, LS3 cylinder head and Holley Hi Ram air inlet. After adding a pair of gaskets to form the best flow path, this air inlet can hardly be installed in the front wall. Below the gas hood. There are more zip ties and butt connectors than we expected in this car, but as Fletcher reminded us, “My things will always start.”
You can almost see dried blood in the AN line made by Fletcher for this car. He reported that he only needed to change a line to switch from the small carburetor he needed to the LS engine. Fletcher also talked about the skills courses he learned about fuel pressure. The regulator was not able to control the fuel pressure until he changed the car to an -8 AN inlet and -10 AN size return pipe. According to our statistics, over the years, at least three different installation methods of fuel pressure regulator have been tried on the original wheel well.
We save you the trouble: the odometer reads only 653 miles. That is not a real number. Fletcher told us that cables have not been connected for decades, and the number of cables has been reaching that mileage. The dashboard, carpet and pedal components are worn out in competitions across the country. After all, this is Fletcher’s home office.
In the early 2000s, the car used to run with a 396-cylinder and three-speed automatic transmission, but other than that, this Hearst car has been used in cars for nearly 30 years. Biondo Racing’s electric gear lever is almost always dealing with 1-2 gear shifts. Currently, there is a two-speed ATI Powerglide under the tunnel, but Fletcher believes that the car needs three speeds to use the engine’s power belt.
The gear shift control also looks like an old-fashioned speed component and was in the car when Fletcher started the race. Fletcher said that when he accidentally fell from the touring car in 2003 and “broke my entire right side”, he had to figure out a way to leave the production line with only his left hand. Therefore, in addition to this button on the floor, there is also a button on the steering wheel. “Sometimes I use that button, sometimes it’s another.”
The sheet metal on the car is primitive, and Fletcher’s father first halved the car in the early 1980s. Dan remembered that the car he saw on the picnic table was a fixture. This car has been redone by Gary Wisecarver of Rustburg, Virginia. For the past 25 years, Mickey Thompson tires have been the main product of the plan, but Weld Wheels is a new product in 2019. Fletcher said: “I always want them, but I can’t always afford them.” When asked about the ability to fix the V-series double locks to 7075 aluminum lug nuts, he admitted that they belonged to children. Idea, but so far, he is satisfied with it.
A pair of batteries equipped with Optimo Yellow Top batteries are installed in a fuel cell equipped with Aeromotive-Pump and a self-made counterweight box, allowing Fletcher to work with the ballast in the car. When asked if there are bolts that have never been removed from the car, he said that the rear bumper bolts falling off will only make the car painful-this happened in 2019.
The 33.0 / 14.5R15 M / T Pro Drag Radials are fixed to the ground with Strange’s 40-spline Ford 9-inch rotating 5.38 gears, and are equipped with steel spools to improve durability. When Penske paid Super Stock’s NHRA emergency sponsorship fee, Penske shocked.
Looking at the car, it is obvious that this is a metaphor for the driver-they are realistic about the failure, and their self and acting style are thought of after the fact. Their inspiration will make you reconsider the next part you add to the car, even if it’s not very good, delete the part you’ve recently distracted. For example, check the fuel system. There are the most advanced brushless tank pumps in fuel cells, but you never know. This is a hand-knitted braided thread, fixed with a zipper to attract your attention. There are no Teflon-lined hoses or O-ring clamshell connectors. It’s just that the traditional red and blue AN accessories have been verified on the plane before the car even went offline. However, there is nothing primitive in the design, because the pipeline is made to reduce the number and size of accessories to supply fuel to the engine and allow the regulator to properly control the fuel pressure. “All the fuel pipes you see under the hood are parts I reused in the basement,” Fletcher said. “For the new black fuel pipe, I don’t have anything, but if I have parts on hand and the car already has holes (from other combinations of car driving), I will use what I have.”
Another recurring theme of Fletcher is his avoidance of “I am not a rich man.” When he said that it was “not a wasteful person,” he really meant it. If he can use what he already has to achieve his goals, he will. Whether it’s working on his 20-year-old trailer, or driving in his 17-year-old RV, or chasing parts in a 1-ton pickup that he drove back from his engine manufacturer the day we talked to him.
This person and machine have successfully learned how to make the most of what they have. There is no magic bullet here. He knows how to get the parts that must respond. He said: “Too many people get lost when they start to change things, and sometimes it is difficult to find a way back. Even me.” He claims that most of the time he tries to do something new, or to do something better, It will eventually make him back down. Therefore, the evolution of automobiles is deliberately slow and methodical.
The champions learned from their mistakes and successes, and Fletcher’s 2019 and 2020 NHRA seasons were his longest games without Wally. Is it the reason for the new LS engine combination in the car? Maybe, but Fletcher didn’t quickly attribute the blame to any aspect of his procedures. Fletcher said: “This must be the longest dry land I have ever had.” “Last year was the first time I didn’t win a game in 25 years.” He approached and drove well, but as he said: “It didn’t show up.”
His 2020 season also never allowed him to enter his zone. Therefore, he has been studying the car’s intake and torque converter combination to run the required numbers. Keep in mind that he is dealing with parts that he has used since 2019, and is doing some refinement and avoiding new variables. Fletcher said: “As long as you keep changing, you will never be really good at it.” “Ultimately, you have to research deeply, and then make a system work and perfect it. I have actually driven the same car for 40 years. Up.”
What allowed him to focus on the same machine over the years? His father. This 69 Z/28 is not only a Super Stock car. Are his brothers and sisters. This is his livelihood. This is also his legacy. His relationship with him is a tribute to his father, and it has remained the same throughout his life. He said: “69 Camaro is one of the most iconic cars ever, but for me personally, I am an only child. Since my father drove home, it has been there for almost all his life.” “Considering forever. Without that car, forget it, then forget it. Without this car, I would never know life.”
Dan Fletcher’s father is not from Chevy, he is from Mopar. Prior to this, his car was the 440-powered ’67 Coronet R/T, running in C/Stock Automatic. The ’69 Z/28 Camaro was his second choice because his order for the ’68 Hemi Dart did not get him the four-speed transmission he wanted. The order was cancelled, and a friend of the local Chevrolet dealer hung up Dan’s father with the pony cart. So, are we really close to meeting Dan Fletcher in the Hemi Challenge? “I’ve been thinking about it all the time,” Fletcher said. “Those Hemi cars are not fully revolving bracket cars.” Will Fletcher change the engine combo and follow the same game plan as this Super Stock Camaro? “Who knows,” Fletcher said. “If my father bought that car, history might be very different.”