The Car Gene

There is something about love of cars that seems to be a part of someone from birth. While Janene P.’s older sister was doing such “girly” activities as crocheting, Janene was outside making roads in the dirt for her Matchbox toy cars. As she grew older, she fell in love with the “Pony cars” of the full size variety, first owning a ‘67 Mustang and then a ‘66 Mustang. But twenty-one years ago, the need of a more practical nature for hauling around an infant son with all the necessary paraphernalia necessitated a move to larger, more practical cars. The car gene became recessive. About four years ago, a neighbor put his ‘70 Camaro up for sale and the gene again went dominant. She took it for a test drive and loved the way it handled, so she bought it. It is a Z28 “clone,” which means it did not come off the production line as one, but has been modified to be much the same as that famous performance model. It has a 350 CID engine with 350 Turbo auto trans, Positraction 4:10 rear end and beefed-up front suspension. So far she has taken it mainly on local Roamin Angel events with the farthest one to a car show in Quincy, where it handled very well on the curvy roads en route. Oh, and regarding the “car gene?” It passed down to her son Miles who owns a ‘67 Pontiac LeMans and loves cars that are older than he is. After all, genes are a matter of nature, not nurture. Although in this case it might just be both.

Classic Copper was a stock color for 1970, first year of the second-generation body style for Camaro. The white stripes, spoiler, black grill, and optional two-piece front bumper are like those on a Z28.

1970 was the first year the Z28 had a 350 CID engine and could have an auto trans. Like the Z28, this Camaro does not have A/C, although it does have P/S and P/B.

The instrument cluster on this Camaro is like the one for a Z28, although the tach’s redline and max RPM are lower. For a car over thirty years old, the dash is in remarkably good condition.