Big Bock Nova pics

[whitetop]

Here are two Novas from my area that are "survivors". The '69 375/396 automatic Lemans Blue car still resides in the original owners garage with 8800 miles- yes that mileage is correct. Bought new at Kuchinka Chevrolet in Bellaire Ohio (another one of those Bellaire cars BKH). Original paint, black bucket interior etc. Truly in the rain only once and has been in temperature controlled garage since new. Marvin H. the owner takes fanatical care of the car. Check out the Day 2 mods-which for the most part were done on Day 2: Sun gauges, white ladder bars, M/T valve covers, headers, ET finned rear end cover, Cragar Super Tricks, with slicks-I don't remember the car ever running on the street without them, which replaced the Cragar SS in '73-74. Car is only out 2-3 times per year. Always at Ogelby Park car show in Wheeling W.Va in late August.

The '70 is a true '70's "Street Freak"- remember that term? Original 396 4 speed car but replaced with a small block when built in this configuration. This car was built around '74-75. Car today is still like it was when these pics were taken back in '77 or so. The interior pic was taken several years ago- I about cried over the condition of the car. Last time I have seen this car on the road was in 1980 at a car show. Pics can't describe the candy red paint with candy blue flames coming out of the fender vents. Check out the clear hood scoop, Sun gauges around the steering column, etc. Guy who built the car lost his job at the coal mines and moved away. New owner had bought the car in early '80's I believe, but only uses it to keep the cement floor from moving. The black Nova(in the car show pic) sitting in front had the same mods as the other Nova (clear hood scoop etc) They were friends. That car today sits 2 blocks from the other car. Still unchanged and in same mint condition as it was back then. Mark still brings it out on occasion. He has owned it since '72 and it sits in his living room via an attachment to the house.


Both of these cars had a huge influence on me when I was in my teens and still have a "magical" quality to them whenever I see them.

How about posting some of your old pics?.
whitetop

[img]<a href=http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1314220&a=9759268&p=45079232>See my photo, nova1 at PhotoPoint</a>[/img]



[Edited by whitetop (03-28-2001 at 06:55 PM).]

[Edited by whitetop (03-28-2001 at 07:09 PM).]

[Allen]

Thanks for the pictures! Your topic is my favorite - big block Novas. Actually, I like 'em all, and would love to have a Yenko Nova, but feel very fortunate to have my current one. It is a '70 Nova SS 396/350hp 4-speed car. It needs a little work (it seems that we all think so), but overall is a nice fun driver.

Anyway, thanks for sharing the pics and information.

[MikeA]

I enjoyed the pics. I will have a picture of my '72 Nova SS scanned and will attempt to post it. Thanks

MikeA

[bbdon]

Here is the oldest picture that I have of me and my 1969 Nova SS396 -350 horsepower. This was taken in 1979, I had just spent about two hours peeling some red stick-on pinstripes off of the sides of the Nova. My little brother had stuck them on while I was out to sea in the Navy. After that I had gone for a little drive, and as you see I managed to splash some Oregon mud all over the sides of the car.
The car was quite a handful, it had a radical Crower monarch camshaft and 4.33 gears. With its manual steering and those gears it was a lot like driving a truck once it was at speed. But every launch was a drag race, what a blast. You can see most of the exhaust system that it had in this shot. There were headers and mufflers that bolted straight to the collectors, and that was it. The header mufflers were glass packs, the type where you can look straight through from the end and see all the way through.
A few people tried to buy it from me at stoplights. I was driving down the street the same day that this shot was taken, and a bunch of teenagers on the sidewalk noticed the car. They started shouting 396! 396! I was amazed a few years later when I read the test report on a Big Block Nova in Car and Driver magazine, and the exact same thing happened to them. Over 20 years later, I still think that Big Block Novas are the coolest cars ever built.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

I have to admit, these pics do bring back some scary memories!! I will do some digging in my photo drawer, and see what I find.
M

[MikeA]

Here is a picture of my Ã72 Nova SS as it looked in April 1986, my first car. ItÃs not a big block car but it does have the original 350, 4spd and posi rear. I have been asked several times about selling the car but I do not have any interest in getting rid of it. Every time I talk to someone about their car they had when they were younger it always finishes with œI should not have sold that car”.

I am in the process of restoring the Nova and hope to complete this project in the near future. Yes, the wheels are Buick with œSS” center caps (I donÃt know what I was thinking about back then).






[Edited by MikeA (04-02-2001 at 08:56 PM).]

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

W-Top;
I'm not sure I would want to redo a car with the 'StinkBug Stance' of the '70's!! I'm sure we've all done it to one of our old cars, but I wouldn't want to antagonize the local police with bumper height and wide tires anymore!! Nice to see that low mile cars are out there.
M

[JoeC]

Here is an old pic of an original paint Black Cheery 1970 Chevelle I had in high school in the mid 70's. It had the typical modifications of the disco era such as Hooker headers, Crane Cam, Edelbrock, Holley, Fairbanks TH400 with reverse shift pattern, latter bars, and Ansen Mags. There is a jacked up 69 Judge in the background. I also had a 1970 SS Nova 396/350hp 4sp with 4:10 rear. That was back in the day when oil came in round containers.