1972 Chevrolet Nova

Description

The Chevy Nova has always been a favorite, mostly because it can handle any engine you care to use and with its light weight bodywork, makes a formidable performer. Dress it in bright red with black SS stripes, give it a raked stance, and you get a nasty little mid-sized Deuce with a ton of performance.

Built to cruise the streets and look great doing it, this slick Nova was built from a clean 2-door sedan and treated to a host of upgrades along the way. The bright red paint accents the performance attitude, and code 75 Cranberry Red is this car's original color, so it wasn't much of a stretch to make it sizzle. You can see in the reflections in our photo studio that the finish has an awesome gloss and a deep shine that suggests a decent pile of cash went into the paint job, and for an affordable hot-rod, this one fits together pretty darned well. Black stripes are pretty much a given on any muscular Chevy, and these look right at home on the Nova's classic bodywork, neatly framing the cool hood inserts and making it look fast just sitting still. The SS package was still available in '72, and this one wears a clean-looking SS grille and blacked-out tail panel, as well as '350' badges on the front fenders to remind everyone that performance wasn't dead. Bright chrome bumpers, nice stainless trim around the windows, and a few other correct details make this car look like a proper performance machine.

The interior is has been substantially upgraded to match the new performance found underneath, including late-model bucket seats (driver's side is powered) that are a far cry from the original Strato buckets. Wrapped in leather, it's easy to forget that the Nova was an economy car, and with a modern Grant GT wheel with a matching leather rim, it feels quite upscale inside. The original instrument panel covers the basics and they left it as the factory intended for a clean, uncluttered look. A newer AM/FM/cassette stereo head unit slots into the dash just to the right of the steering wheel and uses knobs that look like they could have been there from the beginning. The back seat is upholstered in original-looking materials that are almost new, and the trunk is covered in proper spatter paint for an ultra-clean appearance.

With a reasonable curb weight, the 350 cubic inch V8 under the hood provides heroic performance. The brightly painted engine block matches the bodywork for a semi-custom look, and a few chrome dress-up pieces to make it look showy when you open the hood. An Edelbrock 4-barrel carb helps make some additional horsepower, but this isn't a radical engine so it starts easily, idles well, and should run this well for a good long time. It's tied to a TH350 3-speed automatic transmission and a 10-bolt rear end, both hardy, reliable pieces of equipment themselves, and the fresh dual exhaust system with Flowmaster mufflers gives it a genuine hot rod sound. The underside is neatly finished in satin black for low maintenance and the suspension has been lowered just enough to give it a mean look. Factory Rally wheels wrapped in 215/65/15 BFG radials look ideal, filling the wheel wells without causing clearance problems with the lowered stance.

Affordable performance with the right look, this Nova makes it easy to have fun on a budget. Call today!