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1966 and 1967 you could get a 2 door in either a fast back or a 2 door post as show here. This is a 1966 model:
Love the blue 66, tubbed cars look so cool. Nice touch with the stock (narrowed and widened) steel wheels. Car could sit a tad bit lower in the rear though.
I've had at least one of every style of these up until the 75 model, sure wish I had a couple of them back. Unfortunately none of the ones I owned looked as good as the examples shown, but could have with a little work.
GM decided to build a low dollar economical car that would fill in the gap in between the Corvair and the full size Chevys of the day.
What they came up with was a simple, low dollar, yet very efficient vehicle. For most of it's run the car retained some of it's originality such as external hood latch and mostly business interior.
At first it was designed to be just a point a to point b car with no bells or whistles...a simple car for the simple man. However GM decided at the last minute to include a few high performance engines as options. Coupled with a 4 speed Muncie and a 12 bolt rear and you had a sleeper that was unsuspectingly blowing the doors off of competition on the streets. These cars eventually found their way to the oval tracks and drag strips and to this day are still widely used in drag racing.
If there's one car I'd like to see brought back, it would be this one. And it would have to be the RWD it always was, with an inline six as the base engine and a V8 as the option. It would need to be about as basic as it was in it's day. In fact, I'd say maybe a/c and an AM/FM radio would be about the only standard items....it would have a bench seat and a rubber floor mat.
Below are pics of different model years followed by tidbits of info...
1963:
These cars came in three trim levels: a 100 series, a 400 series and the Nova. This was the first year the Super Sport option (SS) would be an option on the Chevy II/Nova 400 line. Until 1964, these cars only came with 153 cubic inch inline 4 and 194 cubic inch 6 cylinder engines, to include the SS models. Convertibles were only produced in 1962 and 1963. 1964 would mark the first year a V8 (283 cubic inch) would be offered in the Chevy II.
1965:
Different grille and tail lamps from the 1962-64 models.
1966:
New body style. Top engine was the solid lifter 350 hp 327. RPO code "L79", it's considered a high dollar collector car in today's market.
1967:
Pretty much a carry over from 1966. With the introduction of the new 1967 Camaro, a change was soon coming to the Chevy II line.
1968:
First year of the big block 396 for the Nova (would last until 1970) Top engine was the solid lifter 375 hp 396. RPO code "L78". Notice the Nova script on the rear quarter. Before 1969 all of these models were known as Chevy II's with the Nova being the top trim option. In 1969 the Chevy II name was dropped, leaving Nova as the name for all models.
1971:
Yeah I know, that Citrus Green with the Olive Green vinyl top is no one's cup of tea eh? Sure was a popular thing in the 70's. Top engine of the day for the Nova was the 300 hp 350 V8.
1973:
First year of the hatch back Novas. New nose, tail, quarter panels and interior. Also first year of the 3 point seat belt. (earlier models used separate shoulder and lap belts)
1974:
Notice how the bumpers protrude from the car more than the 1973 model...this was due to the government now mandating 5 mph crash bumpers.
1975:
First year of the 4th generation body style.
1979:
I don't know what GM was thinking by putting in the square head lamps for the '79 model year.....must have been what ultimately killed the car a few days before Christmas in 1978. Only to be replaced by the lowly Citation.
I do remember the Nova's and I've always been a big fan of these cars, I liked the 1968-72 models the best, I did like the 1975-78 sedans alot but didn't care much for the coupes, I didn't like the squared headlights on the 1979 Nova's at all, I just didn't think the squared headlights looked right on the Nova's.
Weren't the Citation's roomier than the late 1970s Nova's?
My mom had a 1976 Nova Coupe for the longest time. It was brown with a vinyl top, beige vinyl interior, bench seats and the 250ci straight six. She bought it used but put over 200k miles on it herself, which was quite a feat for malaise-era Detroit iron. It must have been in an accident before she got it or something, because the front and rear track were completely off....it used to go down the road slightly crooked. All I can remember is that the A/C didn't work, the cloth from the headliner had fallen down and it rained dried foam particles down on your head over bumps. In the summer, with no A/C sitting on the vinyl seats was brutal! But apparently that thing ran and ran and ran....my mom handed it down to my cousin who drove it for another 5 or 6 years (mid-90s) and then sold it to someone else, still running! It must have had well over 300k miles on it by that point.
I wish I was a little older at the time and could have taken it instead, I would have loved to fix that old P.O.S. up.
Maybe it's cuz I have such fond memories of that car, but the Disco Novas were always my favorite - and I've always liked the Buick-Olds-Pontiac X-car versions just as much. I do like all Chevy IIs/Novas, though. A few years ago, there was an all original '68 Nova Sedan, black with the 307 V8 and a 3-speed on the floor for sale on eBay locally...I bid on it, but it went for a little more than I was willing to pay.
1978 Chevrolet Nova Rally Coupe
The car above is the same color as my mom's was....she didn't have the cool racing stripes though
1973 Pontiac Ventura GTO
One thing I always thought was cool about the X-cars was that you could get a hatchback bodystyle, although it wasn't too popular an option.
1976 Oldsmobile Omega Brougham
Same car above with some chrome shoes....WOW! NIIIICEEEE!!!!
1974 Oldsmobile Omega Coupe (not a factory color, but it should have been!)
In the Disco Nova era, there were some very strange engine/transmission combos offered on the X-cars, I think I mentioned a few in my Oddball GM Drivetrain Options thread. There was a one year only 4.3l Chevy V8 unique to the Nova and Monza in '75, Olds stuck their 260 in the Omega with a 5-speed behind it - as did Pontiac in the Ventura, but only behind the Iron Duke. Third generation Novas had that wacky Torque-Drive tranny and I think you could order a Nova with a 2-speed Powerglide all the way up until 1974.
1978 Chevrolet Nova Rally Coupe (305 V8/Saginaw 4-speed)
The biggest weak spot these cars had, IMO, was that the interior was AWFUL. The dash layout was spartan and bulky and the materials were garbage. From the outside, it looked like a very sharp, sporty American "compact" for the time.....but inside you would think you were sitting in something from Eastern Europe. The Nova Rally or Nova SS could at least be ordered with full gauges and a center console. The later Pontiac Phoenix SJ/LJ and Oldsmobile Omega were much nicer on the inside, and also available with power windows, power locks, nice cloth buckets, etc.
1977 Pontiac Ventura Coupe
I agree with everyone else who said the '79 Nova square headlamp treatment just wasn't right....maybe it was supposed to "ease" buyers into the Citation which was due out the next year, both grilles are kind-of similar.
Great pics Sean...just to clarify, the GTO Ventura was a 1 year only thing in '74. '73 was the last year for the powerglide trans. And yes in '69 to '71 you could get a "torque-drive" trans on any 4 or 6 cylinder Nova. It was essentially a manually shifted powerglide. Had a shifter markings of P-R-N-Hi-Lo. From what I've gathered, only 2,992 Novas were equipped with this transmission. It was also an option in the Vega in '71.
My mom had a 1976 Nova Coupe for the longest time. It was brown with a vinyl top, beige vinyl interior, bench seats and the 250ci straight six. She bought it used but put over 200k miles on it herself, which was quite a feat for malaise-era Detroit iron. It must have been in an accident before she got it or something, because the front and rear track were completely off....it used to go down the road slightly crooked. All I can remember is that the A/C didn't work, the cloth from the headliner had fallen down and it rained dried foam particles down on your head over bumps. In the summer, with no A/C sitting on the vinyl seats was brutal! But apparently that thing ran and ran and ran....my mom handed it down to my cousin who drove it for another 5 or 6 years (mid-90s) and then sold it to someone else, still running! It must have had well over 300k miles on it by that point.
I wish I was a little older at the time and could have taken it instead, I would have loved to fix that old P.O.S. up.
Maybe it's cuz I have such fond memories of that car, but the Disco Novas were always my favorite - and I've always liked the Buick-Olds-Pontiac X-car versions just as much. I do like all Chevy IIs/Novas, though. A few years ago, there was an all original '68 Nova Sedan, black with the 307 V8 and a 3-speed on the floor for sale on eBay locally...I bid on it, but it went for a little more than I was willing to pay.
1978 Chevrolet Nova Rally Coupe
The car above is the same color as my mom's was....she didn't have the cool racing stripes though
1973 Pontiac Ventura GTO
One thing I always thought was cool about the X-cars was that you could get a hatchback bodystyle, although it wasn't too popular an option.
1976 Oldsmobile Omega Brougham
Same car above with some chrome shoes....WOW! NIIIICEEEE!!!!
1974 Oldsmobile Omega Coupe (not a factory color, but it should have been!)
In the Disco Nova era, there were some very strange engine/transmission combos offered on the X-cars, I think I mentioned a few in my Oddball GM Drivetrain Options thread. There was a one year only 4.3l Chevy V8 unique to the Nova and Monza in '75, Olds stuck their 260 in the Omega with a 5-speed behind it - as did Pontiac in the Ventura, but only behind the Iron Duke. Third generation Novas had that wacky Torque-Drive tranny and I think you could order a Nova with a 2-speed Powerglide all the way up until 1974.
1978 Chevrolet Nova Rally Coupe (305 V8/Saginaw 4-speed)
The biggest weak spot these cars had, IMO, was that the interior was AWFUL. The dash layout was spartan and bulky and the materials were garbage. From the outside, it looked like a very sharp, sporty American "compact" for the time.....but inside you would think you were sitting in something from Eastern Europe. The Nova Rally or Nova SS could at least be ordered with full gauges and a center console. The later Pontiac Phoenix SJ/LJ and Oldsmobile Omega were much nicer on the inside, and also available with power windows, power locks, nice cloth buckets, etc.
1977 Pontiac Ventura Coupe
I agree with everyone else who said the '79 Nova square headlamp treatment just wasn't right....maybe it was supposed to "ease" buyers into the Citation which was due out the next year, both grilles are kind-of similar.
1979 Chevrolet Nova Rally Coupe
The front end of this Nova sure does look exactly like the upcoming Citation's, I don't understand why they've had to have the Iron Duke 4 on the Pontiac Phoenix's, I seriously thought the Iron Duke 4's were way underpowered and undersized for a large compact vehicle, I definitely agree that the interiors and the materials of these Nova's were cheap looking.
I was set to buy a 71 two door, black 350 4-speed but a "friend" let the salesman know my car had what might have been a piston problem.
Goodbye trade-in! Goodbye Nova!
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