We all know that automotive trends tend to come and go. Rat Rods, Sleds, Nostalgic machines, Gassers... they roll in and out of the collective conciousness based on what the magazines choose to focus on that month.
One style that NEVER goes away is the PRO STREET car. Combining relatively stock looks with monster power, and sprinkling the whole thing with a nasty drag car look and stance really almost defines what a Street Machine is to most people, me included.
This 1973 Nova is one of the baddest looking, well-built, and fun to drive cars I have had the pleasure of owning, and it will snap the necks of passengers AND passerby with equal force!
Not a backyard built, but a professionally done machine that combines the best of Sunday cruising, car show looks, and beastly power into one big burgundy flash of chrome and steel that is sure to make the next owner extremely happy!
This project started out a few years ago with a super clean Chamois colored Nova that had it's factory installed 350ci V8 still intact, and was running around Tennessee with the same owner for quite a few years.
The intent from the start was a Pro Street car, so the whole thing was stripped down to nothing, and the process began.
Chassis wise, the back half was carefully removed, and replaced with a custom fabricated full tub and rear section aft of the passenger footwells. One look at the 100 extra large photos below will show you that the craftsmanship, welding, and fabrication work are top notch, and the whole thing not only functions great, but looks fantastic too.
A four link unit with ladder bars was installed , with a panhard bar, and coil-over shocks out back, straddling a fully rebuilt FORD 9" rear that was smoothed and finished after being packed with Superior 31 spline carbon steel axle's and 3.73 gears to keep it streetable.
Front sub-frame/suspension was kept stock, but had new bushings, bearings, control arms, and lowering coils installed, along with cleaned or new hardware.
Everything was cleaned, and painted with chassis paint before it was reassembled.
Underneath still shows clean and solid today, although there is light oxidation on bolts and nuts, and a fair amount of road grime and debris from being driven. Look at the many chassis photos below, and you can see that it is all clean, solid, and issue free.
The body itself was in fantastic condition to start (see photo below), so it didn't take much to get it ready for paint other than some basic prep work. The car is all steel, with the exception of the fiberglass hood, and you can run a 4"x4" felt covered magnet over the whole exterior and it sticks like glue. No awful "beer can patches", "screen door bondo patches", or any of the other horror stories you see come out of the backwoods garages at your local car show.
Glass on the car is extra clean, and is crack, chip, and laminate issue free. Plus, it is ALL GLASS, no Plexi to be found.
All of the weatherstipping and fuzzies on the doors and trunk were new during the build, and still show like it today, with no cracking, tears, or brittleness.
The front and rear bumpers are fiberglass units from Harwood, and were installed tucked in close to the body for a cleaner look.
The glass hood is from Harwood as well, and has an agressive look and ultralight weight. I have removed it myself without assistance, and it is secured with four hood pins at each corner.
The car was finished out in GM Light Carmine Red Dupont (B9723) BC/CC, and the finish looks fantastic on the car!
There are really just a handful of truly minor stone chips, scuffs, and normal use marks to be found on the entire exterior of the car, and everything from the trunk lid to the door jambs was sprayed when the car was unassembled so it all matches.
It shines beautifully in the sun, and looks equally impressive under the glow of the streetlamps on cruise night.
The extra straight body lets the finish reflect like a mirror, and I am sure that detailing the car will make it look even nicer than in the 100 large photos below! All I did was wipe it down with Quick Shine spray and shoot the pictures!
It is a fantastic ten inch finish, meaning that from 10 inches away it looks like a show car, but if you get your nose right up on it, you may see a spot of sand size debris or something. But from less than a foot away.... It will fool even the smartest show car judge into thinking it was a $10,000 paint job!
The only real scratch on the car is on the drivers side front fender ahead of the wheel, and it is relatively small, but would require a paint touch up. I have highlighted it in the photos below. If you would like us to handle it prior to delivery, let me know, and I will arrange it. Our estimate was for $200.00, so that is what we would charge you.
All of the chrome trim and door handles show to be in average to well above condition, and I have taken close ups of everything for you to review below.
Grill and rear fascia are in great condition, and all of the lights, blinkers and the windshield wipers function as they should for street use.
Opening up the doors on the car reveals a clean and FINISHED interior, which is a rarity in most Pro Street builds.
Front seats are racing buckets in a faux black leather material, and are properly fixed, but do have levers for fore and aft adjustment. They are in excellent, damage free condition, and have RJS 5-point racing harnesses in place for driver and passenger.
Heavy grade black carpet has been installed from front to back, and was custom cut to cover the back half on the interior. It is in excellent condition, and was installed over a layer of heat/sound proofing material.
Door panels, kick panels, headliner, and visor's are all factory original, and show wonderfully, with no damage or issues, and only the faintest signs of wear if anything.
Door panels have speaker holes cut out, but no speaker in them, as does the rear deck panel, but the rear has covers over the holes, while the front does not.
The dash is stock, super clean in appearance, and it has not been hacked up in the process of this build.
Factory speedo unit is in place, but it is not functional, and the factory lights and wiper switches are where GM put them as well, but they DO function.
A small panel on the bottom left of the steering column has cleanly labeled toggle switches for the fuel pump, dome light, and MSD box.
Steering column is the factory unit, and has a functional turn signal arm. It is topped by a GRANT GT aluminum 4-spoke wheel with leather wrap that looks fantastic, and makes the car a breeze to handle.
Down on the floor, a B&M Pro Rachet shift is installed, and works fantastic. It has reverse lock out, and makes slamming through the gears a breeze.
On top of the dash pad resides an AutoMeter Sport Comp MONSTER series tachometer with an attached AutoMeter THRIFT LITE shift light.
Below that on the panel is a set of AutoMeter Sport Comp large gauges for WATER / OIL / VOLTS. The large size makes it easy to get vitals with a quick glance away from the track or street.
Oh, and you can't forget the 8-point roll cage, which the prior owner said is certifiable, and is firmly installed in the car.
A rearview mirror lets you see who you passed, or the checkered flag, depending on where you are running, and the whole inside of the car is a super clean and nice place to navigate this Nova from.
Pop the trunk, and you can see the finished and painted floor of the back half section, along with the extra heavy duty vented battery box and the 15 gallon poly racing fuel cell with aircraft cap.
Battery shut off master is right under the rear of the car, and could easily be moved without much investment to a SHOVE OFF position on the rear if full time track use is your goal.
It rolls on Weld racing wheels front and back, and they are in great condition with no damage, and are a detail away from showing even nicer.
Tires are MARSHALL RADIAL 771 up front, size 165R15 M+S, and M/T SPORTSMAN PRO out back size 29x18.50-15LT. The tires are damage and issue free, and have over 75% of the useable tread life remaining.
Finally, the part you've been waiting for.... let's remove that hood and look at what powers this beast!
Unfortunately, I do not have ALL OF THE SPECS on this motor. The prior owner had a collection of cars, and this was a fun toy for weekend cruising that had the paperwork and receipts lost somehwere along the way. What he could cull from memory was that it is indeed a 468ci motor that was completely stripped and redone from the bare block out. He said that no expense was spared in putting the internals together, and that goodies from Scat. King, Moroso, HEI, ARP, Manley, and more were used.
We know it has an 850 Holley on top, and that the last time he had it Dyno'd about a year ago, it pulled 525hp @ 5,300rpm and 560 ft/lbs torque at 4,500.
We also know it has a Crane Saturday Night Special Cam in it with .600 lift.
According to him, he spent over $35,000 building this machine from start to finish, and when you start adding stuff up that you can see, plus labor, and all that fabrication work, it is not hard to imagine the checkbook being depleted rather quickly.
That is the summary of the "FACTS" about it, according to his memory, and some hand written notes found in the car and also paper clipped to the title.
I can tell you this: I have driven literally thousands of cars in my time, and the seat of the pants feel on this monster is without a doubt enough to make those HP/TQ estimates feel like a reality in about 50 yards.
As I state in my terms and conditions section, I in NO WAY want to mislead anyone on the cars I sell, so I strongly urge you to come inspect it yourself, or ask me questions I have not answered to try and help you make a decision. I did NOT build this car, and am offering information from the prior owner to help you, but I can only verify so much without pulling the heads and intake, and I won't do that for anyone or any price, so take from this what you will.
The car starts easily from inside, or the firewall mounted button. It idles nice and lopey, and is ready to roll when you are.
The prior owner ran Sunoco 97 in it, or 93 with an additive, and that is what we have been doing while driving and having fun in the car.
Snick the ratchet shift into gear, and the car is ready to ROCK!
With a GM Turbo 400 trans with a 3,000rpm stall converter that was gone through during the build mated to the 9" rear, the car has PLENTY of power off the line, or when passing.
You can cruise in drive all day long, or snick through the gears like it was track day, and the car performs like it should.
There are no signs of any major leaks, the car does not exhibit any odd handling tendencies, and it really is a blast to fly around in, regardless of speed. I have had it down to the beach in 80 degree weather where we did the stop and go 10 mph traffic thing for 30 minutes, and it never once went over 200, thanks to the massive cooling fan and custom hi-flow radiator it has.
The exhaust currently exits right after the Flowmaster style mufflers right in front the back half. Also included in this sale are extensions with hangars to route the pipes in front of the rear wheels should you desire a mellower sound.
The car has some serious power, and I would estimate that it probably does somewhere in the low 11's in the quarter mile, based on a weight estimate and HP calculation. It certainly feels like that is a conservative estimate when driving it.
The car is a super nice street car as well, and can roll around all day to shows and not do anything funny or leave you stranded.
