The NOVA
by
Joe Lancaster
What follows is not just a description of a Pro-Street ’67 Nova Super Sport. It is more importantly a story about old friendships being rekindled, new friendships being made.

In mid-summer 2004, I was lamenting the fact that my new black-on-black Chevrolet SSR was woefully underpowered.  Chevy’s new convertible pick-up was purchased to be my “weekend vehicle” that I intended to showcase at my home during the classmates-only party associated with my 40^th high-school reunion.  On a hot-August party-night I mentioned to one of my best high-school friends, Pat Beddoe, that I was considering a relatively significant expenditure to improve the SSR’s straight-line performance.   This comment initiated a spirited discussion between the two of us and several other gear-head friends regarding our mutual love of fast cars and how much time and effort we once devoted as teenagers in East Dallas to making our rides go faster and look better.  A few days after the party, Pat called me about a restored and substantially modified 1967 Nova SS that had just become available.  I did not then know how much my life would change because of the Chevy II that I eventually purchased.     

            The Nova was built with a fuel-injected 502 cubic-inch big-block Chevy coupled to a Lenco transmission.  To better suit my needs, the engine has been replaced by a carbureted 632 cubic-inch BBC from Scott Shafiroff Race Engines and the transmission is now a more street-friendly Turbo 400 by Jim Hughes. To more safely handle the 632’s increased torque and horsepower, Smith Racecraft installed a new roll cage made from a chromium/molybdenum alloy and back-halved the Nova with a hand-fabricated system designed by Kim Smith and his chassis-shop experts. George Klongland, Hot Rods by George, fabricated a one-off all-steel cowl-induction hood to allow the SSRE motor to breathe properly, and among many other contributions, George employed his considerable talents to construct a customized set of stepped exhaust headers, tailpipes and mufflers that along with the hood are works-of-art (please see the accompanying sidebar for mechanical and technical information on the vehicle).

AUTHOR’S NOTE:  As the Nova evolves so does its story.  The current caretaker of this very special vehicle would like to express his gratitude to certain individuals for their contributions to the saga of the little Chevy II.  In order to protect the guilty, names are listed in alphabetical order: