Dale Earnhardt Jr. Restores Busch Series Car Raced by His Dad
The Chevrolet Nova was authenticated using childhood family photographs. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
For almost two years, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been working to restore a vintage Chevrolet Nova that his father raced in the Busch Grand National Series back in the 1980s.
He acquired it in April 2019 and took it for its first public drive on the back roads that lead to the JR Motorsports shop last week. The car is being restored in advanced of NASCAR Throwback Weekend on May 7-9 at Darlington Raceway.
Earnhardt plans on leading the pace laps with the car in the moments leading up to the May 8 NASCAR Xfinity Series event. Dale Earnhardt Sr. was a three-time Darlington winner in Busch Grand National Series and twice drove the GM Goodwrench No. 8 to Victory Lane in what eventually became the Xfinity Series.
Super-Rare 1972 Chevrolet Nova Flaunts a Sky Roof, Just 31,000 Miles 10 Mar 2021, 8:55 UTC ·
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For example, less than 7,000 Novas manufactured in 1972 came with a sky roof, and the most common combination was with black paint. In 1973, the production dropped to a little over 3,200 units, so overall, finding an original Nova with a sky roof isn’t as easy as it sounds.
Especially when the model in question is painted in blue, that is, as Chevrolet installed a sky roof on just 164 models leaving the factory with this finish.
And yet, eBay seller usstev x5ibe has listed for auction a Nova coupe painted in blue and coming with the factory sky roof, explaining that everything in the car works, including the radio and the horn.
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Back in August, we got a preview of the latest Chevy Nova build to roll out of The Custom Shop in Flanagan, Illinois. Nicknamed “CaSSaNova,” the two-door was designed by The Custom Shop owner John Wargo for running in the annual Battle of the Builders competition at SEMA, and now, the “CaSSaNova” looks as though it’s ready for primetime.
As is tradition for a SEMA build, this custom Chevy Nova is dripping with unique touches and bespoke features. Let’s start under the hood, where the Nova now runs a Procharged LS2 V8 engine, which was fitted with Holley EFI, Hedman headers, and Quick Time Performance mufflers. The ‘eight connects to the rear wheels by way of a T56 manual transmission, feeding a Moser 12-bolt rear end.
Checked seat fabric with big square buttons!
The base engine in the 78 Skylark was the 3.8-liter Buick V6, rated at 110 horsepower. GM had invested in a new crankshaft design for this engine the year before, so it no longer had the odd-fire cut-down V8 crankshaft that shook the fillings out of so many drivers teeth in earlier years. An assortment of low-compression V8s from Oldsmobile, Chevrolet, Pontiac, and Buick were available as optional equipment as well, eventually leading to the Chevymobile lawsuits of a few years later.
The base transmission in this car was a three-speed manual (I m not sure if you could still get a three-on-the-tree column-shift manual Skylark in 1978, but a three-on-the-floor manual was available for sure). The very last three-on-the-tree car Americans could buy was the 79 Nova and its Olds Omega/Pontiac Phoenix siblings, while the final three-on-the-floor cars were the 81 Malibu and siblings. This car has the optional three-speed automatic.
1967 Chevy Nova SS Pro-Touring Build Hides 416 Stroker LS3 Surprise With 622 HP 20 Feb 2021, 18:41 UTC ·
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Chevrolet produced less than 10,100 examples of the Nova SS two-door hardtop for the 1967 model year, and chassis number 118377W174704 is one of those revered cars. But instead of a 327 small-block V8 engine with 350 horsepower, this Super Sport packs very modern muscle. 32 photos
A no-expense-spared build with pro-touring characteristics, this fellow takes its mojo from a Mast Motorsports LS3 Black Label motor. Stroked to 416 cubic inches or 6.8 liters, the free-breathing engine is backed up by custom valve covers, stainless-steel headers, an aluminum radiator with two electric fans, and a very serious four-speed auto from RPM Transmissions.