Thread: Novas

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Ok.. I have been arguing with a friend of mine for a while now about the Chevy Nova.. he claims that they are the equivilent of a Ford Taurus, and that they were "soccer mom" cars.. it can't be! Can it? I have always considered them muscle cars so that seemed really off to me, let me know what you guys think

Come on, soccer mom car?

Originally posted by Meag
Ok.. I have been arguing with a friend of mine for a while now about the Chevy Nova.. he claims that they are the equivilent of a Ford Taurus, and that they were "soccer mom" cars.. it can't be! Can it? I have always considered them muscle cars so that seemed really off to me, let me know what you guys think

You'll never change their mind.

Unless they grew up in the era they'll NEVER understand if they think such foolish thoughts.

The Nova IMO was the poor man's Camaro. Now they're right up there with Camaro, Chevelle and Goats for demand.

I had a friend that i worked with that has a Gloss Black Nova Duece. That thing is SICK. He was always tinkerin on it. The last time I saw him he had installed a 9" in it and the car was kickin tail in the Santa Rosa/Healdsburg area of Cali.

~MM

Ford Taurus!.........


" Meag ... you just kick that "friend (?)" of yours a$$ !"





"Taurus"

The Nova, Chevy II and Acadians were available in many configurations. Many were just plain transportation to people and were 6 cyl. variations of 2, 4 door sedans and stationwagons. the first generation cars could also be had in hardtop and convertibles which were sporty looking. In 64 the V8 became an option. 65 saw the beginning of performance. 66 had the fabled L79 327-350 hp engine option available. the next generation was a continuance of a variety of models and performance engines which included big blocks. Special order copo cars and some dealers and specialty shops were building very high performance packages(Gibb, Yenko, Baldwin Motion, etc..) that were the ultimate. The next generation were not as performance orientated although they were/are open to be so. Because these cars could be ordered and used as "soccer" cars doesn't mean that they are those cars. You could order a 66 sedan for example from the factory with a L79, 4 speed and 12 bolt rear end. Looked plain but as fast and quick as anything out there.The Taurus had only one performance engine(Sho) but it's not that great and would still be considered a "soccer" mom's car. In essence the Nova could be a soccer mom's car but that could be one hell of a ride.

I'm with you Meag. The Taurus is a piece of crap with no hot rodding potential. I would compare it to the Chevy Cavalier, Another disposable car, not the Novas that we all love.

Novas could be bought as a 6 cylinder 4 door family sedan or as a real musclecar. The Ford equivalent would be the Fairlane/Torino.

There were no Soccer moms in the 60s anyway. Soccer wasn't popular in this country till the 90s.

You are smarter than your friend. I bet he drives an import.

Okay, if the Nova wasn't the soccer mom's car, which car in the Chevy lineup was. If you hold to the idea that each of the makers produced one car in their lineup for the common consumer, wasn't that the Nova? I'ld say the Plymouth Duster fits that bill, same as the Nova. Yeah, they produced a Nova with a small-block, but it did it ever come with Chevy's most powerful engine options like the Chevelle, Camaro, etc? Same as a Taurus!

Meag,

Even if I am a Ford kind of guy, I got to go with everyone else on this one. The Nova's were everything a Taraus could never be. Nough said.

The link that Streets put up tells the story.

But this "misunderstanding" gives a hint as to why those of us who lived through the '60's are so nostalgic about some of these cars. The ability to have a car that looked like a granny mobile on the outside, but had the heart of a lion (or rat, or mouse, or ELEPHANT). We called them "sleepers". And this wide variety of factory built performance cars knocked the air out of the traditional hot rod "hobby" for almost a decade. Most don't remember, but there were any number of magazine editorials at the time wondering if interest in the old hot rods would die because of the "factory hot rods". Seems silly now!!

Your friend wasen't even born when the Nova was built.. I can tell.. Otherwise he would never make such a foolish stupid statement.

In January of 1970 I picked up my COPO Nova. Ordered in October of 69 thru Don Ruttle Chevrolet and the Grand Blanc Mich. Zone office.

I've owned a Taurus. (I hate to admit that, but had family). I will tell you right now that, just the thrill of starting that solid lifter big block in the dealers final prep area, was at least thousands of times more than driving that Ford off the lot..

The Nova had FIVE mufflers on it two small under the rear seat, one across behind the axle and two small resonators in the tailpipes. And still sounded tuff. That and the solid seven blade fan plus the solid lifters and even with three miles on it it was an attention getter when fired up..

I slipped her into low, listened to that M-22 howl as I drove thru the small town to old Mich. 10 and headed for I-75 south. What a tire killer!!

I could see a soccer moms car being a Ford Falcon 4dr or a 60's Chevy Bel Air 4dr or even a Ford Cortina and even I guess maby a 4dr Nova 4 or 6cyl could also be but, 4Dr nova's are undesirable and that's what they would have been back then, I coulden't see that today but in the 60's they were an everyday car. An old guy in my town has a '66 Nova 4dr that he has had since it was new and he still drives it daily and sits on the same side of the road in the same place he parks it and has parked it since he bought it. I also know a guy that has 4 or 5 old plymouths, A valient and a couple musle cars and another car I can't remember but, He bought the cars when he was a kid and still drives them as everyday cars and there in really good shape, all but 1 has good paint and the only 1 in need of bodywork is the valient but that's because he drives that 1 more, it just needs paint and a little surface rust cleanup.

A young man that I worked with in the late 60's/early '70's, had a'68/9/70 Nova that he had done himself; 427, 4 speed M21/22, 12 bolt. Steelies with stock small caps and blackwall tires, and "barn" brown. At a casual look, it was a shopper/commuter car; but from the rear as it was smokin' away from you, you could notice that the back tires were a lot wider than usual, and those two "big" exhaust tips turned down just under the rear bumper.

SLEEPER +++ !!!!

Let your friend know that he is getting bad drugs. There no way on this Earth that anyone with a half a brain could make such a bold statement. They are not even in the same park.

A: There were no soccer moms in the late 60's.

B: Very few moms of any kind ordered L-78, 375 H.P. 396 rat motors in their grocery-getters.

Chevy never really HAD a "soccer mom" car.

Think about it the two cars that you COULD claim they were weren't.

Vega and Monza. The reason is that you could get them with a small block. Cosworth Vega being one of the most sought after cars in Chevy's lineup.

Of course then you had the Impala and Impala wagon but BOTH those also came with the V8 option.

As well as the Malibu and Malibu Wagon.

All the way into the late '70s and early '80s the Nova was one fine car. Then you had the amalgamated mad genius thinking it was better to put japanese aluminum into american cars.

He's mad I tell you, absolutley mad.