1970 White Trash Nova

The more things change, the more they stay the same

The History

I have previously owned 5 Novas. A '62 2door hardtop, '65 station wagon, two '69 2 doors, & a '70 2 door. The '62 was a drag racer, that was never finished. The first '69 was a cruiser / street racer and the second '69 was a cruiser / street racer / road racer (pre Pro Touring). The '65 wagon was a parts runner, after I blew up the motor, in my 2nd '69. The '70 was low mile, 6 cylinder, with a th350. I bought, in 1998 from a dealer & the last owner lived in Sun City (an over 55 community), so it was probably one of the last "Grandma Novas". I bought it for my wife & we had big plans but a drunk driver decided otherwise. My wife survived, with a few aches and pains but the Nova didn't fair as well.

The Present

Fast forward, through raising a family, house, career, etc., a retirement "toy" was in order. I thought about Street Rods, Chevelles, Camaros, but always came back to '68-'72 Novas. I could have bought a "finished" car but where's the fun in that. Also, you never know whats under all the pretty paint.

The Future

This was going to be a quick project. Get it on the road & do things as I went along. I was going to fix all the rust, mini tubs, some 295 tires under the back, plug in a stout small block, freshen the Interior, & have a nice street/strip. Well, things have "snowballed". It turns out I'm afflicted with AADD (Automotive Attention Deficit Disorder). Once I start doing one thing, my mind goes to, well, maybe I should do...(insert new, bright idea here). One thing lead to another & now it's going to be a Pro Street car. Until...

While taking a break, to prevent burn out, I had a moment of clarity. If I continued on the path, I was heading down, finishing the car was going to take more time than I wanted or not get finished at all. After careful concideration, I have come to the conclusion, I was right, from the begining. Thankfully, I didn't sell the mini tubs or cut out the frame & floors, for the back half.

As with any snowballing project, one thing leads to another. Here's a list of things I wasn't going to do, but did / going to do anyway.

Pull the Motor & Trans
Pull All The Way to Bare Shell
Car Cart
Pull Subframe
Fiberglass Fenders
Fiberglass Hood & Deck lid
Big Block
Full Roll Cage
Fiberglass Bumpers

Here is a list of things I am STILL not going to do.

Smith Racecraft Subframe
Back Half / 4 Link
Wheel Tubs
M/T ET Street S/S 29X18.00R15LT Drag Radials
Big Block
Full Roll Cage
Fiberglass Bumpers
Oops, see above

Pages

To Do List

~~Clean Garage~~ (done)
~~Build Workbench~~ (done)
~~Electrical Outlets for Workbench, Air Compressor, & Welder~~ (done)
~~New Air Compressor~~ (done)
~~Remove Front Sheet Metal~~ (done)
~~Remove Doors~~ (done)
~~Remove Deck Lid~~ (done)
~~Remove All Glass~~ (done)
~~Replace Tail light panel (full of bondo)~~(done)
~~Replace Rusty 1/4 Panels~~(done)
~~Replace Rusty Upper rear panel (interior to trunk)~~ (done)
Replace Rusty Upper dash
Smooth Firewall (started)
Replace Rusty Interior Floors (started)
Replace Rusty Trunk Floor (started)
Subframe Connectors
Mini Tubs (started)
Narrowed 9" rear end
Trunk Floor
Roll Bar
Rewire
Tilt Column
Fuel Cell
Racing Seats
And the List Goes On

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