Finally drove my baby!

[jade76]

Well, finally took my baby for a test drive today after 2-1/2 years of tooling on her, rebuilding the engine, rearend and suspension.

I was putting rear discs on her but after some problems with the kit I had decided to put the drums back on since my patience was wearing thin to drive her. Didn't take too long to swap back.

Man did it feel great to just drive it again, even though I only took it down the street and back just to make sure brakes and everything were working properly! What a difference the 8.5 posi 3.42 makes over the 7.5 open 2.73 it used to have. Have to break the motor and rearend in, both freshly rebuilt, before I can shread some rubber and see what she's made of. Should be able to do that pretty quickly if I drive her around Atlanta a few times.

Atlanta Dragway, here I come! lol

Thanks to all the help from everybody at this site throughout my rebuild, it was alot of help and greatly appreciated! :beer:

[bighappy]

Such a great feeling of accomplishment isnt it? I hope mine doesnt take longer than this summer but stuff happens. Congrats on the drive.

[Nova Bob]

congats tony,good to hear you got-er-going.dont feel bad about takeing so long though,ive had mine over 2years and i just keep takeing it more apart,one of these days!i once had a 68firebird with a good running 350pontiac,with a open2.73,,,when i switched to a 8.5 with 4.10 it felt like the car was a big/block or something,felt like it gained 100h.p.!

[69SSAcadian]

Congrats!....

[Zoom]

Congrats!! :beer: Time to go have fun!

I'm still working on getting that damn quarter on and haven't been able to drive mine for almost a month now. After the quarter is done I have a set of heads and a cam to put in too, but that will have to wait a few weeks. I need to drive my car!! :D

[jade76]

Thanks to all! Still have to get my exhaust and paint job and she'll be finished. Want to put 80 Series Flowmaster with my Summit X-Pipes. Hope to see you all at track or shows some day. Maybe show some of these people what 4th Gen'ers are made of! lol

Good luck to you all still in progress! I'd be happy to help where/when I can!

I can start on my 78 Rally 4spd now! It needs a lot more work than the SS, it's gonna be a nightmare, but want to see it restored to original. I have a 305 I'm going to rebuild for it, an original 78 Nova Saginaw 4spd, and a 4dr parts car for all the sheet metal. It needs new trunk lid and pan, trunk lip, quarter panel, lower cowl and floor pans. :eek:

[Novajay]

Nice to see you got 'er going, Tony. Maybe you'll have the Rally done before the move...

[Green Dragon]

glad to see others making progress.

my 76 Medallist is on hold due tot the Phoenix we pisked up , but we did go on a camping outing with the Phoenix this weekend - first I;ve driven it much - 150 miles with no major issues.

and lots of room in the hatchback ,especially with no back seat installed :-)

only issue is the trans does not like to upshift to 3rd / drive.

if placed in 'd' it will shift to second and then stay there, even at 55-60 MPH.
but if you manually shift down to '2' when at about 45, then shift up to 'd' manually, it shifts fine and good power once there ( we cruised at 75-80 no problems ).

another thing I noted was the 'radial tuned suspension' - with 32 lbs in the 285/70's it handles unreal - flat corners on exit / entance ramps at 60 MPH with NO noticable body roll.... so now I'm definately curious what makes the 'RTS' special, especially since this one has no rear sway bar .
real quick steering,too, real touchy in the center, possibly not the variable ratio box ? ( anyone have the numbers to check that,etc ?, it's about 2.3-2.4 turns lock-to-lock if that helps. )

~ AL

wishes he saw more Novas out and about this summer, but not yet.

[lior_baruch]

What a difference the 8.5 posi 3.42 makes over the 7.5 open 2.73 it used to have.

Hi,


1. Congrats ;-)

2. http://www.classiccar.co.il/forum/smileys/nopics.gif

3. did you use a rearend from a Nova? or from other car? I got that crappy 7.5 and I want to replace it to a 8.5 to be used with a 3:42 posi...

Thanks,

Lior.

[jade76]

Yeah, I lucked out one day when they brought in a fresh 75 Nova to the scrap yard and was able to get the 8.5 before someone else got it. They don't last long at parts yard here if anyone see's it. Got it for $70, paid $200 for a Series 3 posi carrier, $180 for Richmond 3.42 gears, $240 for Moser axles, $110 for bearing kit, $15 for wheel bearings and seals, so it cost me $800 to completely rebuild new. I've seen them sell normally for $1100-$1200 with nothing but new seals, so I saved quite a bit overall. I set it up myself so that saved some on labor and haven't had any problems with it so far.

If you can find a 72-75 Nova, they should all have the 8.5" and are a direct fit. You could even rebuild one for a lot less if you take the time to find the used parts rather than buying them off others.

I'll update my pics soon as I get some, otherwise you can follow the cardomain link in my signature for some older pics of her.

Hey Jay.

I wish I could have the Rally done before the move, that's definitely wishful thinking! lol
Too much body work to do and I also have to get my 305 to a machine shop before I can rebuild it. The SS took me 3 years with a nice straight body, so I expect this one to take a couple years as well. At least this time around I know more about what needs to be done rather than having to research it all first. :)

[lior_baruch]

Hi,

Well cause 72-75 are hard to find where I'm at.... do you know what other cars rears I can use? :nascar:

Lior.

[jade76]

Hi Lior,

Sorry about that! Try this link from the Web Link Library for identifying rearends.

http://www.maliburacing.com/rearend_guide.html

Basically it'll give you clues to identify the different GM rearends, and then you can just search other vehicles until you find one that has it. Since it won't be from an x-body car, you'll probably have to have the axle tubes and spring perches modified to make it fit properly. You can go a little wider with the axle tubes if necessary, but then you'll need a deeper backspace on your wheels to compensate the difference. Another option would be a Ford 9" which will also require some modifications, but maybe that would be more accessible for you over there.

[Green Dragon]

Hi,

Well cause 72-75 are hard to find where I'm at.... do you know what other cars rears I can use? :nascar:

Lior.

Not sure of anything else except X-body rear that will bolt in.unfortunately.

a 70-81 Camaro rear willwork, but is 1" wider (per side, iirc) and would need both new spring perches and then more offset on the wheels to fit properly.

Seeing you're in Israel, I imagine donor cars are less common ( at least 3rd-4th gen Xbodies ).

Depending on your use of the car - street strip , cruiser, or ? ... if it's a cruiser / mild street machine and not going to see a lot of severe abuse ont he track - I'd leave the 7.5" in it , harsh as it sounds, then spend your monies ( and SHIPPING COSTS <--- sounds like that would be a huge issue, but maybe not ?? ) , on beefing up the 7.5.

if you had al the aftermarket stuff Tony mentions, in a 7.5", I think you'd be almost as strong - swap in a good Auburn or simial aftermarket heavy duty posi unit, street gears (Richmond,etc), and then upgrade the axles if you feel the need / have the finances - I don;t have time to go look right now ( late for work as is, lol ) , but I think if you go with aftermarket axles, and center posi unit, then you can 'step up' to 30 spline or greater, and get MUCH stronger than the stock 7.5" setup .

just a thought.

As for the 8.5" rears, they're semi-plentiful around NY, not many 4th gen cars, but enough rotted out 73-4's to pull parts off.
So if anyone has a real hard time finding one, let me know - I know we have a 2.73 posi rear from a 72 just sitting collecting dust / rust .

~ AL

[jade76]

Hey Al,

I'm looking for a 7.5 posi carrier if you got one. I meant to get one off ebay the other day that sold for $65 including shipping and I missed it. I also need another 8.5 posi carrier. I don't have much cash at the moment since what extra cash I have is going towards getting these repro parts made up, but I'm sure we can work something out if you have what I need.

[1977Chad350]

I cant wait to get back into the seat of my 77. That car is my one true love. its been 2 years since I drove her. I bought a 85 mustang gt a year ago and have been building it. But I miss every moment in the nova. Im glad to hear another 4th generation nova on the road again.

[Green Dragon]

I cant wait to get back into the seat of my 77. That car is my one true love. its been 2 years since I drove her. I bought a 85 mustang gt a year ago and have been building it. But I miss every moment in the nova. Im glad to hear another 4th generation nova on the road again.
__________________
1977 Nova 2 door coupe
1972 Nova Rally


..... hmm... you're going to get yourself in trouble with this post you know :rolleyes:
TWO Nova's in that sig line above and you still got a Ford ????
poor guy , lol .....

~ AL

(owned one ford ever - 63 Falcon Ranchero <-- honestly, have to admit I wish I had that one back , and one Mopar ever - 72 Sattelite Roadrunner clone. And a pair of vintage VWs (70 sold,72 for sale). Everything else Chevrolet's or GM X-bodies. :p ( well, except one 75 Firebird Formula parts car,sorry * begs forgivness* )

[jade76]

I can't say too much myself. I bought my wife a 67 stang last April for her B-Day and it's parked next to my baby, except I made her put a cover on it to hide it. lol

Probably looks like we're going to sell it anyways before we make the move to MI. I guess the older one's are alright, but it'd be better if it was a fastback Shelby, I don't care for the coupe style too much.

Enough about that!

[Green Dragon]

OK, we'll let you both go , but just this once .....

not sure what's up with Wives liking 'stangs.. my brothers wife wants a 73 Mustang in the worst way ( the original Eleanor :-) , and she doesn't really care for his Novas and wishes he'd sell em...

My wife doesn't drive (and never will due to her eyesight),but she lets me have my 'boy toys', bless her soul :-)

~ AL

[jade76]

Green Dragon:

OK, we'll let you both go , but just this once .....

not sure what's up with Wives liking 'stangs.. my brothers wife wants a 73 Mustang in the worst way ( the original Eleanor :-) , and she doesn't really care for his Novas and wishes he'd sell em...

My wife doesn't drive (and never will due to her eyesight),but she lets me have my 'boy toys', bless her soul :-)

~ AL

I know what's up with Wives wanting them, they're girlie cars! :eek: :rolleyes:

We boys play with the real toys and get Chevy's. lol