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Nova's Ark 1964 Chevy Nova

16K views 35 replies 18 participants last post by  asteeler4life 
#1 · (Edited)
This is my 1964 Chevy Nova. Many thanks go to the people that have purchased parts over the years from me that helped fund this car. I have owned the nova 12 years now. It looks like it may be moving on to it's new owner though. So since I had to take pictures and videos for him, I thought I would share with the community that helped build it. Many, many thanks to Nova Joe. With out Jose, I would have never gotten into the Nova game as deeply as I did. Jose, Ray, Joe and many other GSN members taught me much and helped me out early on. My wife was also extremely supportive and I could have never finished the nova with out her. Thank you to all the people that sold and traded me nova parts, nova parts cars, paid me to build their novas and bought them from me. Here are the current pictures from today (June 22, 2008);





















 
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#2 ·
Here are some of the detailed specs on it:

1964 Chevy Nova 2dr coupe / hardtop. I am the third owner. The car was built in the Hayward, California plant and stayed in the Northern California, San Francisco Bay Area until my family and I moved to East Texas in May of ‘06. I am told the grandfather purchased the car new and passed it to the grandson which is whom I acquired the nova from back in 1996. I have owned the car 12 years. This Nova has never been in a accident and it shows.

Those that know me, know I have been a nova nut since high school. I had plans to start a restoration / fabrication shop and I wanted this car to be my rolling business card. No expense was spared in the building of this nova. Most of the trim was either NOS or hand picked and fitted out of 30+ sets of parts cars I had. I have been parting out and building novas for over 12 years. I was a member and a officer in Golden State Novas and a member of National Nostalgic Nova. I joined Lone Star Novas once I moved to Texas, but the club is not very active.

This nova was stripped to the shell, sanded to bare metal and rebuilt. There is no rust any where in the car. It has been garaged kept ever since I acquired it.

Nova Features:
- Factory Soft Ray tinted glass
- Factory rear speaker accessory
- Rear window defroster (not correct for the year, was taken from 66-67 nova and adapted in, works excellent)
- NOS Tissue Dispenser (not correct for the year, is for the 1965 model year nova)
- NOS front and rear bumper and grille guards, (were removed from the NOS boxes, then rechromed with triple chrome plating)
- Two Speed windshield wipers with working pump, NOS reservoir, etc
- Recondition correct 1964 front Seat Belts with retractors
- NOS sun visor brackets
- Custom made and installed headliner and matching visors
- Front and rear seats rebuilt and custom stitched by JC’s Customs (Manteca, CA)
- Day / Night rear view mirror
- Reproduction Bowtie exterior mirror
- Reproduction carpet, door panels, kick panels, and package tray
- Reproduction sill plates ( the expensive good ones), reproduction front and rear arm rest bases, reproduction rear ash trays, reproduction dome light lens and base, repro glove box, NOS brake pedal and gas pedal
- Reproduction front turn signal lens, rear tail lens, reverse lens, license plate light lens
- All new weather stripping: Steele Rubber Products Front and Rear window gaskets, Steele vent window rubber, Metro door, trunk, U shaped window, ¼ window channel, Every piece has been replaced with new
- New Tinted Front windshield
- Working factory AM Radio
- Grant Wood Grain Steering wheel and install kit
- Super Sport Nova Steering column
- Super Sport Instrument Gauge cluster, with Auto Meter tach custom fitted into Center

Front End:
- Front Disc Brakes (Nova 5 lug spindles machined to fit Chevelle rotors and calipers, rebuilt calipers with new brake pads)
- Manual dual reservoir master cylinder.
- Line lock on front brake lines
- Front Energy Suspension Poly Urethane Bushings
- TRW ball joints, inner and outer tie rod ends
- Ball bearing conversion in the Idler arm
- Rebuilt manual steering box
- New upper spring perches
- New V8 Springs
- KYB front Shocks
- Front Sub frame has been removed, media blasted, and repainted, it still has the original rivets in the strut bar housings
- Quickor front sway bar

Rear end:
- Ford nine inch rear end (Professionally narrowed by Baer Racing), 355 gears, 28 spline Detroit locker (new - less than 200 miles on it), ‘76 V8 Maverick Grabber 28 spline axles and new rear drum brakes
- Custom rear Quickor sway bar

Exhaust and chassis:
- Custom made and installed sub frame connectors (West Coast Muffler)
- Custom made exhaust system with X - pipe, 2.5 aluminized pipe, mandrel bends, 40 series Flowmaster mufflers, made and installed by (West Coast Muffler)
- Hooker Super Comp Ceramic coated headers

Motor features:
- 350 V8, Standard bore and stroke, block is a 1986 4 bolt main, 1 piece rear main seal, polished lifter valley, New GM rods, ARP studs and bolts throughout, Moroso windage tray, Moroso Oil Pan w/ pickup, Hi volume & pressure Oil pump, brass freeze plugs, block was decked and aligned bored, all internals were balanced and blue printed, motor was built by JHP Motorsports
- TRW Forged flat pistons 11:1 compression
- Erson Gear drive and Aluminum timing cover
- World Product Sportsman 2 Cast Iron Heads, 200cc intake runners, Some Port work, Erson Valves, Crane Springs & Retainers, heads were surfaced to raise compression
- Competition Cams Pro Magnum Full Roller Rocker Arms 1.52 ratio
- Competition Cams Stud Girdles
- Crane Solid Cam & Lifters
- Aluminum Chevrolet Valve covers, competition design, raised letter and bowtie
- Edelbrock RPM Air Gap intake
- Holley 750 HP Double Pump Carb
- Holley Blue Fuel Pump, with Holley Fuel Regulator, 3/8 aluminum fuel line, custom made 3/8 sending unit with return line, Summit Fuel Filter, Painless Wiring fuel relay system kit
- Custom modified original gas tank, the filler neck was moved to inside the trunk, then was boiled out, and recoated
- K&N air filter with K&N air filter lid
- MSD Digital 6 ignition box, MSD billet distributor, MSD wires, MSD Blaster SS coil, MSD cap and rotor
- Summit Aluminum Cross Flow radiator
- L79 Nova Water Neck
- Ford 2 speed Taurus electric fan with Painless wiring relay & sending unit kit,
- 100 amp, chrome one wire alternator, NNN low mount alternator kit
- Edelbrock Victor aluminum water pump,
- Racing approved harmonic balancer (forgot the name brand)
- Aluminum crank and water pump pulleys
- solid Moroso motor mounts
- Optima Red top battery
- Summit battery disconnect mounted just below the rear bumper
- All power cables run in stranded high flow welding cable, Ford remote solenoid
- mini high torque starter

Transmission:
- TH350 Automatic transmission w/ shift kit and some mods (Built by Robert Ellis)
- B&M 3500 Stall Converter
- B&M Super Cooler Transmission cooler, all cooling lines run in steel braided hose and -6 AN fittings
- B&M Street Stick shifter w/ B&M Billet T Bar Handle w/ electric button to activate the Line Lock, ( this shifter was the predecessor to the Pro Stick)

Body Features:
- 400 series model Nova
- Gas filler removed and filled in
- All side trim and emblems removed and the holes welded in
- Body and paint work done inside and out by Fuhrer Paint Werks & Attention 2 Detail
(The paint and body has a story, Fuhrer knew how to do quality prep, modification and body work, but they had never painted a nova before. The paint had runs, sags, and slight imperfections. They would not stand behind their work and the nova was taken to a different shop to fix their mistakes. I spent $5500 with Fuhrer and paid another $3000 to Attention to Detail to fix Fuhrer’s paint mistakes. The entire dash, and cove molding area was sanded and repainted. Most everything else was fixed by proper detailing by a detail minded professional. Total in just the paint and body work alone is $8500!)
- Glasstek bolt on fiberglass 2 inch Cowl induction hood with Glasstek hood springs
(The hood has a story as well. The first hood Glasstek shipped out sagged and did not match up with cowl area of the body. Since the car was being built in stages as money would allow, the hood was bought and stored in the original box for 3 months before being fitted to the car. Because of that, Glasstek would not honor the warranty saying the hood was stored improperly causing the sag. I had to buy a second hood, and this time Glasstek did not cut out the lower bracing of the hood. So even though it is a cowl hood, the bracing is still there making it essentially a flat hood underneath and limiting the size air filter that can be used.)
- Rocker areas painted with gravel guard
- Trunk area painted with black gravel guard
- It was painted with PPG brand paint and the color is toner orange

Chrome and Trim work:
- The best pieces of trim were test fitted out of 30+ plus sets
- Every piece of aluminum was removed and deanodized by Metalco (Emeryville, CA)
- Some parts were NOS, others were excellent used.
- Detail Metals (Pittsburg, CA) polished every piece of trim on the car, the rockers, wheel arches, wheel extensions, cove moldings, drip rail moldings, grille, headlight bezels, fender wrap around moldings, turn signal bezels, dash moldings, top of the door and quarter moldings, front and rear window moldings, door panel stainless moldings, tail light housings
- The rear diecast was redone by The Best Chrome (San Martin, CA)
- Front and Rear bumpers were original 30K mile grandma car bumpers, ( I purchased a 1963 Nova Coupe from a GSN member that had 30K original miles on it and parted it out. That nova was in perfect condition.) These bumpers were also rechromed and triple chrome plated by The Best Chrome Shop
- NOS front and rear bumper and grille guards, (were removed from the NOS boxes, then rechromed with triple chrome plating)
- NOS exterior door handles
- polished door and trunk locks

Wheels:
- 15x7 Chevy ralley rims, The rear pair is a dual bolt pattern set made by Wheel Vintiques and have 4.5 back spacing, the front is a factory Chevy pair with 4.25 back spacing
- Tires are BFGoodrich Radial T/A’s, the front are 195 - 60 - 15’s and the rear 225 - 60 - 15’s
- The rims were painted body color, and have never had trim rings installed
- The Disc brake center caps are polished stainless steel

I know their is information I am forgetting and it's hard to get it all down in one post.

The car was appraised in May '08 by Miller's Classic Cars here in Tyler. The nova appraised for $29,500.
 
#3 ·
More pictures of "the orange car";

Some pictures on High Way 4 in the San Fransisco Bay Area:




Some pictures of my nova in my yard here in East Texas. The dates on the photos are wrong. It was roughly in February '07:


















Some pictures from February '08 East Texas Crisis Center Car Show. The nova took 3rd in the Hardtop Category.







 
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#4 ·
car

It's a shame that I'm only 75 miles away and never had the pleasure of meeting you or seeing your car.
Did you sell it localy?
Are you looking for another project?
Mike
 
#8 ·
It's a shame that I'm only 75 miles away and never had the pleasure of meeting you or seeing your car.
Did you sell it localy?
Are you looking for another project?
Mike
The nova isn't sold yet. The perspective buyer is in Texas, South of Fort Worth. It would be nice to meet you as well. I only wish the Lone Star club was more active.



Wow! That car is stuning. I'm left wondering what project you have in mind next. I know projects come to completion but that car would be hard to let go of for any of us. Great job. :yes:
Thank you for the kind words on the nova.
 
#6 ·
Eddy that car looks fantastic, sorry to here it might be sold (hope you get the price you want) saw Robert last weekend at West Coast Muffler Father day show. He wasn't aware that you live in Texas, he hasn't changed a bit. If you sell it you'll be sorry to hard to replace.

Joe, AKA voodooII:devil::devil:
 
#9 ·
Thank you for the compliments Joe. It doesn't surprise me Rob hasn't changed. As for selling the nova, I hope you are wrong. I do know it could never be replaced, but that is part of the reason for selling it. I have never regretted selling any of the cars I have owned or built. I am ready for a change and to cut the emotional chains the car has on me. I would prefer someone else drive it, enjoy and modify it to their taste. I don't want to see the car waste away in my hands as it sits in the garage under a cover.

I honestly think it might be different if I still lived in the Bay Area with all my friends. I could drag race with them at Sac or Infineon, and still meet up with the nova guys. Being in Texas, I just haven't met and made the friends I had in Cali. Plus drag racing and car shows have become routine and boring to me. Another sign a change is probably a good thing for me.

Besides, Lori's 1964 Nova Wagon went to a Steve's member (Craigert) and the possible buyer of this nova sounds like he could be an answered prayer as well. Until he pays though, it's just wait and see. I had picked a buyer for the orange nova once in Cali before we left, but when it came down to it, he decided retirement cash and finishing a couple projects he already had were more important. I have also had multiple offers in the past, but the car didn't fit the person I wanted my nova to go to. This time it does. I'm just gonna wait and see.
 
#7 ·
novas ark

eddie is a very good guy to deal with,the car is stunning,i have bought some very rare 63 parts from him,while he still lived in cali,and in texas,hope you dont sell that piece of history eddie,all the memories building and showing the car are things that you will regret later on,the car is one of the best restored novas out there
best wishes
don in waterford:yes:
 
#10 ·
eddie is a very good guy to deal with,the car is stunning,i have bought some very rare 63 parts from him,while he still lived in cali,and in texas,hope you dont sell that piece of history eddie,all the memories building and showing the car are things that you will regret later on,the car is one of the best restored novas out there
best wishes
don in waterford:yes:
Thank you for the very kind words Don. You've been a blessing to me over the years buying parts from me. I am excited to see your nova done and in the car profile section so I can comment on it.
 
#11 ·
Future Project???

Since people are wondering, I am actually not looking for a project. I plan to use a portion of the money to pay down my mortgage. I am 31 years old and I almost have my house paid off. Once the house is paid I will have zero debt. Everything is paid for. I want to start my daughter in private school in the fall, so the sooner I pay off the house, the easier that will be to afford.

I am however looking at a... uhh... umm... 1996 Impala SS. It has a LT4 396 small block (bored and stroked), T56 transmission (6 speed manual), 456 gears and all the creature comforts.:D Plus since I didn't build, I can keep it a while, and when my ADD kicks in, it will be that much easier to sell. I am going to give the novas a break for a while. I still have parts and will always be scouting out for parts cars, but as for owning one... it'll just be wait and see. The next one will have to be a convertible though. It is the one nova that has eluded me. Sure I had a parts car one and another rolling project one I sold, but I want a done one.

I will never forget cruising Hot August Nights Reno with chevy2inreno (Dave) in his convertible and also in plum rat (Ken) convertible. Awesome memories and people I have met over the years all because of novas:yes: It's practically in my blood.:)
 
#15 ·
Hey man, it sounds like your car has been a labor of love kind of thing. I am working on my first Nova which is also a 64 model. It seems the more I do, the more I find my self wanting to do. I quess that is what makes old cars a hobby or passion. That is a sharp little car and I would have a hard time parting with it after 12 years. Good luck!

Scott
flamed64ss
 
#20 ·
No, the nova never sold. The older gentleman who was suppose to buy got cold feet the day I was to deliver him the car in Fort Worth. He didn't want to part with cash, especially since he already owned an 11 second Firebird he races. Thank you very much for you compliments on the nova though.


Eddy,
Mini nats this year was bad a&&, Robert was there and just about everyone else was there. you need to be there next year:yes::yes::yes::yes:
I think it would be cool to come back and visit for a mini nats. Maybe it would recharge me some towards novas. Are there pictures posted anywhere of the mini nats? Where was it held?


That's one SWEET ride! Me, i think you're nuts to sell the car with that kind of history...a family owned car that YOU did everything to. You know every nut & bolt. I'd just keep it and enjoy it. Late model Impala SS's are dime a dozen. Sweet cars all the same but not even in the same league. But then again, i'm a sentimental fool. I'm sorry i got rid of many my older cars. My 1st Chevy II a 62, my 61 bubble top (sold to UndercvrSS's dad & uncle...boy was that a dumb move!:()among others....
Anyway, awesome car!
Tim
Many, many people tell me I am foolish for wanting to sell this nova. I have owned and built many novas for myself and others, so to me they come and go. Yes, I did everything to this car, but it's still not "done". I built the car to the vision I had as a teenager/ early 20 year old and now that I am 32 it's not really what I want. The lack of an involved nova club makes it even worse. Texas is also extremely spread out which makes driving this car or trailering this car inconvenient. It was great when I lived in the city in California. Now the nova sits and if I put 100 miles on the nova this year I would be surprised. If I redid the car to my current desire, I would swap out the motor and trans, install some thing very mild and cruiser friendly, add A/C, probably change the front suspension out to one of the updated kits, and I am sure I would enjoy the car more and so would my family. But we have owned this nova so long, the desire to change things, invest more money, and put in more work is just not there. I have always owned at least one nova since I was 17 and I would like to just try something different. Thank you for your thoughts and kind words about the nova though :cool:
 
#19 ·
That's one SWEET ride! Me, i think you're nuts to sell the car with that kind of history...a family owned car that YOU did everything to. You know every nut & bolt. I'd just keep it and enjoy it. Late model Impala SS's are dime a dozen. Sweet cars all the same but not even in the same league. But then again, i'm a sentimental fool. I'm sorry i got rid of many my older cars. My 1st Chevy II a 62, my 61 bubble top (sold to UndercvrSS's dad & uncle...boy was that a dumb move!:()among others....
Anyway, awesome car!
Tim
 
#25 ·
The nova did not sell on ebay. Since it did not, I have taken the time to replace and update some things. I installed 3 leaf multi leaf springs in the rear along with polyurethane bushings. I also installed KYB shocks in the rear and Competition Engineering wedge shims to adjust the pinion angle. It raised the back of the nova up 1 inch, eliminated wheel hop, and gave it a much more firm ride. Here are some photos of the new ride height:








I also have some new videos I will post of the nova later.
 
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