[Dave B.]

In addition to the Novas that jd128 listed earlier, this one has been added to the Mecum consignment list at Kansas City. I love the color combo, which is the same as the L30 my dad bought new in '66.

It APPEARS to be a '66 L79. The restoration is to a pretty high standard. It does have either a '67 or replacement hood, an incorrect radiator and is lacking the correct battery hold-down. It also appears to be an original heater-delete car. (Which MIGHT explain the radiator, but I doubt it.) The odd thing is that there is NO description appearing with the photos on Mecum's website...

http://www.mecum.com/auctions/lot_detail.cfm?LOT_ID=KC1212-141041&entryRow=188&lottype=&startRow=181

 

[LMH]

May be missing a few items to make it correct but I think it is a beautiful car.

 

[mud.man.rj]

Nova L79

It really is a nice example isn't it. Funny never been much for that color but it looks so good on this car.

 

[67nova73]

Has a heater delete on it tho ( something that isnt seen everyday ) ....

Under carriage looks spotless.....

 

[CdnL79 Registry]

Wow! Nice looking car and love the color, but doesn't include 'L79' in the description. If it's a real heater delete it would be coded as option C48 on the cowl tag. Also, I doubt the 2L (4 speed) and LL (Tropic Turquoise) would have been crayoned on the firewall, because these codes would already have been on the cowl tag. Besides, they never crayoned them so carefully. A little over restored IMO.

Bob

 

[asteeler4life]

I "LOVE" THIS CAR!
THE COLOR IS SPECTACULAR, I WOULDN'T CHANGE A THING! MAYBE BRAKES AND SUSPENSION AND THAT'S IT!

 

[Bipolar4U]

Overview

EXCEPTIONALLY nice car!

 

[swagger]

As much as I like pro touring and race or race-styled cars...I really like this one. Looks very nice

 

[invader wagon]

That is one nice car.What is there not to like about an L/79?

 

[TMack63nova]

Very Nice 66 SS!! I think somebody on SNS should buy it for me since I'm a nice guy!! Thanks in advance!!

:ragtop:

 

[taz3]

Very Nice 66 SS!! I think somebody on SNS should buy it for me since I'm a nice guy!! Thanks in advance!!

:ragtop:

OK, I will, but I'll need your account number!:devil:

 

[65Coupe]

Car is stunning. Over restored, under restored, can't make everyone happy. Learned that a long time ago.

 

[CdnL79 Registry]

That is one nice car.What is there not to like about an L/79?

Well, here's what Car Life magazine didn't like when they did their Nova SS L79 road test in 1966......inadequate tires, hard to shift Muncie 4 speed, inadequate brakes (even worse with power booster), sway bar rubber bushings shredded before 1000 miles and slow 4.5 turn lock-to-lock steering. Overall, they thought the car was very good. They even liked the handling. They also made reference to the Chevy II being the base for the soon to be released 'Panther' which of course turned out to be the Camaro.

Interestingly, MotorTrend passed on road testing the L79 in favour of an L30 SS with PG, because they thought it would be more interesting to the reader who had a family and was conscious of gas mileage. This was still what the Chevy II was all about in 1966....a family economy car.

Another interesting thing about the Car Life article, nowhere was the term 'L79' used, nor were options referred to by their RPO numbers. It would be about another 20 years before the collectors realized what these cars really were and started to identify them by their L79 RPO number.

Bob

 

[taz3]

To bad the 66-67 body style didn't get the subframe like the Camaro and 3rd gen's did.

 

[FLDUECE]

To bad the 66-67 body style didn't get the subframe like the Camaro and 3rd gen's did.

They sorta did... there both removable

 

[dealer-deuce]

L-79

What I like about the L-79 option is that engine is it bad fast!! I love a high
reving 327 it is worth every penny of $8 gallon trick fuel :devil:

 

[kcmocarguy]

When I was a teenager and before the L79 was that big of a deal a guy in town had one and it was this same color but with a black vinyl top. Can’t remember what wheels it had on it but not hub caps. I do remember that it had the resonators on it and I wondered why. I used to see the owner who was a Nova dude driving it every day loaded up with his friends. Never saw him hot rod it either. Just after I bought my ’67 to build the car was for sale in the Kansas City Star but since I had just bought one I did not even look at it. DUMB, DUMB, DUMB

 

[CdnL79 Registry]

When I was a teenager and before the L79 was that big of a deal a guy in town had one and it was this same color but with a black vinyl top. I remember that it had the resonators on it and I wondered why.

The resonators were to make sure it didn't make too much noise. Remember, the 350 HP Chevy II was not considered a muscle car. There are instances where buyers couldn't get the 195 and 275 horsepower cars they wanted and were given discounts to take in-stock L79s. My L79 arrived at the dealer in early December, 1965, but they couldn't sell it. After it was discounted thousands of dollars it sold when the 67's came out in late fall '66. MotorTrend's road test of a 1966 L30 Nova SS has a picture of the car on a hoist. Even it's single exhaust had a resonator. The Chevy II motto of the day seemed to be 'quiet please'.

Bob

 

[kcmocarguy]

Hey Bob:
So what was it like to test drive your L79? What was the car like? Ray Morrison traded up from his '66 L79 to his Dickey Harrell '68 427. What must it have been like back then!

 

[CdnL79 Registry]

Hey Bob:
So what was it like to test drive your L79? What was the car like? Ray Morrison traded up from his '66 L79 to his Dickey Harrell '68 427. What must it have been like back then!

My L79 had 5 owners (one of them owned it twice) before I bought it in 1999. The owner of the dealership where it sold new died years before, but I made contact with his son who drove the car as a demo in the summer of 1966. He said nobody thought it was anything special and it was a major problem to sell it because nobody wanted the 4 speed. When I bought the car it was totally restored as original and it was a blast to drive. I probably would have been even more in awe of it's power had my previous Nova not been a 1970 SS L78.

Bob