1974 Chevrolet Nova

1974 Chevrolet Nova SS Tribute The muscle car era was coming to an end. The oil embargo was on the horizon and emission restrictions were a whisper away. Cars like the Pinto and Beetle were selling fast because of better gas mileage and overall economy. Toyota and Datsun were just beginning what would become a dominant presence on the car scene. But Chevy stuck with the Nova third gen one more year, included a facelift, and still produced an SS high performance version.  For consignment, a 1974 Chevrolet Nova SS tribute showing 744 miles, but the true miles are unknown. This one now houses a built 5.3 liter fuel injected engine but retains a 4-speed automatic transmission, which has also been bolstered for high performance application.   Exterior Unique, SS double stripes adorn this Dark Metallic Green example, running on each side of the hood seam, then over the rear decklid. The stripes are black and highlighted with yellow and the big NOVA SS on the front fenders adopt that color and are unmissable in sheer size. A black vinyl top gives the car some contrasting pedestrian accenting but its lowered stance over 15-inch Chevrolet Rally wheels supports the billboard SS on the side in terms of aggressiveness. Tires are no older than mid 2021 and have white letters out because that's how we rolled in '74! The quad tail lights were adopted in '73 and the center emblem, here SS instead of a bowtie, was part of the '74 facelift, and 5 mph bumpers were also recent additions and on this car, they are newer. This car is spotless and we could find no exterior imperfections.  Interior Clean formed door panels include a touch of woodgrain accenting on the door pull and of course, an integrated armrest. Up front we have tall black vinyl bucket seats in very nice shape and mirrored in color and condition in back. A standard steering wheel leads to a Dakota Digital dash, a favorite of builders looking to modernize instrumentation and it does a fine job at that with a wicked blue backlit screen. The rest of the dash is pretty mundane as this is a radio delete car and vent levers are the sole feature to the right. Black loop carpet floods the floor cleanly, now with Nova branded mats, while a perforated black headliner is smooth and tight. The trunk is barren with the exception of a fitted mat in the depressed areas of the floor.  Drivetrain Here we have some magic in the form of a 5.3 liter V8 with ported and polished aluminum heads, forged pistons,  a trunion upgrade, and FiTech electronic fuel injection. The 4L65E 4-speed automatic is behind it, and it and the torque converter have been rebuilt by Monster Transmission. The bay is clean and will likely Wow show goers when you pop the hood. It did us. A newer radiator was also part of the build.  Undercarriage A newer gas tank starts the show and a clean underside includes dual exhaust that runs from headers to an H-pipe, then through Flow FX mufflers by FlowMaster, finally dumping discreetly behind the rear fenders because if you've got the flow, it doesn't mean you have to show. Suspension includes QA1 coil overs up front and lowering leaf springs in back while power brakes are configured as front disc and rear drum.  Drive-Ability A sweet, sweet bellow is emitted when the big 5.3 is cranked to life, and it's instant thanks to the injection. It's a column shifter that puts this into gear and we hustle around the test loop where the car tracks straight, handles well, and provides more than adequate power to get from Point A to Point B, and smiles ensue! This well sorted and very recent build works well and so do all operational items in the car, so it's back to the mall for this excellent tribute. While Classic Auto Mall represents that these functions were working at the time of our test drive, we cannot guarantee these functions will be working at the time of your purchase.  Our batting average is pretty good when we use this space to predict a car's exi