By 1970, the writing was on the wall for the classic American muscle car. While manufacturers would persist in their quest to produce vehicles with large capacity engines under the hood, those motors would be rendered shadows of their former selves at the hand of tightening emission regulations. Many believe that 1970 was the beginning of the end and will offer as proof the fact that it stands as the final year of production for Chevrolet’s fire-breathing Nova SS 396. From 1971, if buyers craved a Bow-Tie product with a big-block under the hood, they needed to look elsewhere. Our feature car is one of those final SS 396s, and it presents beautifully. Its engine bay houses a freshly rebuilt motor, and it is a classic that needs nothing. Located in Oviedo, Florida, the Nova is listed for sale here on eBay. The seller has set a BIN of $52,500, although there is the option to make an offer. I have to say a big thank you to Barn Finder Larry D for referring this brutal classic to us.
Chevrolet offered potential Nova buyers the choice of sixteen different paint shades for 1970, and the original owner of this car selected Classic White. This color creates a subtle appearance, and if somebody were to swap the original Super Sport wheels for a set of steelies and hubcaps, there would be few visible clues about the potency of this package. The paint shines beautifully, and a flawless Black vinyl top perfectly complements it. The owner doesn’t mention any restoration work on the panels or paint, but I find this highly likely given the attention lavished on the rest of the car. The panels are laser straight, and while the gaps aren’t startlingly tight, they are about as good as you might expect to find on a 1970 Nova. There is no evidence of rust, with the Nova’s underside looking particularly clean. The wheels are original and wear the correct date stamps, while the tinted glass and exterior trim are perfect.
I’m not sure if I would describe this Nova’s interior as perfect, but it is so close that it hardly matters. Deviations from original include the owner substituting a vintage-look stereo for the factory radio and an aftermarket wheel taking the place of the badly cracked original. Otherwise, the owner has refurbished the interior while maintaining a faithful factory appearance. The seats feature new upholstery and foam, while the owner has installed a new carpet set, headliner, dash pad, and a reproduction console with factory gauges and a Hurst shifter. The owner also added a new speedometer and factory tach, and Vintage Air A/C to make life pleasant on warmer days. The odometer shows 28 miles, and I suspect this reflects the mileage covered since the drivetrain came in for significant attention.
When is a 396 not a 396? That would be when the vehicle in question is a 1970 Nova SS 396 with its original 402ci V8 under the hood. Chevrolet enlarged the bore size of the 396 from 1970, increasing the engine’s capacity to 402.2ci. Because the “396” designation was instantly identifiable for the buying public, they maintained the name for the marginally larger motor. The engine bay of our feature car houses the L78 version of the big-block that churns out 375hp. Those horses find their way through a four-speed manual transmission to a 3.73 Posi rear end. The Nova’s performance credentials are beyond question, with the car capable of covering the ¼ mile in 14.2 seconds. That would have been its capability when new, but the news could look marginally better today. The owner has treated the drivetrain to a significant rebuild that would not have been cheap. The V8 received a bore, new pistons, rings, wrist pins, connecting rods, lifter, pushrods, and sundry other parts. The transmission came in for a similar level of attention, while he detailed everything within an inch of its life. He claims that while it looks factory fresh, it is significantly better. You can be sure that the Nova would command attention and respect the moment the driver floors the right pedal.
I’m probably going to ignite some spirited debate with this statement, but from a styling perspective, I believe that the 1970 Nova holds an edge over the equivalent Chevelle. I don’t mean that the Chevelle is an ugly car because nothing could be further from the truth. I simply find the sharper lines of the Nova more appealing, but I stress that such a view will be a matter of personal preference. In SS 396 form, both offered buyers mind-blowing performance, with the Nova proving marginally faster. If we leave performance and appearance out of the equation, 1970 marked the final year buyers could order a Nova with a big-block under the hood. There’s something quite enticing about owning the last of a breed, and that is what someone will be scoring when they hand over the cash for this classic. That has to make it look pretty tempting.
Beautiful ’70 big block Nova “SS” that would put a smile on anyone’s face lucky enough to slam the pedal, row through the gears and hold on for dear life at the local drag strip of course.
I get a chuckle out of the term “Row through the gears”. My hobby is rowing and my “fun” cars have always had manual transmissions. I promise you there is no similarity. The term that comes to my mind for operating a manual transmission (Based on experience) is “Slamming through the gears”
Thinking the front turn signals should have clear lenses. Still a nice specimen.
Correct turn lenses are clear with yellow bulbs
Correct, the front parking lamps should be clear.
No Thales orange lenses are correct for 1970
My question is do they have the build sheet?
Otherwise there is absolutely no way to
Prove it is a big block car from
The factory
Great find for what appears to be an original muscle car. If there was a protecto plate or build sheet this would be worth closer to $70,000.
Typical example of why GM is very popular. Who couldn’t love this machine.
I am pretty sure, 70 396 SS novas are supposed to have an odd rubber top radiator cover and not metal?
Hmmmmm, a lot of little things off on this Nova. Not all deal breakers, but all of them add up to show some cracks in the “all original” story. Like others have mentioned, the turn signals should be clear with yellow bulbs. The SS grille emblem is from a Chevelle, Nova never had engine size on the front. The headlight bezels are wrong for an SS, they should only be chrome on the top and bottom horizontal lines, like the grille. It’s missing the Nova name on the fenders in front of the doors, also the fake vents. The lower side molding isn’t right. I’m not even sure what those parts are off of, but they’re not the grilled style that should be down there. The instrument cluster is all new, obviously from the only 28 miles, plus the surround is a brand new repop. If they went to all that trouble, then why not a new and working OER clock? The console gauges are also wrong as well. They should have black face, like the tach and clock. The white ones are from a 1st Gen Camaro. Lastly, the wiper jug and all hoses for it are gone.
Shawn, I now know who to contact, should I need a Nova of this vintage gone over for correctness. 👍🏽👍🏽
nice car, but not an L-78
IF it’s a L78 why would they have painted the aluminum intake?
Intake is aftermarket with a dual feed Holley or similar carb.
If you’re a street racer trying to disguise an aluminum manifold, you paint it engine color. I have a 65 Plymouth 383 with a painted “Over the Counter Mopar” aluminum manifold and a few other modifications that fool everybody who isn’t a Mopar expert into thinking it’s stock. That is until I start it and the lope of the Mopar (race only) Purple Stripe cam is obvious.
If you’re trying to sell a big buck big block Nova, painting the intake manifold engine color to make it look like a lesser motor is either a major mistake or it’s a major red flag that it isn’t what it’s supposed to be.
not counting aftermarket AC, one red flag, this motor has 820 oval port heads not the 291 rectangle port heads L78 would come with…..
Should not have a driver-side valve cover breather. Should have a PCV valve into front of carb base. Rad cover should be this odd rubbery thing, not metal. The 2 Diamond-level cars I’ve seen plus a local car with just 23k miles and original owner all had a dual-snorkel air cleaner case. Add-on AC. For this kind of money, I’d expect better.
But, but, but, the wheels are date coded.
I am continually amazed at the wealth of knowledge on this site. Obviously a lot of very observant people.
I am a Ford guy, but love to learn about the other makes.
I am surprised no one noticed it only has a 10-bolt rear axle. Almost all SS’s had 12 bolts and definitely ALL big blocks had them.
Good catch. That 10 bolt will be pronounced DOA in short order if the driver has even the nicest heavy right foot.
Never could get factory air on a factory L-78 car, period! Big blocks always got the 12-bolt rear end as well!
I too am amazed at the level of knowledge here. I like looking at these “Barn Finds”, but even more so learning from those way more knowledgeable than me on these cars.
Beautiful looking car. I’ve always found this generation Chevy Nova more attractive than the 1974-80 Nova.
Correction: ’75 to ’79.
Could you get variable-ratio p/s in those cars?
Yes, I’m a little leery about the car…but then again, I tend to be that way with a lot of cars on here…
New gauge cluster has 4500rpm redline tach!!?? Maybe its a diesel lol
Hard to believe I paid $1200 for a 69 Nova SS that had a newly rebuilt 454 4-speed. Black with Cragar 5 spokes on it. Man o man, coulda, woulda, shoulda back when! It was 1981 when I bought it.
Lots can be learned on this site, and I’m betting this Nova was thrashed and trashed thru the years, when new until some point in the nineties, eventually rebuilt like the bionic man, piece here and there, and even if it wasn’t worth squat the thrill of driving such a machine would be….incredible.
Its really sharp, but better looking than an SS Chevelle of the same year? Boy, I just dont know. Nah,,,I’m going with the Chevelle SS454.
I like the car for what it is, but the terminology is killing me. Can we please stop describing the body panels as “laser straight”?
Thanks…
IMHO the best looking coupe Chevy put out for 1970 was the Monte Carlo. Much better lines than the Nova or Chevelle. Don’t get me wrong, I’d still love to own one or both in addition to my Montes, especially with manual trannies as the SS Montes didn’t come with them.
The VIN reported in the eBay listing is 114270W240500
The second and third digits, 14, identify it as a Nova V8. The fourth and fifth digits, 27, identify it as a 2-door coupe. We can’t know from that information whether this car actually left the assembly line as an SS.
Regarding style, of all Novas, from their first year in 1969 to the last year in 1979, the only years I am not particularly fond of are the 1973 & ’74 models.
Never could get factory air on a factory L-78 car, period!