Years ago there was a TV show that purported to be a “show about nothing”. Yes, it was a tongue-in-cheek comment but on the surface, today’s find of a 1977 Chevrolet Nova, may seem a bit like a “car about nothing” review. Now, now, I’m not putting this Chevy down, about 291K souls purchased Novas in ’77, and it was always a popular model for the Bowtie, but this particular car seems to be really nothing special, a survivor maybe, of a base-level model – and that’s about it. Or, is there more to the story…Let’s continue and see, if nothing else we’ll get a glimpse of how economy-minded, compact models rolled 47 long years ago.
Chevrolet’s X-body came in three body styles for ’77, two and four-door sedans as well as a two-door hatchback. Trim levels includes standard, Rally, and Concours. Our subject is a standard two-door sedan model finished in GM’s seemingly most ubiquitous color, “Light Blue Poly” which reveals typical age-old fade. The body shows some rust in the typical places but all-in-all, this appears to be a reasonably sound car. The original orderer did specify optional Rally wheels and they do enhance the otherwise non-descript exterior.
Powering this innocent looking Chevy is a 145 net HP, 305 CI V8 engine (first year for blue-painted Chevrolet engines) which is married to a three-speed manual transmission. The gearbox is actuated by an optional floor shifter so there’s one item that sets this car apart from others. I did some searching around and option RPO M11, a floor mounted three-speed shifter was a ’77 Nova option. How many were built is hard to say but I imagine it’s not a commonly encountered extra. The seller mentions that he didn’t drive this car in winter weather and it has accumulated 113K miles in his 47 years of sole ownership.
The bucket seat equipped interior is in fair shape though the driver’s seat’s woven upholstery has seen better days. The tops of the door panels are hinky looking but there’s not much else that can be said about the environment as there are no comprehensive images. As you can see, there is a center console in place but documentation does not indicate that as being a requirement for the floor shift.
The seller tells us, “The vehicle needs work and some TLC. I ordered this car 47 years ago. I drove it for many years and always stored it during winter months. I had good intentions of having it restored one day, but life got in the way. I would love to see it go to someone who would really enjoy it.” This is unusual, while it could be considered a car about nothing, it has an unusual story behind it – it’s hardly everyday when you find someone still in possession of a car that they ordered almost a half century ago. The listing images are pretty good and they can be found here on eBay where this Chevy is available for a current bid of $6,600 with 34 bids tendered so far. My inclination would be to keep this one as stock as possible and just fix the aesthetics, how about you?
Nice car, I would be keeping it as original as possible and fix the cosmetics to make it look nice.
Maybe remove some of the pollution stuff off the motor to make it a bit more “efficient”
I would restore it to 100% stock appearance but have a 500 hp cammed engine and the proper driveline upgrades to accompany the increased power. And put some street slicks on the back.
The grocery-getter from the underworld.
Hardly a base model with its rallye wheels and V8.
And bucket seats and console
It’s not a Rally and it’s not a Concours, it’s a base model (I didn’t stay “stripped”) with options.
JO
I had this car except it was red. 305 3 speed on floor. Had factory tach too.
Car scooted pretty good. Was fun to drive!
Good luck to buyer and seller. 😊
Looks like it has the original radiator hose
I can see why this would attract attention: great price for an entry-level collector, parts abound, MANUAL, and drive it while you fix it up. OK I talked myself into it. OK nevermind the spectre of my wife talked me out of it. Was a nice dream for a minute
I had the ‘77 Concours edition, triple black with the landau roof. Factory 350, 4 speed (Saginaw) with posi and F41 suspension. Car was fun to drive but LXs would gap me every time.
I like this one better than the ’78 Nova sedan also for sale on Barn Finds, as this one is a coupe that has the optional bucket seats and floor shifter! There’s lots of power to be found with bolt-on upgrades to the engine that won’t break the bank, and an aftermarket EFI system would fix the malaise-era drivability issues. Fresh carpets and new seat covers are easy fixes for the inside and the oxidized paint might respond to an application of rubbing compound, but otherwise, I like it! Good Luck to the seller, I hope it finds a good new home! Again, if I didn’t already have a project car, I’d be all over it!