Why man kept his 1972 Chevrolet Nova hidden for 35 years in California
- A man bought this 1972 Chevy Nova more than three decades ago
- It’s been parked up in storage since then
- He had hoped to restore the car to its former glory
Published on Aug 23, 2024 at 11:31 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Aug 23, 2024 at 3:16 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
A dealer in California stashed away a 1972 Chevrolet Nova for more than three decades before finally deciding to sell up.
The Chevy Nova first rolled off production lines back in 1962 and ran for five generations through to 1988.
Although the car only received minor trim updates for the 1972 model, it would go on to become one of the biggest selling years for the Nova, with 349,733 produced.
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The 1972 Nova had been a planned restoration project
The Nova was a big seller and still remains a popular car, with celebrities including Joe Rogan and Johnny Depp having them within their collections.
Sadly, many of the examples you come across have had better days – such as this 1965 one that’s in need of some serious TLC.
However, this one – which was bought by a dealer in southern California – looks to be in pretty good shape.
Something made all the more impressive when you consider that he’s had it stored away for a whopping 35 years.
The guy who bought it had originally bought it as a restoration project but that plan never quite came to fruition.
The dealer explains that, although he sold new cars, if he saw an interesting older one, he would snap it up, restore, and resell it.
Unfortunately for this Nova, that didn’t happen on this occasion – so now, after having the car in storage for years, he decided to sell up.
The car is still in great shape
Although the restoration plan hadn’t panned out, the seller has fitted the car with four new tires, a battery, and a water pump.
Incredibly, the Nova still has its original V8 engine and it still runs.
Also original to the car are the automatic transmission, power steering, front disc brakes, and the air-conditioning unit.
There’s even the original owner’s manual in the glovebox.
The bodywork has some knocks and scrapes, and it will likely need a repaint, rather than just a clean-up, but considering its age, it’s not too bad at all.
The interior is another story and will definitely require a refit, but isn’t that all part of the fun when taking on a restoration project like this?
Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Across her career she's covered a wide variety of topics, including celebrity, cryptocurrency, politics, true crime and just about everything in between.
