Man was forced to give up attempts to restore Chevrolet Nova after 35 years of trying
- A man held onto this 1972 Nova for 35 years
- He bought it hoping to restore it
- Sadly, that never happened
Published on Oct 09, 2024 at 6:58 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Oct 09, 2024 at 7:21 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A car enthusiast gave up his 1972 Chevrolet Nova after holding onto it for 35 years in the hopes of restoring it.
The Chevy Nova was first introduced for the model year 1962 and released five generations over the next couple of decades.
The 1972 model, which received some trim updates, went on to become one of the best-selling years for the Nova, with almost 350,000 produced.
To this day, the Nova remains a popular and desirable nameplate – so you can understand why this car-lover snapped one up in the hopes of restoring it.
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The 1972 Chevrolet Nova was bought as a restoration project
The Nova’s owner explained that he used to own a car dealership in Southern California.
The dealership mainly sold new cars, but it also used to offer a buyback program for interesting and cool older vehicles, which involved buying them, fixing them up, and then reselling them.
This vintage Nova was one such car—except after the dealership owner bought it, he never quite got around to fixing it or reselling it.
The best laid plans and all that…
But after 35 years in storage, it seemed the man was finally ready to admit defeat, and he listed the Nova up for sale on eBay.
Although the car didn’t get the full restoration planned, the seller did fit a new set of tires, a battery, and a water pump
It was hiding a cool surprise under the hood
It still has its original transmission and came with power steering and air conditioning.
The seller has even held onto the original owner’s manual in the Nova’s glovebox.
Better yet, the Nova still has its original V8 engine under the hood – and it still runs.
The bodywork has some scrapes and knocks, but nothing out of the ordinary for its age.
However, the interior is in a bit of a sorry state and will likely need a complete refurbishment to get it looking sweet again.
Nonetheless, it would make a cool little project for someone who is happy to pick up where this guy left off more than 30 years ago.
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.
