Kunzman.com - Your Direct Source for Performance Information > Photos > Ride of the Month

Ride of the Month - June 2011

1966 Chevy Nova
Owner: Bo Harden
Username: Bo Harden

Congratulations to Bo Harden, the owner of this 1966 Chevy Nova, for being the June 2011 Kunzman.com Ride of the Month! Our team at Kunzman.com spotted Bo and his ride at Super Summit South this year.

A Brief History
This 1966 Chevy Nova was given to Bo on his16th birthday back in 1985. At the time it was silver with blue bench seats. It had a 1975 Chevy Monza 262 V8 with a turbo 350. Bo drove this car in high school at which time he rebuilt it with a '66 Chevy 283, painted the car black, and changed the interior to match. His first year out of high school, Bo built a 30 over 350 which he added to the Nova. This car became Bo's daily driver for many years and he just kept working on it and changing it, even putting a tunnel ram on the car with a 9 inch Ford and a 457 gear. It ran 12.80's with 125 shot of NOS. Eventually getting tired of that combo, Bo built a small block 400 with a single 750 Holley and Dart Heads and roller cam with a turbo 400 trans. It now runs 12.20's and mid 11's on NOS.

The Ride Today
In 2000, Bo thought it was time to redo the '66 once again. He completely took the car apart and replaced the rear Quarters with new GM fenders. He wanted the look of a 10.5 outlaw car, yet streetable. The goal was to still maintain the original look inside the car with stock seats and Interior. At this time the 1966 Chevy Nova was painted the original Artesian Turquoise, which it remains coated in today.

The next step for Bo was to have the rear suspension Mini tubbed and 4 linked with coilovers. The Nova was given a Moser center section with 35 splined axels, an Eaton Detroit Locker, and a 430 gear inside a Fab 9" with Wilwood disc brakes. An 8 point cage with subframe connectors by HR Race Car Products was installed, and the front end was updated with a Heidts front end with dropped spindles with coil overs.

The Power

The engine in Bo's ride was originally built for another Nova but was put in this '66 when Bo decided to sell that car. It boasts a 1963, 327 bored 30 over with Speed pro pop up pistons and a Crane Solid Roller Cam. It has Brodix Iron Killer Heads with 2.05 intake valves. The intake is a Edelbrock Victor Jr intake with a Holley 750 that has been flowed to a 930 fed by a Holley black pump. It has a NOS Cheater Nitrous kit also fed by a Holley Black pump. The igniton is all MSD, including a Pro billet distributor with a 6AL box with timing control. To keep the car running cool is has a Be Cool aluminum Chevy II bolt in Radiator with a CSI electric water pump with a flex a lite electric fan. Even in the summer, under the worst driving conditions, this '66 never gets over 180 degrees. The engine is monitored by Auto Meter Phantom gauges including a Monster Tach, oil pressure gauge, and water temp gauge. Bo always wanted a 4 speed so he found a Borg Warner Super T10 to add. He also used a Lakewood scattershield with an 11 Ram Clutch, a Hurst shifter, and a Corvette shifter handle. The wheels are American Torque Thrust D's 15X4's in the front with 15X 10 in the rear with a 325/50/15 tire.

On any given Saturday throughout the show season, you can usually find Bo and his ride at an automotive event. His favorite part of the car show scene, however, is getting the chance to cruise the streets in his 1966 Chevy Nova.