Courtesy of Engine Builder by Greg Jones
It seems more and more these days, you’re hard pressed to find a car that isn’t running some sort of boost. We can’t blame folks for wanting more horsepower via turbos, superchargers and nitrous, but there’s something special about a naturally aspirated engine that can kick some serious ass on the track. For that reason, we were excited to learn more about Jerry Sweet’s 1976 Nova, not only because it is a cool car, but because it boasts a naturally aspirated 632 cubic inch big block Chevy engine.
Of course, the Chevy Nova didn’t come with a 632 big block in it. Jerry’s grandmother first owned the car and it looked quite different than it does today.
“The car has been in our family for a long, long time,” Sweet told us. “Actually my folks bought it for my grandma back in the day and then when I turned 16 it became my car. It had a straight six in it with a Landau top – it was about the ugliest thing you’ve ever seen.”
Jerry’s first course of action was to put a small block Chevy in the Nova and then he began racing it with his dad for many years. Eventually, the small block turned into a big block, the car got back-halfed and front end work was done as well.
