1969 Chevy Nova - LS Swap / Pro-Touring Build

[1fastssnova]

Here the end of the roll bar tubes were beveled to leave a channel for the weld bead.




Passenger side and driver side:




After the welding was complete and ground smooth, the entire roll bar was painted with Rustoleum Hammered gloss black paint. I brushed on two coats and when dry, the finish was nice and smooth with no brush marks.





Then I continued with the Thermo Tec Cool-It insulation into the rear foot well and seat area.

[1fastssnova]

These next items I sure are not in everyone's taste. Some may love them, others may think it ruins the car. I've always liked the spoilers on 67-69 Camaros and wanted to add something similar to my Nova. Plus, in going with the whole pro-touring, autocross, road race, g-machine theme, I thought it fit the car. Someone once told me, do what YOU like and if others like it, then that's an added bonus.

I got the front and rear spoiler from a guy in Minnesota. The website was novaairdamnsandspoilers.com - unfortunately it is no longer there and I am assuming he is no longer making them. So, lucky me I was able to get them before he stopped and I'm screwed if they ever get damaged!

This is how they first looked on the Nova when I had them painted to match the grey torque-thrust style wheels.



I wasn't a big fan of the lighter grey and then sprayed them with black Plasti-dip for a different look. So when doing this LS swap I found a darker grey that I liked and more closely matched the new Z06 wheels.



I also added an aluminum strip to the front spoiler to give more of an air splitter look (hopefully it's functional too)





Then painted




Rear spoiler




The rear deck lid got a fresh coat on the inside also because it just didn't look right - kind of faded with some over-spray

[1fastssnova]

Before I could put the interior back together I needed to modify the frame of both the upper and lower rear seat. It didn't need much work to make the necessary clearance for the wider mini tubs.

Here I am cutting the ends of the wire frame:



This area needed to be removed on both sides of the upper seat to clear the tubs



Here's the same area after modifying.




I measured about 40" between the new tubs and made sure the seat frame had the same measurement.




This is the lower seat after modifying (should have taken some pics of the before). I basically just un-hooked the material from the hog rings, measured the 40"s across. I cut the ends, bent and welded the frame back together.




Lower seat fitted into place.






Material hog-ringed back onto frame.






Rear seat re-installed clearing the wider mini tubs.

[1fastssnova]

Before the seat was installed I finished covering the trunk firewall with more Thermo Tec Cool-It



A friend of mine had some Dynamat left over from his project and gave it to me. So I finished off the sides and the doors with it.






I used the factory rear belt mounts to secure the strap for the Corbeau 4 point retractable belts (left of rear belt in pic)



Corbeau belts installed.



What's nice about these belts is that the retractor lets you have the freedom of movement like an oem belt, but then can be locked out with the turn of a dial on the retractor housing. This makes the belt immovable for running autocross or drag strip.

[1fastssnova]

As part of the new American Autowire harness, I installed courtesy lights - these really give a nice look to the interior at night.



I even got the factory trunk light wired in.

[Ben@SpeedTech]

Lookin good. The spoiler is always a debate for the Novas, they seem to match the looks of the pony cars a little better, but I think it looks ok. Here's a link to one Speedtech built before relocating to the states. http://www.speedtechperformance.com/index.cfm/page/ptype=product/product_id=285/category_id=7/mode=prod/prd285.htm



Unfortunately the mold got thrown away before the move. I think Blake regrets that... so do I. Couldda used one for my Nova. ;)

[1fastssnova]

Lookin good. The spoiler is always a debate for the Novas, they seem to match the looks of the pony cars a little better, but I think it looks ok. Here's a link to one Speedtech built before relocating to the states. http://www.speedtechperformance.com/index.cfm/page/ptype=product/product_id=285/category_id=7/mode=prod/prd285.htm

Unfortunately the mold got thrown away before the move. I think Blake regrets that... so do I. Couldda used one for my Nova. ;)

I was looking at that car before doing mine and I was looking all over to find those spoilers. I like the way the rear one is recessed for the trunk key and the front has a slight taper to a point in the center.

Blake definitely should have saved those molds - could have been selling them like crazy!

[1fastssnova]

Moving along to finishing the interior....

I had all the carpet back in the car and then installed the 3rd gen Camaro console. I modified the Hurst handle I had by cutting the bottom 2" off of it and then re-drilling the mounting holes.

I also made an extension out of a nice chunk of aluminum I had. This brought the handle to the correct spot to come through the center of the shift boot. It also made for a very comfortable reach from my seated position.







Seats in place






The seats I used are these:
http://www.arizenracingsports.com/products.asp?cat=11

I found them on Ebay and they seem to still be selling them (http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sport-Racing...9ccd4c&vxp=mtr)

I wanted a seat that had good bolstering for auto-crossing, and they had to be a little more narrow than the factory ones to clear the width of the 3rd gen Camaro console.

I did have to re-weld a couple of floor studs to get the mounting correct with the universal seat sliders.

[gak68]

The car is looking great, hopefully I can pick up the pace on mine soon. I apologize if I missed it, but I am from Mass and wondered what salvage yard you got the engine from.

[1fastssnova]

The car is looking great, hopefully I can pick up the pace on mine soon. I apologize if I missed it, but I am from Mass and wondered what salvage yard you got the engine from.

I found and old email with the salvage yard's info: http://www.atlanticsalvage.com/

For $900 shipped, I got a 2003 LQ4 from a Chevy Express 2500 - 120k miles (no harness, computer or accessories).

I basically used the block, crank, engine covers and hardware. I sold off the heads and other parts that I didn't use so real cost was closer to $700.

[1fastssnova]

So now to the steering stops. I knew that the 275 tires were going to rub in the front fenders if I didn't limit the steering range.

I could have sent the 670 box back to Tom Lee and have him do internal stops. I may eventually do this, but for now I made adjustable stops out of some right angle stock that I gusseted, and 7/16 hardware.

Here are the stops welded up:



I painted them satin black and mounted them to the lower SPC arm after drilling a hole through the flat part of the arm and using grade 8 hardware.



Here you can see how the stop makes contact with the flat part of the steering arm to limit steering travel.



After this I would just turn the bolt out to get the tire just clear of the rear fender area. I only had to shorten the steering range about a 1/2", so my turning radius is still really good. I don't even notice a difference.

Here in these pictures you can see how close the 275 tire comes to the inner rear fender/frame area. The steering stop prevents contact.




The rim/tire combo clears the tie rods and control arms. The combo is SC&C Stage II, Upper/Lower SPC Arms, Global West springs, Varishock single adjustable - 18 x 8.5 rim with 6.5" backspace plus 1 1/8" spacer and 275/30R18 tires. Also the fender wells are unmodified.

I just want to point out that the 275 tire works without the Tru-Turn system. I know a lot of guys on here have used it and love it. I think it's a great kit to accomplish fitting a big tire on the front of X-Bodies and F-Bodies with stock sub-frames. What I don't love is the price. I want to thank Carl Casanova for showing this can be done long before Tru-Turn was around and inspiring me to do it also (I believe he is using Speedtech arms).

I know it's not recommended to put a 275 tire on and 8.5' rim but I'm for-going the 1/4" on each side and saying what the hell. If the Z06 wheel was offered in a 9" this would have still worked as I can go another 1/2" to the outside of the wheel opening without a problem.

[1fastssnova]

So just before Christmas of last year, I was ready to fire the engine for the first time.

I pulled all the plugs, disconnected all power to the ecu and spun the motor to prime the engine with oil. I wish the LS could be primed like a conventional SBC or BBC, but the front mounted oil pump prevents that.

I wasn't seeing pressure at first and troubleshooting it led me to the oil bypass connection to the oil cooler. So with that corrected, I saw good oil pressure and was ready to run it.

I loaded the Holley HP software into my laptop and did all the necessary updates. Then hooked up to the ecu and did the required firmware upgrade also.



The file I used Holley was from the custom tune folder labeled 350-383ci Supercharged 14psi, figuring this was pretty close to my setup.

[1fastssnova]

I then went to ignition menu and changed the setup to an LS based 24x with correct firing order.



Then I setup my fan temp triggers and used the secondary fuel pump menu to work the methanol pump at 9psi.



The Holley menus are very user friendly and I found it easy to navigate through the software and make changes. Plus, their tech support is great. I had Woody on the phone several times for a problem I will get to in a few moments here. Also the Holley Forum is a great help, the moderator, Danny Carbal is very knowledgeable and very quick in replying to your posts and questions.

Pic here of the laptop synced to the ecu and gauge screen up.

[1fastssnova]

When I first tried to start the motor it would crank and sputter with a pop here and there but no ignition. This went on for several attempts. I tried different coils, a new battery... all the "simple" things that I thought it might be. I spoke to Holley Tech support several times and posted to the Holley forum. I was definitely getting fuel and spark but still not running. I even changed the tune to the most basic 480hp LS3 crate motor tune to just rule out any funky problems from the custom tune and still nothing.

I was going to give up and send the ecu back to Holley to have it checked. I downloaded several datalogs and system logs to see what was going on when trying to fire it. The system log showed an inconsistent wave to the cam position sensor signal (which I didn't notice at first). So before pulling the ecu, I changed the BRAND NEW, OUT OF THE BOX cam position sensor for the old, 120K mile one.... and it fired immediately!!! WTF!!

Here's the first run on Dec 30th (video quality was set very low)

http://youtu.be/EC71SYX4cSY

After, this run, the oil was changed and all fluids checked. Subsequent runs and first test drive, I was checking the tune and modifying the idle settings along with the off idle ramp down to get a smooth return to idle. Everything seemed to be good, consistent temps, good oil pressure, and smooth throttle tip-in.

The "shake down" run was successful in that nothing broke, exploded or fell off, so things were off to a good start.

[1fastssnova]

In January of this year (before we got slammed with snow storms that left the roads covered in salt and potholes), I took her on a longer ride with some highway to check for tire rub, road noise and vibrations.

I went over to SK Speed, in Lindenhurst, NY. I've been a customer at SK for a long time. Kevin and Jeff assembled both the Big Block and LS motors for me, and Colin has been a long time friend that's helped me countless times. While I'm at it, I have to thank Dave Kogan also - an engine builder who's friends with the SK guys. He gave me plenty of LS advise with this build.

Just so happened that when I brought the car by for them to see, the showroom had just emptied out from the last display car that was there. The guys had me bring her in for some money shots that came out great.








And, it was very tight getting in and of out the door.....

http://youtu.be/EZc_kAHe11A

[Gil]

Hi Frank,
Very nice car & shots.
As we say in France, looks like "an elephant in a porcelain shop".
This thing is bad a$$, congrats !
Gil

[1fastssnova]

So this update will pretty much bring the car as is currently. The last thing I had to was modify the tailpipes. Earlier in the thread I wrote how I made 3" stainless tailpipes out of individual bends, that would clear the control arms of the Chassisworks G-Link that I have.

Well, by not setting the car at her lowest possible ride height I didn't account for the interference with the rear axle at full compression. I angled the bends right over the welded on bracket for the upper control arms.

I did hear it making contact or experience and weird handling, but I definitely did see small dents from the bracket making contact with the exhaust pipe.

So I ordered up another stainless 180 deg bend and got to work.

[1fastssnova]

Here's the unmodified tailpipes and you can see how the over-the-axle bend crosses over the upper control arm bracket.

[URL=http://s89.photobucket.com/user/frankpul/media/New%20Tailpipes%20and%20Exhaust/P1020882.jpg.html][/URL

Chopping up the tailpipes...




Here the over-the-axle bend is rotated to a vertical position. You can see the gap that needs to filled with additional pipe.



Gapes filled by slicing the 180 into two 90 deg bends and sectioning to fit.



Here are the pair of tailpipes tack welded, side by side. You can see the newly sectioned piece that clears the upper control arms.





These are some finished shots of the tailpipes and new tips. The tips are from Pypes and are usually meant for 4th gen Camaros. I liked them for a different look and that they also match the rear tail lights. The openings measure 2" x 8" and the inlet is 3".

[1fastssnova]

So for now this raps up the build for me. I am putting miles on her so the ecu will self learn. I may have to go in and manually adjust the fuel table though because I am seeing a slightly lean condition in a 3rd gear upper rpm pull. Everything seems to be working well, a few minor things to address. I am re-torqueing header bolds, oil line fittings and suspension hardware.

I am looking forward to auto-crossing her this year at the Nassau Coliseum when they host the monthly SCCA events. I also want to get some dyno time to work on the tune and see what kind of numbers she lays down.

I usually try to hit the at least one local car scene a week. So if anyone one here is from Long Island, I hope to see you out and about. Thanks again to all who post on here (as well as LS1 Tech and Steve's Nova), I learned a lot of stuff by watching you guys and got some great ideas too.

In the next off season I want to do a tilt column, new weather stripping and new door hinge pins. Long term, I want new paint.

Until the next update.....

[Ben@SpeedTech]

Thanks for sharing everything Frank. It's been nice to get to know you and your car. My favorite part I think was seeing the transformation from a big block straight liner to a car that will be more practical for the street and likely more fun to drive overall.

Does that sensor say "Made in China" on it? ;) Glad you got it figured out as a relatively "small" fix rather than what you were anticipating having to do.

Good luck with the tuning and SCCA events, and be sure to post dyno numbers for us, you know we're all anticipating those!