Chevrolet Nova SS

Nova SS at a glance

The Nova SS belongs to the Chevy II and Nova family; this page follows only the Super Sport and how its meaning changed from year to year.

A trim option on the 1963 Nova 400

Chevrolet introduced the SS as Regular Production Option Z03 for the Nova 400 sport coupe and convertible. It cost US$161.40 and came with a six-cylinder engine, as there was no V8 in the Chevy II yet. The first factory V8 arrived for 1964, a 283 with 145 kW (195 hp). Motor Trend tested a two-barrel SS with the Powerglide automatic and recorded 0-60 mph in 11.3 seconds and the quarter mile in 18.0 seconds at 75 mph.

For 1965 a 327 with up to 224 kW (300 hp) became available, and a 283 with dual exhausts and 164 kW (220 hp) arrived during the year. The SS still sold modestly: 9,100 of the 122,800 Chevy IIs built in 1965.

The 1966 L79 Chevy II SS

The restyled 1966 car brought the strongest small-block SS of the Chevy II years. The SS cost US$159 more than a Nova 400, came only as a sport coupe and wore "Chevy II SS" badges. The 194 cu in six was standard, but buyers could order any engine except the four-cylinder, including the L79 327 rated at 261 kW (350 hp). RM Sotheby's gives 5,481 L79 cars among the 20,986 Nova SS hardtops built that year, which means about one SS in four had the high-output engine.

For 1967 the SS was again a hardtop only, now with Nova SS badges. Chevrolet sold about 10,100, 8,200 of them with V8s. The sources list the 145 kW (195 hp) 283 and, for US$93 more, a 327 with 205 kW (275 hp).

Big-block SS from 1968 to 1970

The third-generation Nova of 1968 received a frame layout similar to the Camaro's, and the SS changed its character. It became a US$312 performance package with a 350 V8 of 220 kW (295 hp), a heavy-duty suspension and related hardware. Two 396 big-blocks were listed: the L34 with 261 kW (350 hp) and the L78 with 280 kW (375 hp) at 5,600 rpm and 563 Nm (415 lb-ft), the latter for US$348 extra. Both came with the M21 or M22 four-speed or the Turbo Hydra-Matic 400. Chevrolet built 5,571 SS coupes in 1968, and Chevy Hardcore counts 667 with the L78 and 234 with the L34. Total Nova sales halved that year, and 1968 was the last year of the Chevy II name.

The automatic L78 Nova was a combination that Chevrolet did not list. In 1968 Fred Gibb Chevrolet had 50 of them built for NHRA stock-class racing through the Central Office Production Order system, with Vince Piggins arranging the order.

For 1969 the SS price stayed at US$312, the four-barrel 350 was revised to 224 kW (300 hp), and front disc brakes became standard on the SS. The 1970 model year was the last for the SS 396, whose engine actually displaced 402 cu in. Of 254,242 Novas sold in 1970, 19,558 were SS 350 or SS 396 models. About 177 COPO Novas were also ordered that year, and Yenko Chevrolet, the dealer behind the Yenko Camaro, converted 175 of them.

Road tests of the L78 Nova

Car and Driver tested an L78 Nova in August 1968 and ran the quarter mile in 14.5 seconds at 101.1 mph. The editors were lukewarm about the styling and noted that the exhaust gave the sleeper away.

Hot Rod did better in 1969. Steve Kelly's test, "13-Second Grocery Getter", recorded a best of 13.87 seconds at 105.14 mph with a 3.55:1 axle, although the magazine had ordered 4.10:1 gears. The test weight was 1,619 kg (3,570 lb), the car cost over US$3,800 on the road and would have been about US$3,100 without power steering, radio and a few other options. Average consumption was 9.94 mpg, about 23.7 l/100 km. Hot Rod criticised the loud engine fan and tight front legroom. Set against the 18.0-second Motor Trend run of 1964, the L78 had cut more than four seconds from the SS's quarter-mile time in five years.

The 350 years and the appearance package

For 1971 the 396 left the Nova and the SS got the 350 four-barrel L48. Wikipedia gives 149 kW (200 hp) for this SS-only engine, while the same L48 is quoted at 201 kW (270 hp) gross in the 1971 Camaro, so figures vary between sources. The cheaper Rally Nova appeared alongside the SS and could not have the L48. For 1972 SS equipment went on 12,309 coupes.

From 1973 the SS was a US$123 dress-up package with a blacked-out grille and Rally wheels, available with any Nova engine. It sold 35,542 times, the best year of the option. For 1975 and 1976 the US$187 SS group added a black diamond-mesh grille, Rally wheels, a four-spoke steering wheel and a heavy-duty suspension. Chevrolet dropped the SS after 1976. By the definition used in our American muscle car guide, the Nova counts as a muscle car up to 1974, and the dress-up SS cars are trim versions, not performance models.

In its big-block years the Nova SS fought the smaller-engined compacts of other makers. The Plymouth Duster 340 arrived in 1970 and the AMC Hornet SC/360 in 1971, two and three years after the first big-block Nova SS. Both used small-block V8s of 340 and 360 cu in.

Nova SS today: what to check

Because the SS package meant different things in different years, the model year decides what a badge should come with. A 1966 SS may or may not have the L79; a 1968-1970 SS should have at least the 350 V8 and the heavier suspension; a 1973-1976 SS can have any engine. With only 901 big-block Novas built in 1968 by Chevy Hardcore's count, documented L34 and L78 cars are far rarer than clones. The 1969 front disc brakes and the 1968 heavy-duty suspension are further checks on an SS claim. Other Chevrolet models of the period are listed in the Chevrolet catalogue.