Small Block & Big Block Chevy Specific - 1976 nova

Ive been piecing this car together for two years now on a min wage budget. Finally she starts to come together... post your thoughts of the car please and ask any questions... thanks

http://i856.photobucket.com/albums/ab125/geedub6893/nova012.jpg
http://i856.photobucket.com/albums/ab125/geedub6893/nova014.jpg
http://i856.photobucket.com/albums/ab125/geedub6893/nova019.jpg
http://i856.photobucket.com/albums/ab125/geedub6893/nova005.jpg
http://i856.photobucket.com/albums/ab125/geedub6893/nova001.jpg
http://i856.photobucket.com/albums/ab125/geedub6893/nova002.jpg

Looks like a fun toy man.

i dont know what my hp is but the 4.56 gears and 3,000 stall make it come alive

Tell us some more about the engine. Looks good!

looks good, i would personally get rid of the HEI though

350 bored 30 over 4 bolt main

steel gm crank

x rods

speed pro forged dome tops

roller rockers

Xtreme Energy XS282S Mechanical Flat Tappet Camshaft
Lift: .520''/.540''
Duration: 282/290
RPM Range: 2400-6800

some kind of cheap heads i think 194s maybe 305 heads but they are ported

victor jr intake

holley classic 750 double pumper

blackjack headers

3 inch into super 44s and dumped before the 12 bolt rearend

jegs stall

built to the max 350 turbo out of a prostreet car i traded for... manual valve body

12 bolt with 4.56 posi

b&m zgate shifter

serpentine belt pulleys

solid motor mounts

holley fuel pump

cant think of anything else

lol there is soooo much room in that engine bay, like room for a BIG BLOCK!

I dont have the money for a bigblock... plus i love rpms

I got a new set of heads today... they are old style dart iron eagle 202s
they should boost my power a little

my heads i got on the motor now i swear are either 305 heads or 882s
cause they dont make any real power

slvr98camaro - do you think i should run msd or something?... the reason im posting on here is to get advise and things to improve my hp and tq

Does msd make that much difference? what does it do?

Are you talking about replacing the entire distributor with an MSD unit or just adding an MSD box to the HEI?

The MSD distributors are certainly a nicer piece than he stock HEI, but if it's not in the budget the HEI is fine with a good module and a re-curve. As far as the MSD box goes, it'll certainly help the engine run and idle a bit better, but I don't know how much you'd gain by adding one, if anything.

i have a distributer that i dont know what it is..... its out of a motor i bought... its got the plug that goes into the 6al box... its got a red cap like a msd so it might be a msd piece.... im going to keep my hei for right now... what curve kit do i need to buy? part number? anything else to help it out?

What about the vacum advance?

you dont know how much i appreciate this

i need some help getting my car from overheating... it wants to run 230 and thats TOO hot... but it has a 195 stat and a stock radiator... i ordered a highflow 160 stat and some water wetter... i hope that fixes it... what do you think?

i have a distributer that i dont know what it is..... its out of a motor i bought... its got the plug that goes into the 6al box... its got a red cap like a msd so it might be a msd piece.... im going to keep my hei for right now... what curve kit do i need to buy? part number? anything else to help it out?

What about the vacum advance?

you dont know how much i appreciate this

i need some help getting my car from overheating... it wants to run 230 and thats TOO hot... but it has a 195 stat and a stock radiator... i ordered a highflow 160 stat and some water wetter... i hope that fixes it... what do you think?

If the distributor you have is an MSD, it sounds like it only has a magnetic pick-up in it and will require a box to work, so your HEI will have to stay for now.

There are several different vaccum advance units that GM has used over the years, each with it's own characteristics. Without knowing what you've got and how much vaccum your engine is making, it's hard to say if you should use it or not. You can remove the whole thing and just use the mechanical advance mechanism in the distributor if you don't want to play with the vaccum unit. However, if you are driving this thing on the street, the vaccum advance will help out the idle a bit and may make it more pleasant to drive. If you do want to run it, but don't want to keep changing units to find which one works the best, you can buy an adjustable unit and play with it until you get it right. As far as the re-curve, Mr. Gasket 929G should cover that and I would recommend the MSD HEI module #83645. The MSD module is nice because it incorporates a rev limiter which I would always recommend.

On to the cooling problem. A cooler thermostat may help a little, but I don't think it's your cure. There are a few things to look at before we start making changes. I see you've got an electric fan. Is it wired properly to pull air and are the blades oriented correctly? Is it thermostaically controlled or manually controlled? You're running a serpentine set-up with what looks like a short water pump. It seems like the pump, based on what I can see of the belt routing, is turning the same direction as the engine. I believe only the Corvette used the short pump and if the pump was meant for a serpentine system, it may be a reverse rotation pump. After making sure everything is turning in the right direction you can try a new radiator cap with a higher pressure rating that will raise the boiling point of the coolant some more, but will expose any weak points in your cooling system. In all honesty, in the end, I think a higher capacity radiator is in order. I don't think the stock 2 core is going to keep up no matter what you do.

Your problem sounds like it could be a lean stumble or valve spring float. Did you buy new springs with the cam and were they set up correctly?

As for the timing...since you have an adjustable light, it is pretty easy. Find the TDC mark on your damper. That is the line you will be comparing to your timing pointer. Start your car and let it warm up a little (to reach normal idle...900RPM or so). If you have vacuum advance, UNHOOK IT! Point the timing light at the pointer and turn the nob until your TDC line and the pointer line up (still at idle). See where the nob on the gun is pointing....this is your base timing. It should be about 12* advanced. If it is way off from there, adjust the distributer. Next (with the vacuum advance still unplugged), repeat the above, but have someone take the engine up tp 3000RPM and hold it. Adjust your nob on the timing light until the TDC mark and pointer line up. This is your mechanical advance reading. You should be around 36*. If it is way off, you have some work inside the distributer to do.

Do these measurements and let us know what you find. I can give you some advice on where to go from here once I know where you are currently at!

I ordered a 4 core radiator today so that should fix the overheating problem...Im wondering if my water pump is turning the right way... can anyone tell me? its a long waterpump for a 76 nova 350

The next day im off i will try the timing...

And as soon as i get my next check ill pick up the 6al box... should i get the 6al or another one? is there a new one?

Thanks everyone for the help...

I ordered a 4 core radiator today so that should fix the overheating problem...Im wondering if my water pump is turning the right way... can anyone tell me? its a long waterpump for a 76 nova 350

The next day im off i will try the timing...

And as soon as i get my next check ill pick up the 6al box... should i get the 6al or another one? is there a new one?

Thanks everyone for the help...

That 4 core will keep it cool for sure. I stand corrected on the short pump observation, it's hard to tell in the pic, that's my excuse anyway! A long pump from a '76 Nova will be standard rotation, so you're ok there.

As far as the MSD box goes, I would use one of their new digital boxes or if you want to lock out the mechanical advance in the distributor, use the
6AL-2 (I think) that allows you to program your ignition curve via laptop and do away with all of the springs, weights, and vaccum canisters.

im not sure about the laptop tuning so i think the 6al will do for right now...

Todays my day off and my little girls bday so after i spend time with her im installing my radiator... first i have to chop up my core support where it was a six cylinder car...

i installed the 4 core radiator and the 160 degree stat... the car still got 230 degrees but it took alot longer this time... i let it idle for 10 mins and it got 175 then i ran it at 2500 rpms for 5 mins and idle for 5 mins a couple of times and it got real hot then... idk what to do now...

Here's a few things to check first.
Did you verify that the fan is wired and oriented correctly? Does it move enough air to cool the engine? With the cap off can you see coolant flowing through the cores?

Air could be trapped in the system. It will work out over time (and temps will come down), but there are two generally accepted ways to speed the process. The first one is to jack up the front of the car to raise the filler neck on the radiator higher up in the system. This will accelerate the movement of air pockets through the system, but it may still take a few days to get all of the air out. The second is to fill the coolng system and run the car with the cap off to prevent pressure from building up. Let it run until it reaches operating temperature. As air in the system is released the coolant level will go down. Keep adding coolant until the level remains constant or bubbles stop coming out of the system. Once this is done you should be ok.

Oh, and hook up that PCV valve to manifold vaccum or into the bottom of the air cleaner if it has that provision. It has nothing to do with cooling, but it should be hooked up to prevent pressure build up in the crankcase. It's not really doing anything the way it is. If you're against hooking it up, run a second breather.

well.... i did this exact same swap. my 77 nova has been 383 stroker, 355 nitrous, 355 turbo, 355 w/ a D3r, and now 481 BBC(supposed to run nitrous but out of funds). and what i did was a becool aluminum radiator from summit, and the biggest thing that helped with mine was the dual electric fans on a switch. you can literally watch the temp drop as soon as u turn them on. can watch it from from op temp down to 100 degrees and it will still keep trying to go cooler. gotta turn it on and off. nice to see other people doing the same project. :) mine started as a v6 3 on the tree. this is what it looks like now:

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g227/juggalo4586/hood.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g227/juggalo4586/motordone.jpg

if ya got any questions feel free. ive been through it all with this car.

mine was a three on the tree too... i put the four core radiator in it and it still over heats... i think i need a shroud... i cant really aford a dual fan setup right now.... tell me more about your car... rearend? trans? gear? you got any 4th gen parts? interior or exterior? thanks

looks like my old car which i dont have anymore but i still see the car around town.

can u get ahold of any parts?

car is still the stock rear, its the good 10 bolt ;) 393 gears posi, i put a hurst pistol grip shifter on the floor, trans is a built th400, full aeromotive fuel system, all braided lines.... too much work to list lol. i think the only thing still stock in the car is the rear, and the body(except the hood) lol.
i do have some parts... but not much. i got most of the chrome trim extra, extra rear windows, uhm i had extra doors, fenders, and a hood... but when i moved to NC i junked them. im tryin to think of what else i got, i would have to look but not too much. mainly just extra trim and glass, im actually trying to sell the car lol

NHRA and IHRA rules won't let you run that much rubber fuel line.


I would own it and drive it. Looks great, have fun with it.

rubber? all my lines are braided stainless lol