This 1962 Chevy II Nova Is A Lesson In Build-And-Drive-It Projects

 

Kyler Lead Art copy

It goes without saying, true car guys spend their time in high school wanting a fast car. Dale Brownfield of Chimacum, Washington was like any teenager that lived through the ’60s or ’70s and wanted to drive a car with a V8 engine and a four-speed transmission. Also like many of us, he wasn’t able to get that car when he was younger.

But, after raising a family and a settling into a career, Dale finally had the opportunity to get the car he always wanted. So, what did he do? He bought a 1962 Chevy II Nova with a 327 cubic-inch engine and Saginaw four-speed manual transmission. Unfortunately, on the 15-minute drive home, he knew it was going to need some work.

The Beginning

“My wife and I found ourselves going to a lot of car shows — on a motorcycle,” Dale explained. After enjoying car shows as spectators for a while, the couple decided it was time to participate. That’s when the Nova was acquired.

I am a die-hard Chevy guy and I have always wanted the V8, four-speed Chevy I never got in high school. – Dale Brownfield

“I am a die-hard Chevy guy,” Dale said. “I have always wanted the V8, four-speed Chevy I never got in high school.” A do-it-yourself kind of guy, Dale planned on buying a car that was a driver, not a full-on project. He wanted a car that he could work on while still enjoying the occasional road trip. He planned to rebuild a little at a time, as could be afforded, but things don’t always work out as planned. Dale said, “I tend to see what it will be, and not the work and money it will take to get there.”

“I was thinking I wanted something along the lines of an Impala or a Chevelle, but my wife liked the little Novas,” Dale told us. “Well, it’s still a classic Chevy, and I needed her on board, so the search was on.” They found this Nova locally, and as it turned out, they actually knew the owners. When the sellers bought the car, it was in rough shape. The intention all along was to sell it and make a little money, so they gave a first try at a paint job, and got it into running condition.

The Brownfield Nova at the 2016 Sequim, Washington Irrigation Festival.

This is where we get back to the 15-minute drive home, and almost not making it. During that short trip, the battery was not charging and the engine was getting really hot. The first hurdle for Dale to conquer was to get everything working properly. That started by fixing the rust-infected fuse box and troubleshooting the electrical system.

Starting A Restore-As-You-Drive Project

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While the dash was apart, Dale repainted it, rebuilt the heater box, and installed new firewall insulation. The next step was fixing the clutch linkage. According to Dale, “The geometry was off, and it didn’t have enough travel.” He started looking under every stick-shift Nova he could find until he was able to discover the route of the problem, and a solution. “I thought the clutch fork on all Chevrolet bell housing were at 9 o’clock, but the little Novas are at 8 o’clock. Problem solved.”

The next step was replacing the bumpers. Dale bought some re-chromed originals, and before he put them on, he repainted the rear pan silver to add a little contrast. When that was done, it was time to find the right tires. “I really wanted nice tires and wheels,” Dale said. “But what would fit?” While at a Hot August Nights car show, he saw what he wanted. Dale immediately got in touch with Cragar, and got his hands on a set of his own. “It pays to talk to people and ask questions,” Dale detailed. “You can gain valuable information even if you don’t know you need it.”

The stunning Cragar wheels Dale picked for his Nova.

Dale listed a few more things he needed to fix, “The steering and suspension was worn out, so when I stepped on the brakes it pulled every which way. Also, the floors were rusty, the engine ran poorly, and the transmission was shot.” The only thing that was decent was the paint job. “I was pretty impressed with it being their first paint job,” Dale said. That in itself became part of the challenge in restoring this car, doing all the work that needed to be done, while keeping the current paint intact.

The Complete Restoration
After the suspension was figured out, he ordered a disc-brake upgrade from Performance Online, a 21-circuit wiring kit from EZ Wiring, and a new set of Stewart Warner gauges. Once those parts were on the way, he also ordered new floor pans, door hinges, and new carpet from Classic Industries. “If I had it off the car, new or rebuilt pieces went back on,” Dale said. The original plan of a restore-as-you-drive project went out the window, as eventually, Dale started going through the process of a complete mechanical rebuild. He installed a Church Boys tubular front suspension setup with rack-and-pinion steering, sway bars, and a tilt steering column. “Everything I needed was in the kit,” Dale explained. “I could stay in the shop until it was done.”

The original plan of a restore-as-you-drive project went out the window, as eventually, Dale started going through the process of a complete mechanical rebuild. He installed a Church Boys tubular front suspension setup with rack-and-pinion steering, sway bars, and a tilt steering column. “Everything I needed was in the kit,” Dale explained. “I could stay in the shop until it was done.”

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While all of the goodies were on the way for the body, frame, and electrical updates, it was time to give the drivetrain a little attention. “I bought a top-end kit from Doug Herbert for the 327ci small-block, and found a ‘gently used’ Richmond SuperT10 transmission with the Lakewood bell housing for the Nova,” he said.

Once all of the parts arrived, Dale was ready to tear into the project. He had his car completely apart, and removed everything except the headliner and windshield. “My first challenge was the floor,” Dale explained. “The pans didn’t fit right, and to add to the already difficult and laborious task. Keep in mind I was trying to save the paint on the outside.”

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Dale had to make his own tools to pull, stretch, and clamp what he was working on around the paint. “The hardest thing was pushing the pans down from the inside,” he told us. “I used a heavy ratchet strap around the floor, and a bottle jack under the strap to push it down.” After some persistence and a lot of creativity, he got the new pans in without hurting the old paint. “I welded them in, undercoated the floors, and installed Eastwood sound deadener.”

Once the floors were in, it was time for reassembly. Some parts of this project were a team effort. “My good friend, Jeff Long, helped me several times,” Dale explained. Jeff was a big help in the process of installing and removing the engine, and dialing in the bell housing. “My dad helped reassemble the engine, and my wife was there to hold things if I needed.” Dale completed the rest of the project on his own, in a little under seven months.

“While the seats were out I took them to my friend and neighbor, Gus,” Dale said. “He is retired, but had an upholstery business for years.” Dale didn’t want to trust them to anyone else, and Gus was willing to rebuild them. “I gave him free reign with the design. He reupholstered the seats in black vinyl, which has been rolled and pleated with Bow Tie emblems. It’s one of my favorite features. It looks awesome and compliments the rest of the interior.”

“I really liked the idea of building a classic car without a lot of visual modernization,” Dale said. “I have a nice driver that is reliable, and comfortable enough to drive anywhere without worry.” Dale did say he was uncertain about one thing, “I didn’t trust the engine.” After having issues with the 327 cubic-inch engine that came with the Nova, Dale made the decision to go with something new.

The Current Powerhouse

Dale went to CSD Engines of California and bought a professionally-built engine — a 350 cubic-inch block with four-bolt mains that has been bored and stroked to 383 cubic-inches. Dale gave us a little insight as to just how much power the new setup is capable of pushing: “They claimed 355 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque at the crankshaft,” he said.

By the end of the build, this restore-as-you-drive it project had almost turned into a full-blown restoration. The overall drivetrain improvements include the new 383 cubic-inch small-block engine with a Holley Street Avenger 670 cfm carburetor, Richmond SuperT10 transmission, custom 2 1/2-inch exhaust, Bilstein rear shocks, Church Boys Racing front suspension, and a 3.55 Yukon positraction rearend.

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The car, however, like any project, is far from done. Dale says he plans on adding a hydraulic clutch, power steering, air conditioning, new side and back glass, and a cowl induction hood. Someday he may even strip the body, replace the quarter panels, and repaint it the same Nissan Dark Cherry metallic.

“I have learned along the way that there is no substitute for experience,” Dale described. “For every mistake made, knowledge is gained. The beauty of metal is that it can almost always be fixed.”

At this point in the project, Dale is proud of what he has, and drives his Nova as often as possible. He gets a real feeling of satisfaction from doing so much of the work himself, rather than outsourcing anything he didn’t know, he just learned as he built to make it happen.

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About the author

Kyler Lacey

A 2015 Graduate from Whitworth University, Kyler has always loved cars. He grew up with his dad's '67 Camaro in the garage and started turning wrenches at a young age. At seventeen, he bought his first classic, a '57 Chevy Bel Air four-door, and has since added a '66 Plymouth Valiant and '97 Cadillac Deville to his collection. When he isn't writing for Power Automedia, he's out shooting pictures at car shows, hiking in the forests of the beautiful Pacific Northwest, or working on something in the garage.
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