I think I have found a good deal on a 1975 Chevy Nova for $5,000 USD. The 350 ci engine, with a manual transmission has been rebuilt; and the cat converter removed making about 200hp.The car is in perfect condition, repainted, interior and all that stuff.

What I want to know is if it is going to cost me an arm and a leg to reconfigure this restriction era model 350 to make it fast? It does not have to meet exhaust regulations as it will be a performance vehicle.

My goal is to boost the engines hp to at least 350 without spending more than the initial price of the car. Is this realistic? and if it is not then what is a reasonable figure for modifying the 1975 350 into a high performance machine?

hey for about 1500 to to 1800 you could easily make 400+. all you need isto buy some bigger heads, edelbrock air gap intake, and a bigger cam, (with a decent carb) yes it could be fast for cheap

Thats not too expensive, well within my budget. I may consider putting in higher ratio pistons like 9.1:1 to go along with the other mods. Thanks for the info

Yes, 350-400 HP should be relatively easy to acheive for a decent amount of cash. Hell, for around $4000 I think you should be able to buy a crate engine from the dealer that makes 400HP and comes with a warranty to boot. Or if you don't have all that cash up front you could gradually buy some good performance parts over time and build up your own. Some good cylinder heads, carb, intake, the right cam, and a good exhaust system should put you easily around the 400HP mark. Just remember to carefully consider the parts you are buying and the intended use of your engine.:)

Well I dont think I can afford to put in a new crate engine lol, or I might be looking at another car. But I am getting the owner to put some day insurance on the Nova so I can take it to my mechanic. If he likes what he sees I'm buying it for sure and I will mod out the engine for every pony thats burning a hole in my wallet.

P.S. thats a sick Nova, I like how there is nothing between the front and back window but a little chrome. The 75 Nova has more space between the windows with an ugly frilly peice of black plastic. My only complaint about the car.

Hell Yeah you can make it fast.

1) Rearend Gearing
2) Trim as much weight out of the car as humanly possible
3) Intake, Carb
4) Exhaust, Headers, Muffler
5) Heads, Cheap set of Vortecs
6) Good Set of STICKY Tires, cause you gonna need em for all that HP!!!

Peace and Good Luck :grinyes: