This car could have been named Novastar on account of being a superstar on the show circuit. True, Maurie and Lynne Hoover’s ’67 Nova won a ‘best of’ award in 27 of the 27 shows in which it was entered, but the name Novastar stems from something altogether different. We’re just glad it wasn’t christened “Supernova”. Bent on building a smooth, classy car to set the world on its ear, Maurie Hoover put his ’67 Nova on a full TCI chassis complete with Flaming River rack & pinion steering, RideTech Shockwave air springs (fully polished, of course), and Wilwood 6-piston brakes featuring 12” rotors up front with 11” units out back. Driveline Services whipped up a polished driveshaft to send the power back to a polished Speedway quick-change stuffed with 3.43 gears. Just behind that jewel of a center section hangs a Rock Valley fuel tank. The undercarriage of Novastar is as nice as the top. Honest. All of this beauty rolls on 18x8 and 20x10 Colorado Customs Slammer wheels. The huge rollers are lovingly wrapped in world-class BFG G-Force T/A tires with their distinctive tread pattern.
The body mod list for Novastar is captivating, stunning really. Highlights include a two-inch chop, shaved drip rails, side trim from a ’61 Impala, fully welded and molded front clip and the deck lid has been lengthened to meet the rear bumper. You also may notice the custom grill in the front bumper. The doors have been smoothed, and the taillights are handmade as well. The outta-sight body work was completed at John Aiello Customs, while Darryl Hollenbeck gets credit for laying down the epic Hot Hues Champagne Fizz and Molten Orange paint. Inside the car, you’ll find a swoop-tacular, all steel cockpit-style dash flowing into the center console and rear deck. The dash and console hold a set of blue Dakota Digital Ion gauges along with the controls for the Hot Rod Air A/C system. The seats are custom buckets, covered in Mercedes leather and coordinating suede and Gemini vinyl, along with matching Mercedes-sourced carpet on the floor. Lay the seat back and you can see the beautiful headliner that takes cues from the rest of the interior. For sights and sounds, Maurie looked to ARC Audio to put together a wicked sound system, complete with Foose amps and an Alpine W800 DVD system. Don Vigarino at WRocket Products gets the honors for the killer upholstery work in the car.
Ok, that’s all well and good, but, where does “Novastar” come from? Lift that gorgeous hood and feast your eyes on the 4.6L (280 cubes for you knuckle-draggers) Cadillac Northstar. While small and unusual, know that it made 525 naturally aspirated horsepower. The mill is hooked to a healthy 4L60E controlled by an HGM CompuShift computer and built by Dr. Evil Performance. BeCool supplied a polished 2-pass radiator with dual fans. Verocious Motorsports fabbed what could be the most beautiful stainless exhaust system in the world and hung it under the car. The system terminates in a huge tip in the rear bumper.
After Novastar’s debut at SEMA in 2007, the car went on to dominate every show it attended; ISCA Washington Cup, Grand Touring Award at the Seattle Roadster Show, the Boyd Award; the list is long and impressive. The ISCA also invited Hoover to join the show-car circuit for 2010; this is where our story takes a sharp turn. Safely tucked away in its trailer at a secure parking facility at Hot August Nights 2009, Novastar disappeared. There have been a few leads and plenty of speculation, but no one has seen the stunning ’67 Nova since that night. Like a rock-star whose candle burned brightly and was snuffed out all too early with demise shrouded in mystery, a super-star rise to the top of the show-car world sharply truncated by lazy car thieves will forever put Novastar among the most legendary hot rod stories of all time. Keep your eyes peeled; this car may still be around. Maurie and Lynne Hoover would like to take this opportunity to warn fellow rodders that our vehicles are not as safe as we’d like to think; keep your car locked up securely and consider installing a GPS tracking device to help locate the car in the event of a theft.
Text from Dakota Digital