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An overlooked gem that was on the show floor at SEMA 2017 was a 1968 Chevy Nova with all kinds of tricks up its sleeve. LS V8 engine swaps in old muscle cars like these are common, but this Nova comes with an extra twist. It’s all-wheel drive.
Built by Bishop Built Rides in Elverson, Pennsylvania, this Nova was built to be the shop owner’s personal autocross car. All-wheel drive was added as a means of keeping all of the power from the supercharged LS engine on the track by turning all four wheels. The all-wheel-drive system is from a 2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer with upgraded Eaton differentials to handle the extra power.
The engine is a 6.0-liter LS2 V8 which originally saw duty in early versions of the C6 Corvette and the 2005-2006 Pontiac GTO. In stock form, the LS2 makes 400 horsepower, but the one in this Nova has been upgraded with an Edelbrock E-Force supercharger to make an output of about 700 horsepower. The engine sits pretty high to make room for the all-wheel-drive setup, but a hood with a huge cowl has been put in place to give it the space it needs.
“The car will be raced and driven on a regular basis,” says owner Parke Bishop in the video below. “Everything was a challenge. There’s never anything easy with any of these builds.”
All-wheel drive is growing in popularity in the custom car scene, but it still isn’t very common. We love to see custom shops push the envelope with builds like this Nova and we hope to see more like it in the future.
