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Smoky Mountain Traders in Maryville, TN must have more gorgeous women, and cars, come through its doors than any other vintage car dealership on the planet. My goodness! At last census, the population of Maryville, south of Knoxville, is just short of 30,000 people. I wonder how many of them look as lovely as this lady.
Anyway, the blue Nova that’s for sale behind her isn’t anything to scoff at either, and looks just as sweet as the model does in this photo, don’t you think? Dipped in Grotto blue paint, this ‘68 is an excellent example of an early third generation Nova.
Hagerty.com lists the average value of a 1968 Chevrolet Nova at $15,000. You’re not going to get a car like the one pictured here for that price, but it’s fun to dream, right? The '68 Nova in the first photo scored a 97 out of 100 at a Super Chevy Car Show. That’s not easy to do! Hey, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find yourself a Nova that suits your wants. Maybe a car that would score a 60 out of a 100 at a car show. Let’s have a look at what’s in store for buyers shopping for a third generation Nova, whether it’s like Smoky Mountain Traders’ or another example you’ll find.
• If you’re shopping for a ‘68 SS, you’re going to want to make sure it has more than just the fender badges that prove it. One clue is to look at the suspension. The 1968 SS has “finned” front drum brakes. Standard Nova’s had non-finned drums.
• If you’re looking at the ‘69-’71 model year, it’s good to know that the SS came with power front disc brakes.
• Look to see that the last 6 digits of the VIN code are stamped on the block of the engine. Don’t stop there though. There should also be an application code stamped on the block. If it matches up to an SS motor, then you have a true SS car.
• 1972 is the first model year that General Motors coded the original engine number with the VIN# on a Chevrolet Nova.
Many sources online believe that the third generation Chevy Nova is still a great muscle car that remains affordable today. The muscle car generation is gaining steam and becoming more popular with collectors. Information like that could lead a person to think that there’s no better time than now to jump into the muscle car marketplace.
