Novas!!!! WHY????? Why do we like them so much?

[monty_trials]

People often ask me why I love novas so much?
To me, I had one as a first car, and I loved it!!! In my youth....ie i am 31 now but when i was 17/21 i had 3 novas and loved them all!! So at my age of 31 why do i still look at a nova and think WOW????? Ive had cars like we all have, that are more modern etc, but why do i look at a nova and still think WOW!!!????? I love looking at a standard nova!! mainly the sr and gsi, but love the mk1 also!! To me all novas have that ace look!!! But I want to ask you all........

Why do we love novas so much????
Love to hear your comments :)

[jimbob-mcgrew]

they tick alot of boxes for me. altho, if i had more money (which could well be never) id buy something else.

[bazzap8389]

Back when I was around 13-14 some of my older friends had novas and I just loved going for a cruise in them, I ended up getting a gsi as my first car (which I still have) even though i have other cars etc I just can't seem to part with the nova for some reason lol

[monty_trials]

Back when I was around 13-14 some of my older friends had novas and I just loved them, I ended up getting a gsi as my first car (which I still have) even though i have other cars etc I just can't seem to part with the nova for some reason lol

WOW a GSI as a first car!!! I had a red one liter trip!! reg H112MEY I loved every min of that car!!! would love to know where it is now???

Ace you still have it :)

[bazzap8389]

Yeah, I paid a bomb for insurance though lol no regrets though!

[Jack]

Errrr.... love them? Love to hate them maybe lol

[b943weg]

Same story here, I had a few Novas when I was 17 - 20ish. Now I'm 'older than 31' and have recently bought a GSI and am in the process of turning it back to standard. It is my second car though.
I think its the fact that I couldn't afford a GSI when I was 18, and I can now, so I bought one. Also, they're a good rolling resto project, as they're easy to work on, and not expensive for parts.
Oh yeah, and they're fun, 'cos they weigh as much as a pea and go round roundabouts quicker than most modern cars...

[bazil]

I claim I hate them, I now have 5 of the bastid things!!

They are slowly draining the life out of me in the winter but in the summer it's fun to drive a car that nobody else has for miles around,

Sure there are a few novas about ( and what seems like eleventy zillion black GSI's on speedlines on here ) but there isn't anothe one like mine near me,

I grew up watching rallying, Dave Metcalfe on the ulster in 91 or 92 was the moment I said I wanted a gsi nova, I got a B reg 1.3 SR as my first car at 16, then a GTE for my 18th birthday and finally got my GSI on my 21st, still have the gte and gsi to this day, to me they are fun to drive for that 15 minutes before it breakdown lol

[GRUNT 16V]

Errrr.... love them? Love to hate them maybe lol

im with jack on this one !lol

[turbojolt]

one big down side is buying a base car isnt that cheap anymore

[chrisd1986]

they are just the main cars of the cruise scene back in the day, i just love the simplicity of them like when somthing breaks it dosnt take much to fix and thats all you need and if you have a saloon like me there is enough room in the boot for the prams and shopping. mine is a daily and i dont want anything else but the mrs wants a more modern and bigger car. i broke down the other day and found the fault instantly and a passer by who has novas had what i needed at home and got me on my way if that was a more modern car you would need a diagnostic machine and would cost you a fortune because it will tell you to change 5 sensors and it will prob be a £2 part

[vauxluva]

they are just the main cars of the cruise scene back in the day, i just love the simplicity of them like when somthing breaks it dosnt take much to fix and thats all you need and if you have a saloon like me there is enough room in the boot for the prams and shopping. mine is a daily and i dont want anything else but the mrs wants a more modern and bigger car. i broke down the other day and found the fault instantly and a passer by who has novas had what i needed at home and got me on my way if that was a more modern car you would need a diagnostic machine and would cost you a fortune because it will tell you to change 5 sensors and it will prob be a £2 part Bang on the money , only other car i enjoyed as much was my mates old mini

[chrisd1986]

ive got a mk4 golf 1.8t but it needs a vic test after it was bumped but im not interested putting it bk on the rd tbh i would wather stick to my nova. i was gona buy that 4 door loon let that was on the bay and say heres your family car lol

[Andy]

liter

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Littering_in_Stockholm.jpg/220px-Littering_in_Stockholm.jpg (http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=litter+&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=L-KCKOhjHNpYcM&tbnid=z0xRGMTxkqLJBM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FLitter&ei=3aQbUdedIeOK0AWf94CoBg&bvm=bv.42261806,d.d2k&psig=AFQjCNGlNU_AX4r04gDnKJH33zgdXc5z8w&ust=1360852566449332).....

[Novasport]

That is 'litter' Andy lol liter is American spelling of litre I think ;)

[Edd]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Littering_in_Stockholm.jpg/220px-Littering_in_Stockholm.jpg (http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=litter+&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=L-KCKOhjHNpYcM&tbnid=z0xRGMTxkqLJBM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FLitter&ei=3aQbUdedIeOK0AWf94CoBg&bvm=bv.42261806,d.d2k&psig=AFQjCNGlNU_AX4r04gDnKJH33zgdXc5z8w&ust=1360852566449332).....

You must be bored lol

[Andy]

no, this thread is litter chaps

[waggygsi]

remember when i was about 13 14 the boy across from my grans had a black nova! that was the first nova i was ever in an love it. then back in 2010 when i was 17 i got a white gsi for free as a project but ended up giving it away as i bought my mk2 escort!! Got a A reg nova an it great fun and the only mk1 nova around this way!!

[staggy_gsi]

Think i was about 12 when i decided i loved them. There was a purple B reg one, in gte guise, which i just thought was absolutely amazing. And maybe 2 years later a pink K reg sr turned up in town complete with fibreglass galore lol i loved that one too, despite the pink....

[meritlover]

i love the fact a body part of mine fits really snugly in the valve seat. The best reason for porting is that it doesnt cut me any more.

[Andy]

i love the fact a body part of mine fits really snugly in the valve seat. The best reason for porting is that it doesnt cut me any more.
Surprised you can penetrate solid heads with your clanger,whatever you say though.............

[Alex J]

novas are ****, and im an idiot, think that sums it up

[marc69]

there are cool, get as much looks as real minis and always get told "we owned one".

I run a standard 1.0 as my everyday car, it keeps up with most modern stuff with no problems, is quieter and more comfortable than a lot of it's modern contemparies. (I mean comfort as in comfort of seat/ride etc, not how many electronic gizmos it has)

Don't need to mention how a 1.3/1.4 car can be so much faster than others in that class

The bottom line though is that surprisingly for a car from Opel/Vauxhall, it has character

[Rage]

a relatives boyfriend had one when i was younger had so much fun in it even got to drive it in a field lol and had a mental 2 litre nova in my town then my van came up and i had to have it. i had almost agreed to buy it without really knowing much about it or the insurance costs or how i would run my cav as the family car i just wanted my van. and it's great fun and at 71000 miles its the lowest mileage car ive had.

[chrisd1986]

haha a nova isnt a nova unless its been round a couple of feilds lol

[gte-87]

It deff the shape and style for I rember when I was 14 I saw a white sr chasing a Renault 5 turbo and always loved them ever since that day and now had 3 lol

[millworm]

love them used to see them all the time when I was young then i forgot about them as their numbers went down until my neighbour picked up a 4 door loon witch triggered my obsession to have one again and one came up for sale locally so I bought one :)

[meritlover]

Surprised you can penetrate solid heads with your clanger,whatever you say though.............

clanger!! O_o i was talking about my thumb....but whatever floats your boat.

[mowgli]

we are afflicted with them, its an addiction, we have it, we need to admit it...

i am mowgli & i own a vauxhall nova......

[turbojolt]

my name is leigh and i own 99.5% of a nova in my garage, shed and random cupboards indoors

[Novasport]

I hate to say it but the Swing impresses me the most. It is so comfortable and drives fantastic for its age. Starts on the forst turn of the key, runs so smooth and the engine pulls really well. It does not feel like a near 30 year old car, more like a 3 year old car.
The Sport is just a great laugh to drive, sounds great and gets plenty of looks.
I like the fact that everybody hates them but nobody gives a good reason why lol. They had one when they were younger and it was a great car, but yet they still think they are a crap car. Mmmmm...

[b943weg]

My name is Martin...and I've bought a Nova...even though I really should know better...lol

[chrisd1986]

my mrs hates it because its boxy and has no round corners on it. my argument was so is a house but you still live in one. i dont care about pas, e/w, e/m, s/r, and all these other flash refinements i dont even have a lighter socket but its still a practical car. i think most people ha e them because they are the original boyracer car and 90% of them had a exhaust the size of a bin lid aswell asbodykit and wild paint job 15 years ago which labled it a chav car and near enough all of them cars were crashed

[millworm]

my mrs hates it because its boxy and has no round corners on it. my argument was so is a house but you still live in one. i dont care about pas, e/w, e/m, s/r, and all these other flash refinements i dont even have a lighter socket but its still a practical car. i think most people ha e them because they are the original boyracer car and 90% of them had a exhaust the size of a bin lid aswell asbodykit and wild paint job 15 years ago which labled it a chav car and near enough all of them cars were crashed

Agree 100% although i'm blessed with a lighter socket lol

[chrisd1986]

Agree 100% although i'm blessed with a lighter socket lol



it was a killer driving it home as my phone was about to die and it never had a radio in it, but it was still the best 4 hours of my life

[millworm]

I was lucky when I got mine, walked 5 mins down the road and drove it back

[peester]

dont know if its been said, but for me its because; they dont make cars like this anymore, its one of the most 'blokey' cars in the world (the only women that drive them seem to be the girlfriend of a nova owner) theyre cheap, easy to work on, plentiful supplies and they have this ironic popularity.

[raf24]

my mrs hates it because its boxy and has no round corners on it. my argument was so is a house but you still live in one. i dont care about pas, e/w, e/m, s/r, and all these other flash refinements i dont even have a lighter socket but its still a practical car. i think most people ha e them because they are the original boyracer car and 90% of them had a exhaust the size of a bin lid aswell asbodykit and wild paint job 15 years ago which labled it a chav car and near enough all of them cars were crashed

Mine has a sunroof,electric windows & central locking.
Wooh look at me lollol

[waggygsi]

i love the amount of looks you get in a nova from people of a young age like me right people in there 40s and 50s!

[chris862]

Novas are just a brilliant little cars, ours has been in the family for 22years now, shes 28yrs old and where as the years have been harsh on it, it still looks cool, goes like a little rocket, is economical, surprisingly refined and quiet, and currently clocking over 180,000 miles, its still running like a bawss! what else can you say! :thumb:

[BRoadGhost]

Rally / Works pedigree - All the competition parts associated with that
Relative ease of transplant to 'the' race engine of choice / potential of that engine alone
Relative ease of fitting large diameter wheels / tyres
Lightweight body
Short wheelbase
Not completely fugly when done right
3 door without a sunroof

[chrisd1986]

Mine has a sunroof,electric windows & central locking.
Wooh look at me lollol



fcuk you lol

[DAVIDKEDENS]

I honestly don't know.. I'm 17 and got a Flair, my dad had a GTE when they were brand new.. I don't have any other reasons for how I love them so much :(

[EwanG]

I love the shape! The brakes suck, you need good muscles in your legs for all pedals, and the steering is heavy but thats why I have one for a wee change when I fancy! I first spotted an sr when I was about 7 years old and thought thats :cool:. I had a sr for my first car and always wanted another. Forget stupid comments from idiots. If you want one then own one!

[chrisd1986]

I love the shape! The brakes suck, you need good muscles in your legs for all pedals, and the steering is heavy but thats why I have one for a wee change when I fancy! I first spotted an sr when I was about 7 years old and thought thats :cool:. I had a sr for my first car and always wanted another. Forget stupid comments from idiots. If you want one then own one!

i upgraded to 256m brakes prb solved and if the steering is heavy your not going fast enough

[Leeboo]

Put simply, they are a very rare sight on the roads now (over here in NI at least). Even a lot of people who aren't remotely interested in cars will stare at a Nova in pristine condition.

I love the feel of a Nova to drive. And they are a very pleasant car to work on IMO.

[monty_trials]

love all your comments!!! :)

[saloon-mogz]

i had a white gte for my first car 7 years ago i got it for 200 pounds