Genned up Nova people I need your assistance please

[mavvmad]

I have just bought a Nova GTE on an F reg I picked it up cheap and it needs a little (well a fair bit of) work.

Bearing in mind im used to the might of the Astra GTE 16V I was pleasantly surprised at how nippy the 1.6 8v Nova really is.

Sadly thats about all I know about these cars at the moment so im on a new learning curve.

So any advice or info on these cars will be greatly appreciated especially performnce figures for a standard 90k engined car.

The car has already been lowered 30 mil and handles a treat, it came with a mk2 dash but the bit under the stereo aint there so I need to get that. Also the Digidash conversion has been done but the digidash didnt work but I have sorted that with a new dash and rewired it all.

It ideally needs a new drivers door, drivers front wing and bonnet and the dents in the rear 1/4 on the passenger side taking out but this will probably end up being an arch replacement job. The other rear arch is totally mint and indeed the rest of the car is solid so if anyone can help with these bits in silver I would be gratefull.

The interior is pretty manky and needs a damned good clean up but is otherwise ok apart from the fact that it has an Astra GTE 16v steering wheel which I want rid of in change for something else.

I will sort pics shortly.

Thanks for reading

Mav

[mavvmad]

Here it is in all its tatty glory
http://uploader.co.uk/images/newnova1.jpg
http://uploader.co.uk/images/nova26534.jpg
http://uploader.co.uk/images/nova3654.jpg
Short MOT but should go through ok.
But well worth the bargain price I paid for it.

[Dan]

Looks ok mate and sounds like summin to keep yaself busy, i always like bargains like that when comsetics make em look worse than they truly are :D .

I got one tip, dont go to a small 300mm steering wheel, esp with a digidash lol as i have just done, ended up mid mounting a standard rev counter where the stereo hole was :roll: .

weighs 834kg, performance wise its still prob a good 95-100bhp when serviced if the engines ok, low 17's on the qtr and 9ish to 60. They always seem to be pretty bullet proof like the rest of the 8v family

[mavvmad]

Ok thanks for that

Are these engines valve safe? either way its getting a good service as soon as.

It is a real bargain for what I paid for it, im looking forward to lots of fun doing it up.

Anything else I need to know about these cars?

[dan16v]

re- shell it into a mk2?

[mavvmad]

Why would I need to reshell it? The body is structurally A1, just needs a couple of "cosmetic" bits apart from the rear arch.

That front wing makes it looks alot worse than it really is.

[Fester]

Looks like a good purchase, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!


I made the mistake of putting a Pipercross cone filter onto my GTE at the beginning of last summer; when it got really hot it struggled. On the flip side it's been nice and fast this winter but I'll probably take it off when it gets a bit warmer. I scanned in and sent to Mike Oxford the Total Vauxhall guide for modifying the original airbox for most gains, still got it Mike?

I've been servicing mine every 3000 miles. It's just gone over 105k now and still starts first time every time etc.

[mavvmad]

I think I still have that edition of Total Vauxhall (should do I have every single one since it was launched) one of the earlier editions isnt it?

Should have said that any modding advice will also be appreciated.

[Snowface]

to get it to a mk2 all u need is 2 wings, lights and grill (and slam panel i think)

[mavvmad]

Nah I like it as it is, just want to sort the panels that need sorting. I want to keep it externally original.

[HEVY-nova]

looks like a good project car mate. i love the aggressive standard gte look. silver is a wikid colour for nova! if you dont mind me sking, how much did she set you back?

[dave.gsi]

ouch. looks like its had a hard life lol.

obviously sorting out the bodywork comes first but i'd also recomend de-vyniling the tailgate( :wink: ) peeling off the dodgy side stripes and fitting clear front indicators. it'll make a pretty major difference to the way it looks

[mavvmad]

how much did she set you back?

150 quid mate,

The black stripe stays, I think its what sets the GTE apart from any other.

Its wierd, I only bought it as a runaround "yeah it will do mate" but driving it back was an experience in itself and im seriously growing to like it alot.
Ive never ever looked down on the Nova I just always thought it would be a bit too small for me but now ive got one its looking more and more like im gonna be doing it up unless the pending MOT tells me different although I really cannot see it failing on anything major if atall.

[scott.parker]

well look's like a good project mate,and a silver one..there carnt be that many silver gte's about still?..good luck starting hope it get's through the mot ok..

scott :)

[peester]

re- shell it into a mk2?

tut thats a bit funny thing to say isn't it?

[Jules]

Should have said that any modding advice will also be appreciated.

Brown RON plug and run on Optimax (Other brands of premium unleaded are avaliable!!)
drill airbox and fit decent panel filter
mongoose exhaust

sorted!!
:D

[mavvmad]

What difference does the brown RON plug make?

Good point actually, whats the best fuel for this little beasty?


Also Anyone got a mk1 dash they want to swap for a MK2? My missus prefers the MK1 and I have to agree I prefer the stereo location amongst other things and I would kinda like to keep the car original.

[nova23]

The best mod of all is a good service kit from vx if it hasn't been done in a while, you can really notice the difference after!! These engines are valve bending safe but a cam belt from vx is only ?15!!

[Jules]

Brown RON plugs are 98/95, plug it in so that the 98 side faces up, your GTE then can run 98 Octane petrol and reap the rewards (Improved MPG, better response etc etc). But, it's best to run it on 98 octane petrol and try not to fill it up with 'regular' unleaded as this will just drop the octane rating of the fuel already in your tank.

I've run my GSi on 100% Optimax and nothing else for the last couple of years at least, when I took the head off to do the head gasket the other week the valve tops had a lot less coke on them than previous (non Optimaxed) heads I've done.

My RON plug was kindly donated to me by from my cousins Astra Cesaro (She didn't need the 95/98 so I put my 92/95 in it's place as it was set to 95) - I kind of *forgot* to tell her that I'd swapped them but she would have no idea what I was on about anyway so it's all good!!!
:lol:

[mavvmad]

Lol this proves how little I know about Novas

where is the RON plug located on a Nova? Im running on normal unleaded at the mo and optimax is rare round here. Super it will have to be then.

[Jules]

Open bonnet, look at bulkhead, near brake servo, there should be a (probably) black plastic plug with 95 printed on it clipped on to the bulkhead, there will be a plug attached to it, you can unplug it and turn it round (will probably say 92), if you plug it in so that the 92 faces outwards then you've just set your GTE to run on a minimum of 92 RON fuel.
I got a brown 95/98 one and it's set to 98, which means that if I want to run my GSi on cheap $h!tty fuel then I'd need to unplug it, turn it round and plug it back in 95 facing upwards.

Simple as pie
(How simple is pie exactly?)
:roll:

[mavvmad]

So just to get this straight 95 /98 is for unleaded?

95 / 92 for super and optimax etc?

[Jules]

No - The numbers printed on the RON plugs (92, 95, 98 - whatever) indicates what octane rating must be used in the car, for example:

If you had a 92/95 plug and the 95 side was facing outwards, you could use fuel with a octane rating of 95 and no less or you could damage your engine.
Likewise if it was set at 92, or if you (like me) put a 98 plug in.

You can put a higher octane rated fuel in (I.E 98 Octane Optimax) a car that has a 95 RON plug for example and it wouldn't damage the engine, but you'd not get the benefits of buying the more expensive fuel - and therefore it'd be a bit of a waste of time.

The reason I call the plugs "92/95" or "95/98" is because they are the numbers (Octane ratings) that are printed on each side of the plug - a 92/95 plug will be printed with a 92 on one side, flip it over and it'll say 95.
Same with the 95/98 except with different numbers of course!!

Both types of plug can be used for unleaded and super unleaded, but to get the full effect of super unleaded petrol (98 Octane) then you need a 98 RON plug - but it will run with others.
But putting 95 Octane fuel (regular unleaded) in a engine that has a 98 RON plug might cause damage.

Confused yet?
:lol:

I'll try and take some piccys with my phone tomorrow of both sides of my RON plug to explain what I mean (Providing I remember!!)

[mavvmad]

Thanks for that mate, doubtless there will be more questions as time goes on.

For now though I gotta get my sorry ass to work.

Catch ya all tonite.

[mikeoxford]

The black stripe stays, I think its what sets the GTE apart from any other.

GTE didnt have the stripe as standard

must have been fitted at the originating dealer or somewhere in between you and it.

fester - sure have got it m8y

ill post it when im home

[Jules]

Maybe he was thinking of the tailgate vinyl?

[CP]

You should find more stuff of interest in the technical forum plus there are a few articles to read.

:D

[Stanton]

off topic, CP cud u send me sum pics of ure car with the mk2 front and gte bumper

lol jules too, cud u send me the astra style grill pics on ure old black car plz,

cheers

gte looks gud, panels r dirt cheap, go to sel-imperial for em

[mavvmad]

Cant wait to get it sorted and through the MOT, sadly I dont get time during the week to play with it.

This sunday will be clean up day if the weather is right.

[mavvmad]

Maybe he was thinking of the tailgate vinyl?

Yep thats exactly what I meant mate, I will be taking the side stripe off when I get moment. Looking forward to Sunday when I can play some more with it.

[Jules]

Pics of the RON plug:

Note that you can see mine is set to 98 by the balck clip that covers part of that side (That isn't there on the 95 side cos it's not set to 95!!)

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/julian.sumner/Car/RON%20PLUG.jpg
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/julian.sumner/Car/98RON.jpg

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/julian.sumner/Car/95RON.jpg

David Bailey I'm not!!!
:lol:

[mavvmad]

Cheers mate

I will have a look either tomorrow or sunaday when I get time

Planning to put the car through the MOT next weekend, fingers crossed.