A 1977 Chevrolet Nova driven by Dale Earnhardt in the NASCAR Busch Series will soon be auctioned off by Barrett-Jackson at its Palm Beach 2019 sale.
This well-preserved piece of General Motors racing history was originally built by famed NASCAR fabricator (and Earnhardt’s brother-in-law) Robert Gee Jr. Earnhardt. He drove the car in the initial race after the NASCAR Late Model Sportsman Series was rebranded as the Busch Series in 1986, winning the series’ first race at Daytona that year. According to Barrett-Jackson, this chassis also took wins at Richmond, Darlington, and Rockingham.
Interestingly, this car started out life as Dale’s Wrangler Jeans-sponsored Pontiac Ventura, but Gee converted the car to a Nova due to the Chevy’s superior aerodynamic properties. It has a NASCAR-spec 358 V8 under the hood, which is making around 700 horsepower, along with a four-speed manual transmission. The car is presented in “good running and driving condition,” but the seller suggests having it looked over professionally before the new owner does any vintage racing with it, as it has sat in a private collection for a number of years now.
This car has made a number of public appearances in recent years. It participated in the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England three separate times (2005, 2006 and 2009) and participated in the 2012 Rolex Monterey Sports Reunion. It was also shown at the 2014 Concours d’ Elegance at St. Johns in Michigan.
It’s hard to say what this Dale Earnhardt-driven 1977 Chevrolet Nova is worth. Barrett-Jackson didn’t provide an estimate and it’s also being offered without reserve.
Check out the listing at this link for additional information and photos.
Photos via Barrett-Jackson
Source: Barrett-Jackson
Comments
I remember that car back in the day. That’s when racing was racing.
Is it really a Nova or a Chevelle ?
It’s a Nova
It is a Hutchinson Pagan chassis with a Nova Body. It started life as a Pontiac Ventura body in Wrangler colors.
Note this was the first car to use Goodwrench colors as Dale drove this in the GN series while he was still in the Wrangler Monte Carlo.
Robert Gee was a master sheet metal fabricator. Back in the 80’s many body hangers were using loads of Bondo to smooth out body lines and implement their aero tricks. A team I worked with paid the big bucks to have Robert cut the body off a previous Travis Carter Skoal car and hang a new one. It needed 75 pounds more lead to make weight and was faster at the superspeedways when done.