Slick 66 – Driven Speed Shop Delivers a 1966 Nova Muscle Machine
Almost every car enthusiast has a story about the car or truck that got away – the one you wish you’d kept. For Jeremiah Belk, that was the 1966 Nova that he sold 10 years ago to help start his fledgling Texas oil business.
“Once the business started taking off, I knew I wanted to acquire another Nova and I knew which one I wanted,” he says. His uncle’s life-long friend, Tom Henline, had a Nova since the mid-’90s that Jeremiah always desired. “That time came in 2017, and I was able to make it mine,” he says.
The car was originally set up as a pro street machine, but Jeremiah wanted something different. With that in mind, he bought a Roadster Shop Fast Track chassis, a Wegner 427c.i. LS V8, and a Bowler T56 six-speed transmission and shipped everything to Driven Speed Shop in Arizona.
The Roadster Shop chassis delivers sturdy, modern performance with coil-over front and rear suspensions, rack-and-pinion steering, and 14-inch Baer disc brakes on all four corners. A night and day diffeence compared to the original uni-body structure of a 1966 Nova. A Currie 9-inch rearend houses 3.70 gears, while Forgeline 18- and 19-inch 3V3C wheels are wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport tires.
The upgraded LS3 engine is topped by a Whipple 2.9-liter supercharger and built with a Callies crank and cam, ported heads, Mahle pistons, and other top-quality parts to produce 1,000 horsepower and 900 lb. ft. of torque. Driven Speed Shop crafted the headers and an exhaust system that features Borla Pro XS mufflers. 
The team at Driven Speed Shop treated the body to substantial sheet metal refinements that includes a smoothed and raised cowl, tucked bumpers, deleted trim, shaved drip rails, flush glass, and a custom dash. Kandy Shop Kreations was called on for final bodywork and the PPG Audi Daytona Pearl paint. Dapper Lighting LED headlights, Fesler taillights and Ringbrothers outside mirrors helped complete the exterior work.
The leather-wrapped custom dash houses Holley Pro Dash digital instruments and a Pioneer head unit that controls the JL Audio and Morel stereo components. The bulk of the interior work was handled by Sew Cal Rods, which installed the stereo system and covered the TMI seats in red and black leather. A Sparc steering wheel with a quick-disconnect adapter sits on a tilt column. Restomod Air vents direct the cool breezes produced by the Vintage Air A/C system. Driven Speed Shop handled the custom wiring and built the 1.5-inch DOM Tubing roll cage.
Jeremiah says his patience – and his wallet – were the most challenging parts of the build, but the results speak for themselves now that this powerful, agile, and beautiful 1966 Nova is on the road.
Photos by Michael Christensen and Damon Lee
