hen we left off last month, our short-block Chevy engine was assembled and we had determined what we needed to look for when it came to cylinder heads (67cc combustion chambers). Half the valvetrain components were also in place (cam and lifters) but we still had yet to choose rocker arms and measure for pushrods. In addition to determining those components, we also needed to check the piston-to-valve clearance once the cylinder heads and related valvetrain components were on-hand.

To top off our budget build, we chose a pair of Summit Racing cast-iron Vortec cylinder heads due to their reputation for being a great out-of-the-box design at an even greater price. The Vortec cylinder head design dates back some 30 years, but its cutting-edge design (for the time) still retains great performance characteristics, even putting many aftermarket heads to shame. Keeping with the updated/upgraded trend, we’ll be complementing the roller lifter/cam setup with a set of Summit cast-steel roller rocker arms, another great, budget-friendly upgrade.

While we were conscious to choose components that were friendly to the wallet, one thing that we did splurge on were component fasteners from Automotive Racing Products (ARP). Their fasteners are second to none, so it should come as no surprise that we chose to spend a little extra coin for those fasteners that count, namely main bolts, head bolts, and rocker studs.

hen Jim Chamberlain brought his ’65 Nova to Kev’s Rod and Custom to have all-new outer panels fitted and gapped (except the hood and roof), he knew he wanted to do something about the huge stock bumpers. Initial discussions involved trimming the bottoms, but when a Camaro bumper was offered up against the body the decision was made to use a pair of them, but narrowed, smoothed, and tucked in closer to the body.

hen the Chevy II was introduced in 1962, it was targeted as a smaller, economical choice compared to the fullsize cars available. Sure, there was the futuristic Corvair with its rear-mounted, air-cooled engine, but the Chevy II provided a more traditional approach to transportation. It was designed as basic automobile to compete with the Ford Falcon. In short, the Chevy II was all about basic transportation.

The first generation of the Chevy II continued on the economical tract, though it did receive the Super Sport option in 1963 and a V-8 was made available the following year. There were even gauge packages available from the factory as Chevrolet added more styling cues for the Nova. Strangely enough though, the second-gen models did not have an option for gauges. They were offered with increased performance and power, but no factory gauges. Even the 350hp L79-equipped models had no engine instrumentation (however, a clock was added on Super Sports!).

So, back in the day, if you cared about engine vitals, a set of gauges had to be hung under the dash. Today, however, second-gen Nova owners can easily update their dash with a full set of gauges along with a tach thanks to Classic Instruments. Their new ’66-’67 Nova gauge assembly is a direct-fit package that includes fuel level, voltage, oil pressure, temperature, and a tachometer.

n Part I of our story, Eric Rosendahl wanted a 5.7L LS engine in his ’67 300 Chevelle that could easily be a daily driver. We bolted in the engine along with a fresh 4L60E. The rest of this story will document all the subsequent changes and fixes we had to create to bring this plan to a climax. The engine is really just a breathed-on Gen III LS truck drivetrain cloaked in a ’67 Chevelle 300 sedan body or, the best of both late-model efficiency and a cool muscle car image. We have to admit that we were in such a hurry to drop the LS in place that we didn’t shoot any photos of the install, which is why you won’t see the classic image of the new LS going in–we just plain forgot! But you’ve seen the photo a dozen times in different scenes, so it’s no great loss.

With the new engine and trans in place, there were at least 500 details to work through. While it might appear that the PSI engine wiring harness would be a challenge, that turned out to be the easiest as the connectors are simple plug-ins. When we eventually tried to fire the engine, we discovered our take-out injectors were junk. Rather than mess around with cleaning parts that might not be salvageable, we invested in a new set of Holley injectors. This required converting the injector harness from the factory Multec injectors over to EV6, but that we handled by splicing new connectors on the existing harness.

With the engine in place, we mounted the Lokar throttle pedal and attached the cable to the intake with a simple, homemade steel bracket. With the radiator and electric fans in place, Rosendahl spent a half day of bending and flaring 5/16-inch hard line tubing to connect to the existing radiator trans cooler along with a small auxiliary trans cooler. While we were under the car, Rosendahl also purchased a pair of Hooker lead-down pipes for a second-generation Camaro (the early Chevelle pipes were not available at the time) that worked with a minor tweak.

t’s hard to pull off the sleeper look with a car that most people consider a muscle car. The ’72 Chevrolet Chevelle seen here certainly fooled us on first inspection, but all bets were off when we saw it make a pass down the dragstrip on a heavy dose of nitrous oxide. Shannon Medley bought the car several years ago and built it as a fun project that he could drive on the street and take to the track. When he bought it, the car was so nice that he hated to make it a serious race car, so he did what he could to retain the car’s original appearance. That’s part of what plays into the car’s sleeper theme—green on green with a bench seat isn’t exactly the most common go-fast combination.

Shannon has toyed with several different wheel-and-tire combinations on the Chevelle and has run a best of 6.32 at 106 mph in the eighth-mile on a set of Weld Draglite wheels and Mickey Thompson bias-ply slicks. This combination totally ruins the sleeper look, so he rarely runs it, even though it’s a 1/2 second quicker than the sleeper whitewall and hubcap setup. By the way, the whitewalls are just painted onto a pair of tiny Mickey Thompson 215/60R14 drag radials. He used stock 14×6 steel wheels and full hubcaps, which are bolted into place for safety. The car ran consistently in the 6.80s with the whitewalls. Shannon has also worked hard to get the car to perform well on regular street radials. He’s tested numerous times with the car and has learned the proper launch technique and the right moment to lay the nitrous to it. His best effort on hard street radials (275/60R15 Futura) has been a 7.10 at 102 mph.