The 12,000 rpm Nova at it Again and it Sounds Incredible!
Most racers have gone away from class racing that follows a “pounds-per-cubic inch” classification system, opting instead to simply cram bigger displacement powerplants under the hood and trying to go fast. There is certainly an art to making a car run good with a smaller, high-winding engine such as the destroked small block Chevy in this wheelstanding Nova.
Relying on a diminutive 289 CID small block Chevy – yes, it’s a Chevy engine, not a 289 Ford swap – and some astronomical RPM’s, this Nova manages to yank the front wheels several feet in the air and carry them all the way out to the 60-foot cones while spinning the engine up to twelve thousand RPMs! Not only does this make for a great show, it sounds simply divine. With some very rare exceptions, most engines run out of steam around the 9,000 RPM mark, some even lower, so to hear this engine scream into the 5-digit RPM range is a true treat to the ears of most any hotrodder within earshot.
The engine – most likely a classic Chevy 327 with a shortened stroke – likely has some high-dollar parts on board to survive at these engine speeds. The valvetrain has to be incredibly durable while simultaneously being as lightweight as possible to survive at these speeds. Go ahead and crank up the volume on your headphones and listen to this screaming beast!
