I thought it would be good to add some of the history and stories behind these cars...let's start with the Marine Corps Nova.
My story with this car began in January of 2003 when I responded to ad on the Collector Car Trader website. After a number of conversations with the "then current owner"...I decided to buy the car subject to a personal inspection. Wayne Bushey from NNN went with me on the trip to Indiana to look the car over. What we found was a very solid "survivor type car", that was a perfect candidate for a restoration.
We spent the better part of the day going over the car in detail and left without making the deal...after some discussion I pulled the trigger and bought the car the next day. During the process of researching the history of the car the original owner was finally located.
This high horse Nova was ordered new in the winter of 1969/70 by a fellow named John "Jack" Kanter, a Brooklyn native who was serving in the USMC in Vietnam. Since Jack was overseas, his father handled all the arrangements and the car was sold and delivered by Dial Chevrolet in Westbury, Long Island in the spring of 1970. The original selling price of the car was approx. $3650.
Here are some pictures Jack sent me when he was "in country" back in the day...in the first photo he is the guy with the shirt...then in his fatigues and finally that is Jack with a wounded buddy. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/flag.gif[/img]
Jack drove the car back and forth to school and work for several years...he also made the usual Day 2 mods like adding Cragar Wheels. Jack enjoyed the car a little too much one day inn 1973 and the engine was history. Hustedt Chevrolet in Centereach, Long Island installed a warranty CE block and got the L78 car on the road once more. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/
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Jack eventually moved away and the car was sold to a relative and then to the guy we bought it from. The restoration process was a great education for me and one that I truly enjoyed. I got to learn a lot about the little details concerning the car...this lead to more discussions with the original owner along the way. In fact, I called Jack today to say hello...we hadn't spoke for a few years, but he knew who it was right away [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif[/img]
As you all know, we named this car the Marine Corps Nova in recognition of its first owner who served his country so long ago in Vietnam. There are probably a lot of men and women like Jack who now serve that also share a love for muscle cars and our great hobby.
This beautifully restored car represents a unique link to our "muscle car past" and to the special people who are part of it. Many thanks to Wayne for all his efforts in preserving this piece of American automotive history and to my buddy "Tony the Greek" for helping to keep it looking good!
Semper Fi....wilma