Words: Todd Wylie Photos: Hugo Van Cingel
Glen Oldfield was just eight years old when Chev Novas became a staple in his life. His dad, Pat, purchased a 1965 Nova SS decked out in red, white, and blue, complete with American flags and eagles on the doors. You can imagine the impression that made on young Glen — but that was only the beginning.
Pat had been crewing for Bobby and Wendy Owens and their well-known ’34 Ford, so the desire to own something quicker than the family’s ’35 Dodge soon proved too hard to resist. In the early ’90s, there was one man to call: the legendary Chris Tynan at Tynan Race Cars. Before long, the Nova was dropped at the Matamata-based workshop, where Chris set about back-halving it as a dedicated quarter-mile weapon.
The new chassis rails sat well inboard of the originals to allow a set of 16-inch-wide slicks. The goal? To compete in the popular Super Gas class — a bracket with a fixed 9.90-second index.
Pat was a big fan of Botanica Blue, a colour from the newly released VS Commodore, so once the Tynans had worked their magic, the car went off to family friend Craig ‘Haggis’ O’Hanlon for a full respray. The interior work was taken even closer to home — literally in the house — as Pat’s wife, Colleen, retrimmed the seats in velour. The remainder of the interior was equally as race-prepared as you’d expect, with a Hurst Quarter Stick shifter, Autometer gauges, and a six-point roll cage.
Despite the best intentions and the car’s race-ready look, as the build neared completion, the plan changed: it would stay a street car rather than a race car. That meant the motor, while still tough, wasn’t quite as extreme as it could have been — although a set of wheelie bars still hangs in the shed, just in case that changes one day.
For the past 20-odd years, the car has run a 468ci big-block Chev topped with a Holley four-barrel carb. While the original stack injection setup would have looked the part, drivability took priority. The rest of the mechanical package includes large-port heads, an LS6-spec cam, custom headers, three-inch exhausts, and an MSD distributor. The car still runs the race-prepped Powerglide purchased out of Bobby Owen’s XM Falcon, albeit with a more streetable converter. Behind that is a very narrow nine-inch diff filled with 28-spline axles and hanging off a custom 4-link to give just the right stance.
Since the rear end was set up for big tyres, that’s what it runs, with the rears coming in at 31x16x15 — a whole lot of rubber on a reasonably small car. Up front, the skinny Center Line Autodrag wheels are wrapped with Michelin 145/SR15 rubber. Behind these sits the brake package of choice for the period — HQ Holden discs and callipers, paired with Ford drums on the rear.
Since the Nova wasn’t getting raced, Pat decided the best way to get his drag-racing thrills was to build a Junior Dragster for young Glen. That no doubt helped steer Glen toward his own dedicated race car many years later — another Nova, of course.
The ’65 was purchased stateside as a freshly completed eighth-mile car. Fellow Tauranga local John Key from TransAmerica handled shipping while Glen dreamed up an engine combo. Once again, he turned to the US, selecting Scott Shafiroff Race Engines in New York to build a 565ci big-block Chev.
Running naturally aspirated in B/Top Street, Glen was hugely successful, taking home various trophies and running mid-eight-second passes. His haul includes two Top Street season wins and a Meremere Dragway Top Dragracer trophy.
Soon, though, the never-popular topic of adulting popped up, and Glen knew he needed to park the car up to buy a house. Thankfully, before that happened, he managed to land an 8/71 Hampton Race Blowers supercharger for the car’s eventual return.
Fast-forward five years to 2024: house completed, two kids hatched, and it was time to put the rest of the package together, starting with selling the old 565ci short-block. To complete the blown-alcohol dream, an Enderle hat injector and mechanical fuel system were fitted, along with a Mallory magneto and coil. This time around, the motor was another Shafiroff item — a 540ci version built for boost. That setup includes a Dart Big M block filled with a Callies Magnum crank, alloy GRP rods, blower-friendly pistons, and a custom 54mm camshaft. Bobby Owens helped out by O-ringing the existing Brodix BB3 365cc heads and timing in the cam.
To cope with the new power levels, a four-speed Lenco and Crower Glide clutch system was fitted that feeds power into a Fab 9 diff running an Endeavour Engineering 40-spline full-floater setup. That diff package runs Wilwood callipers, as does the front end, both of which operate off a Wilwood pedal box and master cylinder.
Just like Dad’s car, this one too runs a very cool wheel-and-tyre package: 15×4-inch and 15×14-inch Weld Magnum wheels, wrapped in Hoosier 15×4-inch front runners and Hoosier 15×14.5×32-inch slicks.
The move to alcohol meant the cooling system could be ditched, and a front-mounted fuel cell fabricated. A little trickery was required to get everything in place while retaining the stock radiator support panel, but nothing Glen couldn’t overcome. Being an auto electrician by trade — and owner of Eze Auto Electrics — wiring it all up was the easy part.
So far, the temptation to replace steel panels with lightweight composite items has been resisted, with only the hood and trunk lid swapped out. The interior – as you’d expect is bare-bones, with only the required safety and mechanical components in place. That includes a singular Kirkey alloy race seat along with a 10-point roll cage. While pulling the Hurst four-speed levers, Glen doesn’t get much time to watch the Autometer Carbon Series gauges, but thankfully a Racepak data logger is there to tell the story afterwards.
The new engine package was running in time for testing at the start of the 2024–’25 season. A couple of meetings in, with the driver feeling at home again, the team started to play with the tune, and before long it was back into the mid-eights. Sadly, the old clutch plates weren’t having as much fun as Glen was, so they needed replacing. With new items from Boninfante Friction now fitted, the car should be edging closer to the sevens.
The clutch change wasn’t the only off-season work, with a few cosmetic details also tidied up and a new wing and splitter added to get the car looking better than ever. The goal now is to run side by side with the rest of the blown door-car fleet — especially Bobby’s XM Falcon coupe. With Glen and Pat being long-time Bay Rodders members and being involved in running the annual Nostalgia Drags since the club took it over, you can guarantee that’s an event where it’ll be running at its best. Glen will have his work cut out for him though, not only working with Pat to run the Wildbunch class at the event, but also competing the Nova within it. All going to plan though, he’ll be there running side-by-side seven-second passes with some of the cars that have inspired him over the years.
Then, maybe, once those goals are ticked off, attention will switch back to Dad’s car and getting it down into the nine-second zone while remaining street legal. With the next generation of Oldfields soon coming through, it’ll be great for them to learn the family values and hands-on skills that the older generations have put to good use over the last four decades. Here’s hoping that turns into more impressive Novas that go just as well as they look!
OWNER Q&A
DRIVER: Pat Oldfield
CAR CLUB: Bay Rodders
AGE: Old
OCCUPATION: Retired
PREVIOUSLY OWNED CARS: ’57 Chev, ’35 Dodge, ’70 C10
DREAM CAR: This one
WHY THE NOVA? Originally built for Super Gas, now on the road, but will return to the track one day
BUILD TIME: 10 years
LENGTH OF OWNERSHIP: 30 years
THANKS: Tynan Race Cars, Bobby Owens, Craig ‘Haggis’ O’Hanlon
SPEC LIST
VEHICLE: 1965 Chevrolet Nova SS
ENGINE: 468ci big-block Chev, large-port cast GM heads, Holley four-barrel carburettor, LS6-spec cam, Jaz fuel cell, electric fuel pump, Holley fuel regulator, Mallory distributor, custom headers, three-inch exhausts, Hedman mufflers, four-inch exits
DRIVELINE: Race-prepped two-speed Powerglide transmission, nine-inch diff centre, 28-spline axles
SUSPENSION: Coilover shocks, four-link rear
BRAKES: HZ Holden front callipers, drum rear
WHEELS/TYRES: 15×4-inch and 15×14-inch Centerline Autodrag wheels, Michelin 145/SR15 front tyres, Hoosier 31x16x15 rear tyres
EXTERIOR: Pro Stock hood scoop, custom paint
CHASSIS: Tubbed rear end, front tower supports
INTERIOR: Autosport seats, Hurst Quarter Stick shifter, Autometer gauges, six-point roll cage
PERFORMANCE: Mid-11s
OWNER Q&A
DRIVER: Glen Oldfield
AGE: 40
OCCUPATION: Owner, Eze Auto Electrics
PREVIOUSLY OWNED CARS: HQ, VL, S13, CL Valiant, C10 Chev
DREAM CAR: Multiple
WHY THE NOVA? I grew up around blown door cars and was inspired by Dad’s Nova
BUILD TIME: On and off over 10 years
LENGTH OF OWNERSHIP: 10 years
THANKS: Eze Auto Electrics, Pat Oldfield, Bobby Owens, family and crew
SPEC LIST
VEHICLE: 1965 Chevrolet Nova
ENGINE: 540ci big-block Chev, Dart Big M block, Callies crank, GRP alloy rods, low-compression pistons, custom blower cam, larger-journal 7/4 swap, Brodix BB3 365cc heads, Enderle fuel injection, 8/71 Hampton Race supercharger, Enderle 110gph mechanical fuel pump, K-valve, hat and port nozzles, Mallory magneto and coil, custom headers, Racepak data logger
DRIVELINE: Four-speed Lenco transmission, 10-inch Crower three-plate clutch, Fab 9 diff housing, Strange nine-inch centre, 40-spline full floater, Endeavour Engineering hubs
SUSPENSION: Strange single-adjustable front shocks, Strange double-adjustable rear shocks, four-link rear
BRAKES: Wilwood master cylinder, Wilwood pedal box, Wilwood callipers
WHEELS/TYRES: 15×4-inch and 15×14-inch Weld Magnum wheels, Hoosier 15×4-inch front runners, Hoosier 15×14.5×32-inch slicks
EXTERIOR: Fibreglass bonnet, fibreglass boot lid, alloy wing, alloy front splitter, custom paint
CHASSIS: RHS chassis rails
INTERIOR: Kirkey alloy race seat, Hurst four-speed levers, Autometer Carbon Series gauges, 10-point roll cage, alloy panelling
PERFORMANCE: 8.213 at 171mph
