David Skinner
I have been living in Singapore since 1998 and I only get to go back to the UK to work on my kit car once or twice a year, so as you can imagine progress has been slow. This blog chronicles the various jobs I do on the car each trip
2018
2017
2016
Upsizing the wheels and changing stylesMy Nova has had "Slot Mag" style wheels on it for the last 26 years, they are 14 inch rims. Its getting harder and harder to find 14" tyres with the right profile for…
Polished stainless steel side sillsI wanted to make up some metal plates to protect the side sill part of the body when people get in and out of the car as they have to slide over the cars edge to do so.…
Reverting back to the original nostril design bonnetI decided that the Nova needed to breath more easily, so I gave it its nostrils back. I changed to the smooth bonnet design (known as the Mark II) on a whim some 20…2015
Starting the interior preparationsI started by fitting the trim panels to cover the canopy sides, and added and wired up my wing mirror switch (thanks to Alex for solving my wiring dilemma)
Opening Side WindowsI had an aluminum frame made up to fit into the window opening. This allowed me to bond in the front glass and make the rear section removable by using a sliding pin…
Making the HVAC Plenum ChamberMy aircon / heaters plenum chamber that came with it had the outlets in the wrong places for my air ducting. Furthermore the close proximity of the central vents meant…
Making the new engine coverSince I no longer had a VW engine and the Alfa unit was lower I didn't need the ugly engine cover I purchased. So I set about making a mold out of wood to replace it…Various Engines in the NovaWhen I first got my Nova it had a tuned 1.6 L Dual Carb VW Beetle Engine. It wasn't really designed for high revs and self destructed on the motorway when I pushed it a…
Nova Rear EndI never liked the rear and wrap around bumper of the MK 2 Nova's, so I set about changing it to a Mark 3 rear end. This was originally designed for Opel Manta round…
Pop-Up LightsMaking the pop-up lights was probably one of my most frustrating challenges of the rebuild. The old lights under the perspex covers were ineffective as they were too low…
Wiper Motor CoverI started by using 2 part PU foam to create a basic shape for the wiper motor cover, making use of cardboard to retain the foam. I also used cable ties to mark the…
Making the seats fitThe Nova seat area is quite narrow, especially if you have dropped the floor pans. Very few (almost none) commercial reclining seats will fit in a Nova. I wanted to have…
Front Mounting the Radiator / Aircon Condenser plus othersIt’s still a work in progress and the final wiring, plumbing and testing is outstanding
Making the wing mirrors fit the carThe old mirrors I have on the car which were vitaloni turbo racing mirrors looked great, but they were not adjustable and wobbled around quite a lot when driving. So I…
The new dashboard and aircon / heater / Hydraulic PumpI fibreglassed in an air duct