N o v a B u g . c o m

My Antibes

This was my second Nova, a special edition Antibes.
I bought this in 99, to replace my previous A reg 1.2L

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This Nova is no doubt the one I spent most time and money on out of all my Novas to date!
I did all sorts to this one, from fitting a unique-to-a-Nova sunroof, to welding on new rear arches and a re-spray! (all done myself) I've included photos of the body restoration here, including the rear wheel arch repairs and partial-respray.

I spent a lot of time on this car and it didn't stay the same for long!
From day one I was modifying it! I got it home and swaped the alloys, exhaust and front bumper from my previous A reg 1.2L!

It eventually lost the old-style front grill in favour of a new-style seperate grill which I customised, but I retained the early type lower-spoiler making it unique (I've still never seen another Nova with this combo, put it that way!)

It gained MKII Cav side skirts at one point, which I later replaced with the normal GTE/GSi items, but sometimes wondered why I'd swapped a unique mod for a common one!

One of the nicest parts on this Nova was the exhaust!
It came from a racing Nova used in Sprints and Hill-climbing events.....the owner was replacing it with a side-exit item, so this one was up far sale at a bargain price!
It was a bit gammy at first, but after a good clean, it came up mint as you'll see in the pics

Year and Model
Engine:	1.3 SR engine (13SB), from approximately 85 model (re-built bottom end) 1.2 Head (fully re-built, including new valves, valve guides, valve stem oil-seals, water core plugs, valve springs, collets etc.) - gives better flow and higher compression over standard 1.3 head! Weber 32/34 DMTL Twin-choke Carb Large K&N Bolt on Filter modified to fit the Weber. It came off my 2.0 Cortina and it was a bit big! Mirror-finish polished rocker cover slats and oil-filler cap. Blue-painted engine block. Ram-Air breather-pipe filter High Performance Silicon Leads Castrol GTX Magnetex synthetic oil
Exhaust:	JP Stainless system, from down-pipes back, with 3" tailpipe, using standard SR manifold and down-pipes. (see pics here) Previously fitted was a Peco BB2 system.
Brakes:	MKII Cavalier Front Callipers (larger diameter piston than standard) painted red, with Nova GTE vented disks. Standard rear drums.
Transmission:	Standard Antibes 5-speed - Wide-Ratio
Suspension:	Puma Lowering Springs, -35 to -40 mm Standard shocks (new at the time) SR Anti-roll bars front and rear.
Wheels and Tires:	MKIII Cavalier GSi/Calibra 15" 5-spoke alloys. Hankook Ventus 195/45/15 Rotational Tyres.
Bodywork:	Early Corsa A GT lower front bumper (same as early Nova SR), from D reg, with standard Nova bumper top-section, to allow use of separate grill. Modified standard grill - de-slatted, colour-coded with galvanized steel mesh. GTE/GSi skirts Nova GTE rear bumper lower spoiler...or "flick" Standard Antibes Tailgate Spoiler (same as SR/GTE), Standard Bronze-tinted window glass, with front screen tint shade-band. ABC Design front and side (Oval), clear-lens indicators. Tinted rear indicator and reverse light lenses Webasto "Top-Slider" slide/tilt after-market sunroof, from an old Proton! Custom (secret) front slitter. Door mirrors up-graded to internal adjust models. Colour coded Mirror housings and Door Handles. Two-tone air-hones. Huge red sun-strip (as you can see!) De-badged tailgate. Projector-Beam front Fog Lights fitted. I had these fitted on my old Nova, but when I fitted the SR front bumper, they no longer fitted. To fit them on the Antibes, I used a different method to enable them to fit....fitting details to follow.
Interior:	Antibes red and grey rear seat, red fabric door inserts, red carpet SR front sports seats MKIII Cav Velour head-rests front and rear Electric windows - Vauxhall motors/regulators and loom. Sierra Switch-box mounted in custom-built console. Previously fitted with a MicroScan aftermarket 3-switch kit, with two door-mounted switches at driver's side and one at passenger's side. Mounted in custom-made consoles trimmed with padding and original vinyl to match. Illuminated switches Central Locking. I had to make up my own brackets to hold the solenoids at first 'cos the brackets were not included when purchased! Mountney Corsa-D Steering wheel, in Black and Grey Leather. Momo Boss. Full door trims to cover paint, including rear 1/4 panels Foot-well lights, glove box light and boot light Aluminium/Carbon Fibre foot pedals Leather Gear knob Astra GTE 8V LCD Dash, with modified Belmont surround. Polished Zinc Clock Face and matching trim on Centre Console.
ICE:	SONY CDX-4100RDS CD/Radio head unit, 20W x 4 Boschman 3-way 6x9's in rear shelf Boschman component set up front....5 1/4" Mid-Woofer, 1" dome tweeters with passive crossovers These speakers were a very cheep brand, but they still gave amazing sound! My mates were all seriously impressed, even more so when I tell told the brand name!
Security:	That would be tellin' but it included the usual Alarm and Immobiliser combination.
Future Plans:	Well, had I kept it (which I often wish I had!), a full profesional body rebuild would have been on the cards eventually, along with spraying of the body kit (either colour-coded or in a Mt Grey or a combo), the engine would have been swapped for a larger one (1.6 GTE/GSi or a 2.0 8 or 16V) and the interior would have been re-trimmed (but keepin with the Antibes red/grey colour scheme). But alas, I decided to sell it and get the GTE and the rest is history!
Thanks	Thanks to my mate John for welding on the near-side arch for us, before I got my own kit......it was fun I know, February in the freezing cold! Thanks to my mate Elden for supplying loads of cheep car bits that came from him written-off Nova! Thanks to my Dad for helping with the engine swap summer 2000 Thanks to my mate Andy for supplying the LCD dash, the GTE/GSi skirts and the Weber carb...all dirt cheep! Thanks to Jeff Chambers for supplying the JP Zorst! Thanks to Alex for supplying the Antibes rear seat fabric, which I was going to use to re-trim my SR front seats to match the rears (but never did!) Thanks to Mick at Thorncliffe Garage for doing the MOT's! I think that's about it.....oh, apart from thanking the lads at Larkspeed Rotherham for supplying a few bits over the last few years, as well as Carnoisseur (before the Sheffield branch closed!). I suppose Halford's should get a mention too and Charlie Browns....sorry to Charlie Browns, 'cos I used their entire stock of Carmine Red paint...lol! And of course, many thanks go to all the Peeps on the forums on Novaload.net for all their help with loads of questions I've had for 'em to help me with ;)