Cody Bray is a 26-year-old turkey farmer from Ridgedale, Missouri, and like the majority of those who are reading this entry, Bray has an affinity for anything automotive. This love for cars manifested itself early in Bray’s life at the age of 15 when he acquired the 1966 Chevrolet Nova you see in the photographs below.
Since that time Bray has spent extensive amounts of time and money transplanting an LS conversion into the car. The power plant, more specifically, consists of a stock LQ4 iron block sourced from a 2500 HD pickup. Air makes its way through the Jantzer throttle body and into the LS3 intake before meeting up with its partner in combustion within the L92 heads.
A T-REX camshaft assists in making power from approximately 3500 r.p.m. on up as well as helping the engine produce very respectable numbers of 440 hp and 392 lb. ft. of torque. This power is transferred through a Spec Stage 3 clutch and the Tremec T-56 before making its way to the sturdy Moser M9 rear end. I had the opportunity of catching Bray’s car make one pass before rain rendered Beech Bend Raceway useless, and even with a bog off the line, the car still posted a 12.81 at 115 mph.
The car is clearly tucking tire and before you make the assumption that the car is on bags, think again. Bray’s Nova employs the use of a triangulated four-link suspension, and Strange coil-overs are responsible for the stance. Bray is proud to say that he has most of the suspension settings set up to mimic that of the C5 Corvette.
One of the primary attractions to this car is the wheel and tire combination. Fikse FM-10′s in 18” X 10.5” for the rear and 18” X 8.5” in the front help set the mood and are wrapped in BF-Goodrich G-force T/A KDWs for ultimate all around grip. The Race Black finish contrasts nicely against the red paint that the car has worn since it fell into Bray’s ownership. Housed inside those wheels are the large Brembo four piston calipers and 14.0” rotors donated from a 2010 Camaro.
Upon being asked about future plans, Bray has aspirations of adding sway bars and ultimately auto-crossing the car. Over time he hopes to upgrade to an aluminum block to remove a good amount of weight off of the front end, which will most definitely improve the cars turn-in and reduce understeer.
Before we wrapped up Bray mentioned a few individuals he wanted to thank for the help they’ve offered him throughout the evolution of this car: Blake Hughes from 417 Motorsports lent welding expertise on the car; Chris Huels was responsible for extracting the levels of power the car puts down; Travis Daniels, David Veldman, and finally his wife Danielle, who has supported the automotive obsession that is responsible for this awesome amalgamation of old and new.
At every car meet that I have the opportunity to attend, it’s always encouraging to see that there are people who make it a point to drive the cars they’ve built rather than trailer them from meet to meet. Bray’s car may not win best-of-show, but there’s definitely something to be said for a guy who spares no expense modernizing a nostalgic gem and isn’t afraid to drive it cross-country.
