Unlike the Corvair, the 1962 Chevy II design team deliberately avoided any revolutionary features in concept or execution; their mission was to give Chevrolet buyers a simple, back-to-the-basics compact car.

When he announced the Chevy II to the press, Chevrolet General Manager Ed Cole described the car as offering "maximum functionalism with thrift."

[5] It featured special emblems, instrument package, wheel covers, side moldings, bucket seats, and floor shifter, and was available only on the 400 series sport coupe and convertible.

Rival manufacturer Chrysler had earlier developed the Slant Six in their Plymouth Valiant, a Chevy II competitor, when the cars were introduced to the public in late 1959 as 1960 models.

The 1965 Chevrolet Chevy II and Nova were updated with cleaner front-end styling courtesy of a fresh full-width grille with new integrated headlight bezels.

A 327 cu in (5.4 L) V8 was available with up to 300 hp (220 kW), suddenly putting Nova SS performance practically on a par with the GTO, 4-4-2, and 271 bhp Mustang 289s-at least in straight-line acceleration.

"Humped" fenders in an angular rear end were reminiscent of larger 1966 Chevrolets, though the 1966 Chevy II and Nova had vertical taillights and single headlights.

The 1968 models were fully-redesigned with an extensive restyle on a longer 111-inch wheelbase that gave Chevrolet's compacts a chassis that was just one inch shorter than that of the midsize Chevelle coupe.

Options included power brakes and steering, Four-Season or Comfort-Car air conditioning, rear shoulder belts, and head restraints.

Several units were produced with the 327 cu in (5.36 L), 275 hp (205 kW), engine, four-barrel quadrajet carb and four-speed Saginaw transmission with a heavy-duty 12-bolt positraction rear as a "towing option' package.

One of the smallest muscle cars ever fielded by Detroit, the Nova SS now included a 295 hp (220 kW) 350 cu in (5.7 L) V8 engine along with a heavy-duty suspension and other performance hardware, priced at US$312.

This was considered to build brand loyalty with respective GM divisions although the company later fused their badge engineering with platform sharing to cut expenditures.

It had the look of a Muscle Car with stripes, black grill, left hand sport mirror and 14X6" 6-slot Rally wheels but it could not be ordered with the SS-only 200 hp (150 kW) Turbo-Fire 350 V8 4V (RPO-L48) engine.

A stripe decal between the taillights on the back, a "Rally Nova" decal on the driver's side of the hood, 6-slot 14x6" Rally wheels with special center caps, driver's side body colored remote adjustable Sport mirror, black painted grill with bright upper and lower horizontal bars, black accent headlight bezels, bright roof drip moldings and color-keyed floor carpeting.

To go along with the bigger bumpers, stylists gave the Nova a new grille with a loosely patterned crosshatch insert and parking lights located inboard of the headlights.

Fuel tank capacity increased to 21 gallons, which required a redesigned trunk pan where a circular section was stamped to house the space-saver spare tire used on hatchback models.

For 1974, the Chevrolet Nova got a centered bow-tie grille emblem, as well as modified bumpers that added two inches to the length and helped cushion minor impacts.

After waiting for hours in gas lines and fretting about the prospect of fuel rationing, thrifty compacts looked pretty good to plenty of Americans and it fit the bill.

Novas and all 1974 cars were fitted with a weight-sensitive relay within the front seat that prevented the vehicle from being started until the driver's seatbelt had been fastened, following a safety mandate from the NHTSA.

Later, Congress repealed the mandate requiring this type of device, declaring that it infringed on a driver's freedom of choice, and allowed owners of 1974-model cars to have the seat belt interlock bypassed.

The Nova LN was called "the most luxurious compact in Chevrolet's history," with wide-back reclining front seats that "look and feel like big, soft lounge chairs."

LN equipment included ad­ditional sound insulation, map pockets, an electric clock, a smoked instrument lens, floor shifter and center console, and a day/night mirror.

For 1976 the Nova LN was rebranded Concours to rival the Ford Granada and the Mercury Monarch, as well as upscale versions of the Dodge Dart and Plymouth Valiant.

Sales of the Nova hatchback body style lagged well behind regular coupes and sedans, and base models handily outsold Customs.

The styling reminded "Uncle" Tom of a "small Mercedes-Benz", and he concluded that "with a little hopping up, a stick shift and its low price, it should sell like cold beer on a hot Fourth of July."

Performance was rated as "moderate" for a six-cylinder Nova convertible with Powerglide: 0-60 came up "a shade under 16 seconds," and the top speed was reported to be 98 mph, but Titus felt that "the car seems at its best below 75, where it did not feel as though it was working hard."

The mid-1980s Nova made no attempt to recapture the former "Muscle" glory that it once had, with the Twin Cam performance variant appearing only in the final year of the nameplate after Toyota had already moved on to the next generation of the platform.

It was a stand-alone make based upon the Chevy II, which was produced in both the U.S. and Canada[34] and sold exclusively through Canadian Pontiac – Buick – GMC dealerships.

The last year of the Nova in Argentina is called locally "Opus 78" (because the slogan of the publicity) and it was the most well-equipped, adding simil-leather bucket seats, air conditioning, power steering, electric antenna, and a new dashboard with integrated central console.

A majority were fitted with inline-sixes with a single two-barrel Holey 2300 RX 7214-A carburetor giving out 168 hp (125 kW), coupled to a four-speed ZF manual transmission.