Was very close to getting back into a cosworth as a bit of a weekend toy/project car and have looked at many other options too.

Looked at taking on more of a undriven project aswell but Decided to do the kitchen and One of the bedrooms so dont have the cash I had at the start.

Now I have been toying with something old, fun and fast.

MY first thoughts were Mk1 golf GTI. Pug 1.9 Gti, Mk 2 Xr2 R5gtt, Pulsar (ropey one) Starlet ,clio etc etc. Even thought mx5 for a couple of seconds.

Then I remembered getting spanked by a nova a few years back while I was in a subaru and remembered how I was told it was not even a turbo and was a stripped out lightweight C20Let I believe.

SO I have had a look around and there are a few about that look quite good.

This one for example http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2774413.htm (not a Let I know)

Oh I have Ł2500 to spend. (what would you advise) is there anything quicker than a 2.0 nova with throttle bodies and realistically what would beat it for the same if not more money?

Oh and i have been looking for a nice FRST for ages now and none have come up at that money....

Cheers Guys.

 

A mate of mine is thinking about a saab turbo in a calibra not that hard to do so he says just thinking would it go in a nova ? or do the saalibra thing think they can be tuned for 300 to 400 bhp !

 

i remeber one of these novas scaring a cossie off the lights in stockport,went like fuck.

 

for 2500 i would say a renault 5 gt turbo, or a evo1,2,or 3 mate cant beat 4wheel drive and turbo there daamn light and very quick handle good aswell

 

Non turbo would be the C20XE the C20LET is the turbo motor.

I still have a bit of hankering for an XE converted Nova. They can be cool cars, and fucking quick!

 

the nova is light so decent power will be a very quick car. but what about bends? off the lights? u need a early evo

 

i got spanked by a 250bhp let corsa in my 380bhp saff

 

ive done the evo thing to be honest and just want something cheap I can fix myself that does not matter if its in the garage all year round.

Is the C20Xe the one to go for? Theres a 200bhp courtney one on pistonheads I could go for.

How much does a stripped out nova weigh in at?

 

It would most likely be a c20xe not a c20let if it was non turbo as the let is the turbo lump. An xe nova is quick for the cash as 1 kept up with my 300bhp on a quick run up the local bypass lol

 

yo would not be the first. I saw a 500-600 bhp claimed 3 door get pulled out on and overtaken by a nova. Thought it was a Let but people wree saying it was a non turbo.

Had perspex windows and all that though. Plus there was no way the 3door was 500hp plus

 

is a corsa much heavier. Theres an ugly looking Let corsa on a vauxhall forum that could be toned down a bit if they are as good as a nova...

 

do it they are awesome, i nearly bought a corsa that had a c20let in it.
even just a xe on twin 48s or bodies is a mad little car for the money.

 

Swings and roundabouts really, much prefer an old skool nova though

 

go 4 the c18xe alot lighter engine 125bhp standard a set of cams and remap and it'll be one bloody quick reli light car the c20xe is a heavy engine and makes the nova's understeer badly

 

Are you smoking crack !

My mate owned the Gt Tuning Renault 5 and it came with 48k's worth of receipts for mainly engine rebuilds They are shit, end of.

Nova let's are missiles, average handling but can be improved but not without spending atleast Ł600 on diff ( fitted price )

The only issue with the Nova is that they do not feel all that planted at speed, normal sort of thing for something so light but if your used to a Saph expect a totally different driving experience.

Ł2500 would buy you a average spec motor though, certainly something that will see off most things your find out on the road.

 

You couldn't point me in the right direction could you or keep your ears and eyes open for something?

I have been looking around the forums but cant see a lot nova wise.. Theres a wicked White one with pink wheels for Ł4000 but not got that sort of money.

 

theres a corsa c down my way that beats everything! i mean everything its unreal he's had it at the ring ect theres nothing round here that can touch it, he wont tell anybody what its running ect but fuck me its fast

 

if the car isn't stripped to death it will feel slow as fook, 18xe is a good base to start with if your willing to spunk a shitload on it, same as the 1.6 but if your looking for cheap fun its totally the wrong way of going about it.

Xe minimum, as Scooby Slayer said one on carbs or tb's go well but not in the same sense that a turbo one does on the road.

Xe road car with 100 shot of gas

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WX9PeXxUezw

Phase 3 Nova let ( no lsd ) vs tb'd xe corsa on gas

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMOcubLdv6Q

Or something totally different when you don't mind spending a few quid and want something that handles you can build something like this :



Which runs one of these :



I still have a massive soft spot for novas and as their now less chavvy its quite cool to see a nice one out every so often, where as a few years back you would have a fleet of kitted up shitters cruising round the town centre every night

 

Will do mate, if you find anything just drop me a PM and I'll give you my opinion on it, lots of shit out there, as there is with any type of car but sadly the Vauxhall scene is full of people who have no idea whatsoever and build some right deathtraps so be prepared to have a few jobs to sort, mainly for your own safety !

 

cheers mate... Well I have Ł2500 maximum to spend.

Looks like it will get me quite a nice XE but not seeing any nova LET only Corsas.

What would a 200hp xe go like then.

Is 800KG realistic So is that 180 BHP a tonne.

 

you said it...

 

waas going to say what about a xr2 with a 2litre zetec in it,but unsure how much they go for as normal xr2's seem to go for lots now

 

here you go turbo beast near enough in budget

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1995-VAUXHALL-CORSA-GSI-TURBO-C20LET-16V-WHITE-/260785905341?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item3cb80d1ebd

now get it bought

 

and another

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Corsa-Turbo-C20-LET-Track-Fast-Road-Car-/270742478073?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item3f09825cf9

now get ur wallet out and air it matey

 

This was my mates xe nova on tb's, 197hp, Quaife gearbox etc..probably about 750kgs, not exactly your average xe nova but gives you an idea of how they go !

That engine had done in excess of 160k before it was modified, I stuck 100shot of gas on it for the day at totb and it loved that too lol

http://www.youtube.com/user/trackday...12/0IELt4IJLuE

Can't really fault a good xe, Chip has one in a Corsa he does a lot of trackdays with and I believe its been faultless and lots of fun as their cheap to look after, which obviously anything with a turbo can be the opposite !

 

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2821897.htm

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2807515.htm

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2774413.htm sleeper

 

Both cheap cars really, white one is a little chavvy but not a bad motor, the other is nice considering the engines been rebuilt but then its considerably more than Ł2500

At Ł2500 I'd be taking a look at that white one.

You will struggle to find a nova, most are rotten as a pair so you will only find restored ones for sale which tend to demand a few quid understandably, doesn't mean there isn't one out there but you will find a lot of Corsa lets for what you have to spend.

 

save some more pennies (ur not far off mate) and buy this little beaut!!!

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C205446



(edit not my car!!!)

or this little gem...
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...d=233594201802

 

Like the first one RSNUT but its not really about the saving its more about just getting something cheap if you get what i mean.

Thanks scooby I have Messaged the white one (i did see it earlier but also thought it was chavved up). The blue one is too dear for me for the same reason...

Johnny there seem to be quite a few XE novas for than money and that one you have put up looks rediculously quick. Is that with the 100bhp of Nitrous?

Are these engines reliable with that sort of nitrous up them???

Cheers

 

yes i see what you mean,

have a ganders on here there is a few cheap ones

http://www.pngclub.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=14

this one seems to be half done just needs an engine swop
http://www.pngclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=136314

 

It doesn't even need decent power. The stock 150bhp makes for a rapid little car.

Evo is nice but for something to thrash very hard it would have to be n/a.

 

cheers RS nut will join that tomorrow and get sending out some PMs...

 

Having had an XE Nova and XE Corsa I think they are over rated personally.

Don't get me wrong, they are fun little cars but they are by no means the mad machines that some people tend to make out. I got bored of them and the performance very quickly.

Obviously with throttle bodies etc... they will be better but for that money I'd look at a LET.

A LET Nova or Corsa really is a different kettle of fish and genuinely a fun/fast car IMO.

 

funny that is maybe yiou say dat kuz u have a nova! gt5 are rapid mate. lad around here has one and its bloody quick! seen a few and all quick cars tbh.. obviously its down to the owner,money ,time etc on each car. for example i saw a nova on the motorway broken down but that dont make it shit its prob had a hard life as many renault 5s have.. .. id still go for a evo 3 though out the lot lol

 

just to mix it up a bit how about ....

1.6 vti 160bhp "apparantly"
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C224602
most small hondas are little pocket rockets and surely more reliable than the vauxhalls

 

on a long straight these big engined small cars are damn quick! but not much control, dangerous , etc id rather have a 4wd turbo car. RIGHT im selling my s2 now lol

 

Carlo's had some pretty tasty machinery over the years... but I remember him saying that the White Nova Turbo he bought recently-ish was absolutely bonkers. Don't think it was mega spec either, just basic upgrades.

Out of interest, how much does a decent LET engine and supporting conversion parts cost??

It might be that you buy a good base and get your hands dirty doing a conversion yourself since you are looking for a project... ok, you'll prob end up spending a little more than the original budget, but you can spread that cost over time and you'll know it's been done properly.


Cheers,
Grant

 

id also look at nissan cherry turbos,toyota starlets, etc but agree that a corsa let will be rapid! and a mad nove would.. but half the time it will be spinning all over the place!

 

A gtir is perfect then.
You can get them down to under 1100kg with a little work and 280-300bhp is easy to get.

 

The only video on nitrous is the lap a totb, all the others are off gas.

I probably put 30+ bottles of gas down my xe engine without a problem, well 2 self inflicted failures but nothing caused by the gas. I fitted Ollys prior to totb and set it up on the day, he had never driven using nitrous and didn't have a controller in the car so it was quite aggressive, that engine is still in a car being used to this day

YO bruv, take a look in my garage

I built that nova from a bare shell in 2005, stock xe, lsd, coilovers. AP brakes and a few other basic mods, dropped into the 8's round the ring on my first visit with it and ran a 13.051 with 100 shot of gas up the pod. It was dismantled and sold in bits in 2006 when I started building my MK2 Escort.

Its the same car in the video I posted above.

Anything Evo, GTIR is going to be a money bit and should not be compared to owning a xe nova.