Welcome to Club Hot Rod, Joe!

The ’74 Nova is that last of what I consider “good lookin’ Novas”… One thing that you’ve probably considered is that curb weight of the Nova with a 350 is 3457 pounds. Your Acura is 2529 pounds if it’s a 2 door hatch back and 2628 for the four door. As such, you’ll be disappointed with the same rear wheel horsepower if you’re looking for the same snap off the line and same top end through a ¼ mile.

I agree with Lynn, re; visit some sites that specialize in boosting an American V8. Be prepared to part with a good chunk-o-change to do this right. It may be less money to buy a prepped block than to re-work the one you have as it’s almost certainly a 2 bolt main motor.

You should use a 4-bolt block, forged steel crank, main studs, high-end connecting rods and rod bolts (like ARP), and forged pistons designed for a blower. If you spend some extra time and money on the bottom end you can upgrade later without having to replace the entire engine.

You want to use a cam designed for a blower as they typically have a wider lobe separation than other performance cams. Comp Cams makes one that measures 220/230(Intake/Exhaust) @ .050 and .510 lift on both with a 114 LSA. This will still give you enough vacuum to run power brakes.

As a side note – be sure you don’t have emission laws that regulate what you can do. I believe Cumberland County is the only real stringent area of Maine – but I’d sure check!

Have fun and keep us up to date with your new project!