LQ4 into a 3rd Gen/1972 Nova by frojoe

4 minute(s) of a 891 minute read

Picked up some casual reading material to get more knowledge into my noggin..

1-24-2017

Did a quick screw around in Photoshop during a meeting and came up with this...

1-25-2017

I've always liked the frenched look of tailpipes in a bumper like that super clean Nova you posted, in fact I've always been interested in trying that on mine since it had angle-cut chrome tailpipes way in the beginning. The thing that really bugs me is because of where the frame rails are, the tailpipes end up being very outboard, which the proportions of tailpipe-width to bumper-width just looks wrong to me. Not sure why.. it just bugs me..

I could also do the extended turndown tips, to exit as close to the rear as I can without having it really hanging below the bumper..

The raw/dirty/racey/purposeful/obnoxious look I'm kinda liking now is along these lines..

I'm definitely opposed to an in-trunk fuel cell.. I mean I know this car is going to become less and less practical but I just don't want to make and weld in a support frame, and have to open the trunk to fill up, and lose all that trunk space. I've thrown bags in the back for a weekend trip or put my mountain bike in there.

The tailpipe routing would be going over or under the axle (under more likely) and then spreading wider while staying high (if over-axle) or angling upwards (if under-axle), snaking between the coilovers and the front dog-eared corners of the gas tank, then rearwards on the sides of the gas tank (unsure if I'll route inboard, outboard, or underneath the framerails.. or trim the framerails upwards). Any tailpipe design/location aft of the back of the gas tank and other than straight back will be purely aesthetic choice and not driven by any physical constraints.

Maybe something closer to this? There's probably 12" of room between the rear of the gas tank and the bumper (think of how long the filler neck is).. enough room to make a bit of a Z shape in the tailpipes to narrow their spacing under the bumper in from the wide width of the frame rails..