Story
The 1966 Chevrolet Chevy II Nova SS L79 is the compact-car counterpoint to Chevrolet's bigger SS396 story. Chevrolet restyled the Chevy II for 1966 with a sharper body, a semi-fastback hardtop roofline, vertical taillights, and a brighter Super Sport trim package. Over-Drive identifies the Nova Super Sport as hardtop-only and describes the SS cues: wide rocker moldings, bright rear cove, SS grille and rear-cove emblems, Super Sport quarter-panel script, special 14-inch Super Sport wheel covers, bucket seats, and console availability with a 4-speed or automatic.
The L79 is what turns that compact SS into a serious muscle-car page. The 327-cubic-inch Turbo-Fire V8 carried 11.0:1 compression, hydraulic lifters, a Holley four-barrel carburetor, 350 hp at 5800 rpm, and 360 lb-ft at 3600 rpm. Over-Drive also states the L79 was paired with a 4-speed transmission only and that Powerglide was not available with the 350-hp engine. That boundary matters because many Nova SS cars were not L79 cars, and many 327-powered cars were the lower-output L30 path.
The chassis details remain just as important as the headline horsepower. Over-Drive lists a 3.31:1 standard rear gear for L79 4-speed cars, with 3.55:1 and 3.73:1 optional, plus Positraction optional for V8-equipped cars. GM Classics option data records F40 special front and rear suspension, J50 power brakes, J65 metallic brake facings, G80 Positraction, and H05 3.73 rear axle equipment. Those are treated as available factory paths, not as proof that every L79 survivor still carries them.
Production is source-qualified. NovaResource reports 20,986 1966 Super Sport hardtops, 5,481 total 1966 L79 327 cars, and 3,547 L79 Super Sports. This page publishes those counts with the source caveat intact and does not invent color, transmission, or plant splits. Paint coverage follows the 1966 Chevy II paint table shared in the reviewed Over-Drive source.