CAR LUST: Remembering the 1968-1974 Chevy Nova. I had a ’76 Nova when I practiced law in Washington; it was a hand-me-down from my grandparents. Living in DuPont Circle and walking to work, I didn’t need a car much, but it was nice to have something, and my apartment came with underground parking. The Nova was reliable, and held a lot of people, groceries, or Ikea furniture. It didn’t impress women who thought that a lawyer at a big-name firm should be driving something fancier, but for the most part I regarded that as a feature, not a bug.