McRae-spec Vauxhall Nova Sport for sale

Vanishingly rare homologated curio in timewarp condition - with price to match

By PH Staff / Sunday, 26 October 2025 / Loading comments

Let’s all agree: paying nearly £40k for a 40-year-old Vauxhall Nova is bonkers. It defies reason. Not an unusual sentiment when discussing older cars, of course, many of which are only worth now what someone is prepared to pay for them - but it’s hard to see how anyone of sound mind could justify spending Mercedes-AMG A45 S money on such a rudimentary old hatchback, surely appreciated now only by a middle-aged niche, most of whom would freely admit to the car’s glaring objective weaknesses.

Nevertheless, if you are of a certain age, the Nova, alongside a smorgasbord of other cheap-to-buy front-drive cars from the ’80s and ‘90s, does tend to provoke memories of summers long gone, when you were freer and lighter and more easily pleased. Thankfully, there are easier and cheaper ways to access those feelings than blowing a small fortune on a used Vauxhall - though, admittedly, if you’re adamant that there's only one way back to the good times, you’re not going to find many better, or rarer, than this.

To give the Nova Sport its due, its status as a proper homologation special is not in question. This is, after all, the car that a young Colin McRae cut his teeth on. Vauxhall produced 500 examples so that it might have something for Group A rallying, another good reason - beyond the Nova’s usual rate of disintegration - that so few survive. This particular car, in case there was any doubt about the validity of its Polar White paint and model-specific livery, has apparently been authenticated by the archivist at Vauxhall Heritage.

At any rate, the Sport is recognisable for its distinctive red silencer and modified 1.3-litre motor, which earned twin Weber DCOE carburettors, an Irmscher induction manifold and a performance camshaft for a heady 93hp. Modest though its improvement over the standard SR engine was, the Nova’s lack of extraneous weight meant that it translated into solid performance gains: the vendor’s claim of a two-second improvement to 60mph might even be true.

Inside, it's predictably spartan, with brown Daytona check Recaro seats that look barely sat in, and an early SR dashboard with orange-needle instruments. Obviously there's no air conditioning, no power steering and definitely nothing as newfangled as airbags. A two-speed fan is the extent of the Sport’s standard luxuries; the only thing foreign to the kit list seems to be 15-inch Compomotive Motorsport alloys, though (assuming they are add-ons) we can all agree they look the part.

Otherwise, the car is a testament to originality, TLC and considerate use - remarkable, really, given the Sport’s brief. The history does show some light track eventing (would be a shame not to, right?) but with a comprehensive service just completed, including cambelt, water pump and brake overhaul, it’s ready to go. Where to exactly, is harder to fathom. Despite its motorsport provenance, the Nova is surely too humdrum for a serious collection - and yet is arguably too rare and pricey to play thrashy B-road time machine. Suggestions welcome below. Either way, it’ll help to love it a little.

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