Nova Sport Ashley Silencer
There have been many stories over the years about how the exhaust came to be red, and why Ashley were used to produce the exhaust. Anything from stories that they were made by a company who were working on London buses, to someone not paying an invoice and so being made red as a reminder to pay. We’ll probably never manage to convince everyone that these are or are not true, but one thing we can be sure of is that it’s one item on the Sport that is definitely unique.
With Ashley’s being in close proximity to Steve Thompson Cars (Irmscher UK) it’s easy to understand why they were chosen – the car was being produced in such a short time scale that the companies location saved time and money.
Red Ashley Exhaust
Below is an extract from the Jon Walsh Nova Sport write up in Total Vauxhall. The article covers the story of the exhaust and how it came to be red. You can read the full write up HERE
Performance Camshaft*. Exhausting Red Supplies
The Nova Sport exhaust tailpipe was a huge (for its day) 2 inch job. Massive. It was also uniquely red, but nearly wasn’t. Brian Ashley (Ashley Exhausts) was approached by Steve (at Steve Thompson Cars) who was gathering the parts for the Sport package. It was October and the Motor Show wasn’t far away. The first Nova Sport was to go on display and it needed a back box. Brian received a call one Friday – three nicely finished boxes were urgently needed. They were made in mild steel and the powder-coating company Brian was using was only doing red that day. So three red back boxes were sent to Steve.Not long after the show, Brian received a call from Steve’s brother, John. “Where are the other back-boxes?” He was confused at first, until an order slip came in later that day – “Purchase order to produce 500 Nova Sport back boxes (in red)”. Luck or fate?
Brian says Ashley is more than happy to supply an original-spec back-box for anyone wanting the real thing. Any colour you like as long as it’s red. Still, it’s thought the exhaust was supposed to remain standard. This may be an urban myth, but while testing the first Sport engine on the dyno, things started going wrong. With the engine in full flight, the back-box rattled loose and fell off. The power output jumped. There was much scratching of heads, this resulted in the decision to have a performance back box. The rest is history.
Ashley Silencer Fitted
