Automotive Design and Development

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Defunct

Automotive Design and Development Ltd (ADD) was an English company that was responsible for the creation of the futuristic-looking Nova. The company was based in Southampton from 1971 to 1973 after which it moved to Accrington, Lancashire until 1975. ADD as a company failed and the rights to the Nova were bought by Vic Elam who founded a new company, Nova Cars in Mirfield, West Yorkshire in 1978 which continued until 1990. The car is currently (2005) being made by Aerotech in London.

The Nova

The car, styled by Richard Oakes with engineering by Phil Sayers, has been called by some one of the most beautiful cars ever. The two seater Nova with its dramatically opening roof/door combines elements of the Ford GT40 and Lamborghini Miura in a fiberglass shell on a VW Beetle chassis and mechanicals.

Licenced version of the Nova have been built in Austria as the Ledl, in Australia as the Pervis Eureka, in France as the Défi, in Italy as the Totem and Puma, in New Zealand as the Scorpion, in South Africa as the Eagle, in Switzerland as the Gryff, in the USA as the Sterling and Sovran and even in Zimbabwe as the Tarantula. There have also been numerous un-licensed copies. Some versions featured pop-up head lamps and gull-wing doors, but the basic silhouette remained the same.