America was assailed by a new group of four-cylinder subcompacts for 1971 – the Chevrolet Vega, Ford Pinto and AMC Gremlin and captive imports like the Plymouth Cricket came onto the market in a big way. At the other end of the spectrum, full-sized Chevrolets received a big makeover. All this passed the 1971 Chevy Nova by, and it takes an expert to tell a 1970 model from a 1971. Under the hood, however, the unpopular four-cylinder engine finally disappeared and the Nova was reduced to just the 113 and 114 series. The 113 series had the 145 bhp 250 cid six and the 114 series the 200 bhp 307 cid V-8. Production was evenly divided.

The basic Chevrolet Nova Super Sport package attracted 7,015 buyers and included a 270 bhp, 350 cid V-8 with power disc brakes, heavy duty suspension, dual exhaust, dummy air intakes on the hood, black grille and rear panel, fake front fender louvers, 14-inch wheels, SS emblems and a special steering wheel. Bucket seats were optional.

Nova options remained much the same as 1970, minus the high performance powerplants. Popular ones included air conditioning, center console with floor shift, vinyl roof, tinted glass, power brakes, dual exhaust, tilt steering column, heavy duty clutch, power steering, AM/FM stereo, Positraction rear axle, Rally wheels, Mag-style wheel covers, wire wheel covers, and headlight delay.

Chevrolet offered 22 exterior colors for the 1971 Nova, including Antique White, Nevada, Silver Steel, Tuxedo Black, Ascot Blue, Mediterranean Blue, Mulsanne Blue, Command Blue, Sea Aqua, Cottonwood Green, Lime Green, Antique Green, Sunflower Yellow, Placer Gold, Champagne Gold, Sandalwood, Burnt Orange, Mesa Sand, Classic Copper, Hugger Orange, Cranberry Red, and Rosewood.

Boosted by new models, Chevrolet sales rebounded this year despite a two-month strike, and chief executive John Z. DeLorean watched 2,275,694 cars roll off the production lines, putting Chevrolet back in first place.