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Corvair??

A

Anonymous-0

Well-known Member
Anyone know anything about them?? I remember a couple around when I was little but are they buying?? Any idea if parts are still available?
Just ran across one for sale here (unlikely place I know) and the pics look nice. Ad is in German, but the pics are there.. Did they have a common motor and a frame under them? Just wondering if it's worth following up on..

http://www.autoscout24.de/Details.aspx?id=213651340
 
Not much in common with anything else GM. Opposed 6 cylinder, air cooled, rear engine, unibody.

My dad is building an airplane out of one.

A nice roadworthy one will bring maybe $2K here.
 
Hello dave2,
If you want to use it for a lawn ornament, go ahead and get it!
It is way overpriced and even if its that good inside, I would pass on that.
You take that think on the autobon and when you get to 80 to 90 K.P.H. you WOULD be doing a wheely!
Guido.
 
Ford had the Edsel.
Chevy had the Corvair.

Yes, you can buy aftermarket parts for them. Chevy just had to try to put Volkswagen out of business, and they failed miserably with the Corvair. Considering they are considered an antiuque and or classic, they still don"t bring much as they just aren"t real popular. When you do see a guy with one at a car show here, you will find out he had a half dozen or more of them....probably to keep the one show car on the road! Don"t forget to take along extra oil, they leak worse than a Harley!
 
Can"t speak to your questions at all, but a mile down the road from me is an operation that specializes in Corvairs. Hardly a day goes by that I don"t see one go past my place. Some restored to beyond mint condition and others rusting as any other 40+ year old vehicle would be.

My step father always goes over to visit when he comes by here. He has restored several vehicles and seems like he wants to tackle a Corvair someday.

The one in your ad looks very clean, I think it should be in your driveway.

~Kirk
My Neighbor
 
Ralph Nader wrote a book about hte Corvair. Titled "Unsafe at any speed". I"ve read it and I would recommend reading it before buying one.
 
I had I think a 61 or 62 with a four speed way back when. It rode and drove as good or better than these modern cars do with their 1/2 inch of spring travel. I loved it until the transaxle went out. It was repaired but it had an awful whine afterward. I'd buy one today if they were available. Ralph Nader be d***ed. TDF
 
Back in the 70's when I lived in Grafton Ill. there was an Airboat, that a fisherman used on the Illinois river, and adjacent backwater lakes, It ran a corvair engine, and you could hear that puppy, coming a mile before it showed up! Worked real well for him, when he was sober, didn't have a deadman kill switch on it, and threw him off while drunk and was showing it off, turning tight circles, out from the Legion docks. The boat ran off, after running over him, and the Legion docks, and scattering the onlookers. It was found ideling in the woods, on mason Island, They had a heck of a time getting it back to the water. Darned good engine!
 
Looks pricey but you are in germany after all. Late production
had a lot of the early flaws fixed. Fun to drive and by the pix
looks fairly nice.
 
The problem with the earlier ones (which is what you're looking at) is that on hard cornering, the rear axle would fold under the car, "pole vaulting" it off the road. Wouldn't be a problem if you were driving it "easy".

The later ones ('67 or so) had a lot of refinements, and weren't a bad car- but the reputation was shot after the Nader book. As the others have said, not much demand for them, so not worth much.
 
Correction- I guess it is a '67 you're looking at, so shouldn't have the problem. I guess it was Two Dogs who mentioned a '61 or '62. Should have looked at the link first.
 
How ever you say "run" in German, say it and then do it.
They are not worth much, not in the USA.
Little known fact, Chevy had a Corvette prototype with a air cooled rear engine. It was a hopped up version of the big engine in the Monza.
 
Had a couple years back- swingaxle "64 or such for girlfriend with automatic transmission and a later independant axle 4 speed- decent enough utitly cars. Also had a 66 VW beetle before so rear end corner twitch was not a problem. Girlfriend front end rot meant sell for parts to rebuilder that liked the shape of drive train, 67 sold to another worker and his wife sort of liked it until burnt out clutch. Oil leaks can be handled some with special spring loaded 2 piece pushrod tubes and thick neoprene valvecover and pan gaskets, sealer around cyclinder base. Unibody at the time didn"t handle Chicago winter salt- germany may be easier on them. Corvairs in Europe were in late 60s, early 70s transported by military personel as private vehicles and the Germans sometimes had them brought over as alternative to VW and Porsches- the handling with a transverse leaf spring improved and the 4 barrel kit like I had meant a bit better drag times- and cost was less than a hot Porsche while being able to fit 4 people inside. Ralph Nader"s book picked on early models and was somewhat justified- but military M151 A1, A2 had same type rear suspension and flip overs also that were reduced in A3 trailing arm independant rears about same as Corvair and later than 1969(?) VWs. Engine hop up parts from the offroad racer crowd have been available for years- getting a bit harder to find, but like Beetle engine type 1 parts are out there yet. Price is up to you. RN
 
He didn't know autos, but did know how to make money off ignorance of autos. RN
 
My first car was a 62 Corvair.Ran the wheeels off it before I got rid of it. Dogged that poor little car to no end and it held up. Was not running when my Dad drug in in the yard and told me if I wanted a car, fix it. Took me two weeks to wrestle the motor out after I figuerd it came out from underneath. Then he took over and we overhauled it. Shure brings back memories!!!!
 

Some of the dirt track racers would, in the late 60s, put a Corvair body on a cut down Chevy frame and mount a V 8 engine in the front. They were about as much stock as the present NASCAR racers.

KEH
 
Actually, if you go back and research, Nader was spot on. The early Corvairs had a fixed swing axle. As it moved through it's range the camber constantly changed, This was very dangerous, especially in higher speed turns.
Due to his pressure, GM made the change to a floating axle where the wheel stays the same camber through the range.
It is what all independent axles on vehicles are today, thanks to Nader.
 
Dave2. The Corvair was one of the most
mistakenly bad mouth automobiles of it's day. Most
of the bad publicity you hear about them is from
people who never owned one, just heard others
badmouth it and are repeating hearsay. The
majority of the problems it had were worked out by
1964. The 1965 Corvair was one of the better
handling cars of it's day. The Yenko Stinger was
one of the hottest cars on the sports car circuit
in it's day.It was a stock production Corvair that
Chevrolet dealer Don Yenko of Pennsylvania made
some changes to it and really set the rally
circuit on its ear. Most of the problems were
caused by either owner neglect or just plain
stupidity. They like all vehicles of the day
required maintenance and looking over once in a
while. A large part of the problem came from GM
dealers not wanting to accept a radical change in
work methods, special tools and educating the
service personel for working on them. Most of the
oil leaks were stopped by using a better grade of
o-rings on the valve push rod tube and a light
coat of silicone on the rocker arm cover gaskets
sealed it up. An early problem was in 1960 when
the cooling thermostat failed it let the cooling
damper go shut. it was fixed in 1961 when all the
doors opened when it failed.The economy version
project of this car went down the drain when the
Ford Mustang muscle car hit the road. GM answered
it with the Corvair Spyder, the 4 carb. 140 hp
Corsa and other souped up versions. The 1960-63
versions were 140 CID engines, From 1964 on the
displacement was 164 CID. The 1964 Monza Spyder
developed 150 hp with a turbocharger and a 4 speed
gearbox. There were 3 levels of trim available
with Corvairs. The 500 series was basic with dog
dish hubcaps and almost no chrome. The 700 series
had a little more trim and full wheel covers were offered and
the 900 series was full bell and whistle trim
level. The GM corporate structure along with the
dealers abandoned ship rather than compete against
the Mustang, Hemi-Cuda, The Chargers and those
muscle cars. Ford's Falcon took over the
economy race along with the Plymouth Valiant and
of course the ever present VW. Supposedly Ralph Nader did
not even have a drivers license. I myself owned
several at one time and faithfully drove one of
the pickup trucks until my job requirements were
more than it could handle. If people don't think
they bring a good price, they haven't seen what a
good restored one will bring.In my own personal
opinon nothing damaged the Corvair's reputation as
much as the neglect of owners and the lack of
commitment by GM dealers. They are vehicles for
people that think out of the box and don't have
a herd mentality.
 
Dad bought one of the first off the line, and it was a car I learned to drive on. 3 speed on the floor, gas heater and all. Dam thing would go anywhere, and I tried. It was a good little car. Like any, it had it's limits, but they were few. Nader was a abundant press media type who grabbed a bunch of headlines on a minor point and made a name for himself amongst the more timid of our species. In other words, he was full of bull.
 
Ah, Corvair. Brings back memories of a borrowed Spider convertible, a platinum blond California girl, and a great date. She was here in Michigan visiting relatives and ended up at a New Year's Eve party my friend had. All the guys were hitting on her and I just sat quietly in a corner drinking a beer. Patience payed off. This was in '64 or '65 before the se?ual revolution. But we sure had a great time. Went to a movie and afterward necked up a storm. We kept in touch for several months but then she got a boyfriend. But what memories!!!!

Larry
 
It must have been about 65 or 66 Dad was shopping for a new family car. So he made arrangements with the local dealer and after church on Sunday we took a Chevy Greenbrier van out for a couple hour Sunday drive. It was based on the Corvair. I don't remember much about it but he didn't buy it. He bought a new 1966 Chevy Bel Air instead.
 
Right you are Downsouth, of all the compacr foreign cars GM could have copied, the VW beetle was about the worst choice.

Chevy backed themselves into a corner with a rear air cooled engine that could not be enlarged much if any beyond 200 CI,while Ford was in the same market with the Falcon/ Mustang with 260/289 V8's, and Mopar had the Valient/ Dart with 273/318 V8's. By the late 60's Ford and Mopar sold them with 428's - 440's while corvair still had their 164 CI 6 cyl.

GM imediatly realized what a dead end the Corvair was and quickly cobbled up a blatant nearly exact copy of the Falcon for 62, the Chevy II/ Nova.

The Corvair had the pathetic heat exchanger heating / defrost system of the old beetle, unless you bought the optional gas heater crutch
AC was nearly out of the question with an air cooled car.
And yes, I owned a couple of early ones, so I know how they worked and handled.
 
BS.

Ferdinand Porsche had absolutely nothing to do with the design of the Corvair.

Dean
 
Ex girl friend now-- but her CARS front body rust and rot was meaning of sentance. She had other bad habits which is why she is X. RN.
 
Agreed, UD.

Nader used his poorly researched book to launch his quite destructive career but knew absolutely nothing about automobles (Corvairs or otherwise) or the automotive industry.

Dean
 
Just like the Volkswagens.

Corvairs were no more prone to camber caused rollover accidents than were Volkswagens. The accidents were caused by owner neglect, i.e., under inflated tires.

Dean
 
I too have read it.

As a very well experienced automotive design engineer, attorney and lifetime mechanic (including Corvairs), I found it to be poorly researched and amateurish.

Dean
 
(quoted from post at 19:20:15 06/01/12) Just like the Volkswagens.

Corvairs were no more prone to camber caused rollover accidents than were Volkswagens. The accidents were caused by owner neglect, i.e., under inflated tires.

Dean
Click to expand...
was wondering how long it would take for someone to point out that early Corvairs & VWs both used swing axles (as did those Renaults of the period).........guess Ralphie didn't dislike the Germans & French?
 
I guess all the "sheeple" of the world would rather blame Nader than the company that would have refused to fix the problem had it not been for him. GM quit making them because they either refused to or were incapable of building them correctly (read safe) and still make a profit on them. Nader's only mistake was believing the public wanted to hear the truth about their "little toy". Being a consumer advocate is a thankless vocation simply because people don't want to hear that they have been decieved , swindled or coherced. Same reason most who voted for "the liar" last election will vote for him again this fall and wouldn't believe the truth about him if it hit them in the face.
 
i had a 1964 corvair panel truck, thats right a solid sided truck like a van, very rare now wish id kept it, they all had the same basic engine but there were 3 versions of it, one was a turbo'd version in the corvair monza and it was a unpleasent surprise to many mustang owners, the thing would flat out run! the van i had had the 110 hp dual carb version, parts are around for the corvair but it helps to be a member of a club, [ just like old tractors] the clubs know who has what and where, the car was a good design and would sell well if produced today, the problem was the car was ahead of its time, and people wern't quite ready for a whole new idea on the 'american car' the corvair threw the standard design of a car out the window, i never had any handling trouble with my van even with a load, that being said one did need to use common sence when driving, [is that asking too much?] also it suffered bad publicity due to a idiot maned ralph nader who really didnt know what he was talking about but got his point across due to the fact he did know who to talk too, id buy another corvair today myself
 
Now we have some pot stirring. Auto history may show the license, industrial practices and patent payments from GM to VW for use of Beetle design features in Corvair- it"s supposed to be nominal in some points, market value in other manufacturing process. And Porsche design bureau is the designer of VW type 1s. VW paid some patent, trademark, design process fees to Tatra- who"d made some rear engined, swing axled autos including a small aircooled model with some aerodynamic features like rounded nose and tail. Swing axles have been around prewar - and that may be WW1. Teasing Alert!
 

We had a 64 Monza or something. Had the 100 hp engine. It'd run 100 mph all day long and get 25 mpg doing it. Good car, but we out grew it.
 
The camber "issue" was eliminated in the 62 or 63 model year with the addition of camber limiting modifications.

The 65 and subsequent model years had double U joint axles as did the Corvette, eliminating the camber change with suspension travel.

Rollover accidents were caused mostly in earliest years when the under inflated tire would peel off of the rim upon hard cornering while, at the same time cresting a rise, allowing the swing axle to swing downward increasing camber.

When the under inflated tire peeled off of the rim, the rim would dig into the pavement (almost always asphalt) causing the hard cornering vehicle to flip.

Volkswagen beetles and countless other vehicles were prone to the same type of rollover but Nader did not do his research and did not so know.

Dean
 
BS.

The design changes were well along before Nader published his poorly researched book.

GMs decision to drop the Corvair had nothing to do with Nader's book.

Dean
 
I bought a used Greenbriar, had it a few years. Can't recall why I sold it. We bought a gas lantern-base heater for the front to keep from freezing. It held all five kids (under 10) easily along with 3 or 4 100# bags of cow grain. I didn't think we were gonna make it up one hill.
 
I had a 63 pontiac tempest with the slant 4 cyl (1/2 of a 389 V8) the jointless driveshaft'torque tube and the rear automatic swing arm transaxle. Corner it hard and you could sure get those single jointed rear axles tucked under the car, making the rear end do a scary hopity bounce. ;-0
 
As a kid growing up in So. Cal, we used to pick up Corvair engines cheap and put them in the dune buggies. Sure would make them short wheelbase VW pans fly with the extra HP, but it also made the front end super light. Tons of fun in the dunes, but the balance was off so far it was dangerous when you topped and then tried to jump a dune. Funny thing, after all these years I still have the glass body buggy my Dad and I built in the garage. Dad is 89 now and has told me many times I should just get rid of it, but I just can't.
a72352.jpg


And speaking of Falcons....check out my street signs on the corner post of our carport...

a72353.jpg
 
Sheeple? Same can be said for those that eat up everything Ralph Nader has to say. He is almost as bad as his sister, Laura (wacked out abundant California college prof).

The early Corvairs with the rear swinging suspension weren't any worse then the Volkswagen Beetles. I had many and still own my 1960 Lakewood wagon. I used to drive like a maniac in them and never had a accident due to the rear suspension design (which only existed the first three years).

GM did many updates to the Corvair along the way. They dropped it because sales bottomed out. Went from 300,000 a year down to 6000 in last year. It is Ralph Nader that should of been sued for his never-closing big mouth. The air-cooled Corvair was too odd for the American public and other conventional Chevys were selling MUCH better at that time. Same thing happened with the GM 215 c.i. aluminum V8 (neat little engine) and also the same with the 1/2 ton diesel Chevy Blazer. Lasted 10 years, just like the Corvair.

The corvairs were pretty neat for their time. 23-25 MPG with some decent performance. Especially with the turbo-Spyder. Downside was chronic oil leakage (just like Volkswagens) and a big drop in fuel mileage if you used the gasoline heater (also just like the Volkswagen). Funny how so many rave about those crappy Volkswagen Beetles yet frown when Corvair gets mentioned (thanks to jerky-boy Ralph Nader).

Ralph also complained about the lack of "park" in the early Corvair models with the Powerglide trans. Gee - you ACTUALLY had to use the parking brake! I suspect maybe some lives were actually saved due to that fact - not lost.

Some people still like them and just about any part is available from Clark's Corvair.

http://www.corvair.com/user-cgi/pages.cgi?category=vw

Ralph's "unsafe at any speed" is a little silly. Sure car makers cut corners. But do they sell death traps and laugh about it? Come on ! The Corvair thing was just about as stupid as the Ford Explorer/Firestone tire myth.

To the converse, I think it's a crime that anybody that wants a new car MUST buy with all the latest expensive safety equipment. A person on a budget ought to be able to opt out and get something cheaper.
 
Like Gene Davis sez... One of the best cars I have ever owned. Had a "64 Monza, a "65 Corsa. Both superb handlers, if there was a flaw in their suspension, I"d had found it long before Nader stabbed them in the back. I drove those things far harder than they were intended. Superb handling, very fast for a 6 cylinder, very good fuel efficiency when driven sanely. "64 had the single arm rear suspension, "65 had the parallel arm suspension like the Corvette. Both held the road like glue, no tendency to upset, even is s-curve type manuvers.
 
Dean
Ralph Nadar did ultimately redeem himself though. In my book at least. He was the spoiler who siphoned off enough votes that otherwise would have gone to Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election and thus got W elected :)
 
Corvair..... not too bad on dry roads, but nasty on snow or wet roads, apply the brakes and front wheels lock up, no steering. Good for a tuneup and a valve job about every 25,000 miles. Used to work in a Chevrolet dealership in the '60's when they were common. Kind of neat to drive, a Corvair Spyder could catch 3rd gear rubber.
Parts are available at Clarks Corvair Parts, Shelburne Falls, Ma.
 
(quoted from post at 22:16:56 06/01/12) Dean
Ralph Nadar did ultimately redeem himself though. In my book at least. He was the spoiler who siphoned off enough votes that otherwise would have gone to Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election and thus got W elected :)
Click to expand...
nly good thing I ever heard about Ralphie! :lol:
 
It's not a turbo. Those are highly collectible. Tim Allen owns and raced about the only convertible Yenko Stinger Corvair. I had a high school shop teacher that owned a couple Corvairs. He like many others said in slippery road conditions to just add some weight in the trunk at the front of the car to put more weight on the steering wheels.

I find it very odd that if the Corvair was so "unsafe at any speed", how come they made race cars out of them? The late models like the one for sale have been described as one of the most beautiful looking cars ever made. My neighbor had a Corvair powered dune buggy. It was pretty neat to bomb around in.
 
In 1969 I was attending ENMU at Portales, NM on the GI bill. I had read "Unsafe at Any Speed". Ralph Nader came to the campus to give a talk both about his book and the new "airbag safety devices" that he had encouraged manufacturers to work on. When he took questions, I ask him if it was true that he didn't have a drivers license; which he evaded answering. I then ask him if it was true that these airbag devices were blowing the eardrums out of test subjects. He got pretty mad. I thought he was an arrogant pr**ck and still do. I don't think he left with a very good opinion of me either. I always admired the design and performance of the late model corvairs, but never owned or drove one.

I did drive the M151 Army jeep that had a long travel swing arm rear suspension without getting one upside down although many weren't so lucky. I slid the M151 around corners on dirt, sand, asphalt, and concrete without an incident or accident.????
 
Thanks Folks.... I guess I'll run it by the neighbor kid and see if he's interested.... It'll cost me about 700 bucks a year to have it because I'll have to license and insure it permanently in the US system (and won't be able to sell it back to a german without a load of problems for each of us).
We can put it in his name and set it up with either no plates, half year plates, and another option that is MUCH cheaper....
Would love to have a chevelle, impala, or el camino, but they are untouchable if they are in a remotely decent condition..... Every now and then, a soldier will bring one over with him/her, but they are usually ragged out..

We'll see...

Thanks....
 
My wife and I had a 1963 Monza. I loved that car. Never had any trouble with it. Finally traded it because we needed more room for family.

Ralph Nader was an idiot. He was the forerunner of today's goofy protesters and environmentalist types who are always having a problem about everything.
 
If anybody is interested, I have a 1965 2 door hardtop in barnyard condition, in central MD first $300 gets it!
 
I remember when his book came out .I went home from the school library and asked my dad , "Is Ralph Nader a mechanical engineer ?" My dad replied that he was a lawyer. I said what would he know about cars? Even as a kid I thought he was a little out of his area of expertise.
 
The one you're looking at is a later model with full IRS. If it is an automatic they do have a habit of springing the flex plate. It was GM's answer to
the VWs and other small rear engined cars that were becoming popular in the late 50's in the US. It was the first unit body car Chevy did and I have
heard they were overbuilt. Some engine problems came from the fact the air-cooled engine ran hotter than a water cooled and GM didn't take that in
account when the specified gaskets. As for the swing axle debate VW and Renault had some limiters in the suspension to prevent the pole vault action,
Corvair didn't. GM knew about the problem and knew it could be corrected by a $9.00 "caster compensator" but choose not to make it standard equipment
from 60-63 it was an option in '64 it became standard. That was one of the things Nader tagged GM for, most of his book accused the manufacturers of
ignoring safety and focusing on cost. No one mentions that Ford pick up trucks used swing axles on the front from the early '60 until late '90s. Engine
for the Corvair is unique and they turn backwards, transmission is similar to the early (pre'64) Pontiac Tempest. As for the death of the Corvair the
sales dropped off, it was at a 10 year milestone and needed rework, GM was making more money on Novas and had the Vega coming out, both cars taking
market from the Corvair. Impending emission regulations and motor vehicle safety standards were making air-cooled rear engined cars un-practical. The
British had come out with the Mini and other manufacturers were headed to water-cooled front wheel drive compacts (Honda, VW, Renault, Subaru, Audi, Fiat
and Citroen) so GM phased the platform out. In the late 60's the accountants came to power at GM, initiative and risk taking was squashed and cost and
product standardization was the order of the day.
 
http://www.corvaircorsa.com/handling01.html

Gov't exonerates the Corvair alleged handling problems as stated by Ralphie.
 
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