At a local marina. Pretty, restored but mostly stock in a nice period correct color. Always liked these.
Sighting-Corvair Sedan
- Thread starter wings&wheels
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Very nice. It's a shame GM didn't pursue the development of this power train. A certain German manufacturer did, with "pretty good" results.
we had a corvair when i was < 8. ; i remember riding in it only once; probably traded up to a used 65 wildcat convertible; fire engine red, bleach white power top.
I feel bad for you guys that spent your childhoods in chevettes and mid 80s underpowered hogs.
I feel bad for you guys that spent your childhoods in chevettes and mid 80s underpowered hogs.
I love the Rallye wheels. Chevy made some 14x5 for the Nova, I believe. Beautiful wheels.
Were those stock, or optional on this car then?? And yes, style!
Later Corvairs were simply beautiful.
The 1st year of the Rallye was 1967. I don't know the year of this Corvair (69 maybe), and I am not sure if the Rallye Wheel was offered on them. I don't think so.
I doubt these are original to this car. But they look great! The wheel itself looks like the correct Argent Silver color.
I think the smallest Rallyes were 14x5 for the 67 Chevy II with different backspacing depending on drum vs disc brakes.
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I would guess it's no later than '67 due to the absence of side-marker lights (1968 on).
Even has Spinners.
My first car was an abused 65 4-spd Monza. Paid $300 and towed it home because the clutch was gone. I pulled the engine, replaced the clutch, speedometer, and shocks. Bondo'd and painted it, all in my parents' garage. Took it to a welder to repair the busted hood hinges and a mechanic for ball joints. It took all summer, but it got me and a friend to the '69 Indy 500 from the Detroit area and to school for my senior year. Great learning experience for a 16-year-old. I still use the SK Wayne socket set I bought to do the work.
That is a 1965, the first year of the 'late' design ('65-'69). Only coupes and convertibles were sold in '68-'69.
Had the car survived, GM was faced with changing the engine. Being air cooled was a nightmare for emissions. They had already dropped factory A/C for the last 2 model years because of the high engine temperatures associated with the required Air Injection Reactor (smog pump) for the federal tail pipe standard. Long term durability was allegedly effected by GM testing. The California delivered cars (except turbo and A/C) already had the system installed to meet the California tail pipe standard starting with the 1966 models.
As the largest manufacturer, GM wasn't allowed to use a higher tailpipe standard, like lower production manufacturers.
Had the car survived, GM was faced with changing the engine. Being air cooled was a nightmare for emissions. They had already dropped factory A/C for the last 2 model years because of the high engine temperatures associated with the required Air Injection Reactor (smog pump) for the federal tail pipe standard. Long term durability was allegedly effected by GM testing. The California delivered cars (except turbo and A/C) already had the system installed to meet the California tail pipe standard starting with the 1966 models.
As the largest manufacturer, GM wasn't allowed to use a higher tailpipe standard, like lower production manufacturers.
Unfortunately, all Corvair cars came with 13" wheels. The Corvair trucks all came with 14" wheels. No styled wheels for either.
That's a handsome car as it sits, even with four doors.
@CorvairGeek, thanks for your knowledge on this type.
@CorvairGeek, thanks for your knowledge on this type.
Yes. The 2 door was much better looking.
We had a '63 Chevy II in the same colour (very similar at least). Looks nice when polished.
Like so many other cars from that era, the 2-doors got saved while the 4-doors went to the crusher.
Those wheels were never offered on the Corvair. All Corvair wheels were 13". I put a set of 14" wheels on my '66 Monza that came from a Camaro. Made a big difference in looks but changed the final drive ratio because they were taller.
Very pretty Corvair!
I have seen a Corvair engine rebuilt by others in shop class in high school in the 80s, case split and everything. My job at the time was a garbage malaise era 350 but I followed the Corvair engine build pretty closely, it was being done in the same clean room, so I looked over my shoulder a lot. Pretty interesting stuff. Seemed complicated at the time. This was in the 1986/87ish timeframe.
That 350 could have been good if we would have found some decent heads for it, I recommended to my shop teacher to go scour the local yards for some camel humps for it. It was going in his son's 2nd gen Camaro that started in the shop as basically a roller. But, we built it up with the garbage bathtub port heads, the L79 reproduction cam we put in it never had a chance. And the 2.73 gears in the Camaro. It ran good, sounded good too with just a slight touch of lope but it was slow as dog(poop). Oh well. Maybe that's what my shop teacher wanted for his teenage son.
I have seen a Corvair engine rebuilt by others in shop class in high school in the 80s, case split and everything. My job at the time was a garbage malaise era 350 but I followed the Corvair engine build pretty closely, it was being done in the same clean room, so I looked over my shoulder a lot. Pretty interesting stuff. Seemed complicated at the time. This was in the 1986/87ish timeframe.
That 350 could have been good if we would have found some decent heads for it, I recommended to my shop teacher to go scour the local yards for some camel humps for it. It was going in his son's 2nd gen Camaro that started in the shop as basically a roller. But, we built it up with the garbage bathtub port heads, the L79 reproduction cam we put in it never had a chance. And the 2.73 gears in the Camaro. It ran good, sounded good too with just a slight touch of lope but it was slow as dog(poop). Oh well. Maybe that's what my shop teacher wanted for his teenage son.
