The Chevrolet Corvair and the Hidden Holden Connection

[Bob Riebe]

Not great looking but far, far better than the Corvair they made.

[ironglows]

 I had a Corvair for a short time.  It was a turbocharged model.  For that time, it was quite a performer, and would really jump when passing speed was required.  However, every time I put my foot into it..the fan and super charger drive belt flew off!
  There was another problem, but nothing that could not be easily solved.  Although it had some teething problems, in all it was a nice little car... until Nader killed it !

[Argent 88]

They were also bad about breaking motor mounts. The rubber part not the metal. We had a CPO at NAS Virginia Beach who had one. He seemed to like it though, especially after he had the mounts replaced with an after market which was much better than the factory.

Air cooled engine in the back, somewhat in competition with the VW Bug. But much more powerful than the bug, more room also.

[Argent 88]

The Corvair's alleged problems stemmed from its unusual rear-engined lay-out and the suspension that held it up. That design led to unstable emergency handling, according to Nader. It's hard to say whether the Corvair was much more dangerous than other cars of its time.

[ironglows]

  The rear suspension was not faulty..that was just Nader..people here at the time were just not accustomed to individual rear suspension, so he played upon their lack of familiarity.
  The major fault with mine, besides the belt tossing problem, is that I had to put it up about every 6 months and make sure the screws which held the oil pan on, were still tight.   Through the numerous heating and cooling cycles, they would loosen up.
  VW solved that problem by using only screws which expanded and contracted at the same rate.
    When I did trade that in, it was for a Beetle.  My Corvair was like the one you posted, except hard top and a light metallic blue color.

[ironglows]

I had a college buddy who had a Corvair Monza turbo. It was spacious inside, handled like a sports car and was quick. Didn't like to start in the cold weather.
.
.TM7

   Mine exactly...wish I had some photos..but nope !

[Lloyd Smale]

When i first moved here my neighbor had a turbo corvair in his yard. I saw him drive it once. It looked to be in great shape. noticed one day it was gone. I didnt know him well then but asked him where it went. He said he got tired of it being in his yard and sold it for 500bucks!!!! I about cried. he said the motor was getting tired at 60k but there was no rust anywhere on it and it went down the road great. I told him he could have easily got 10 times that much for it even back then. Sure wish i would have asked about it earlier.

Another turbo corvair story. my cousin the same age as me back when we were teens lived about 200 miles from here. I used to go there (original home town) for summers. His sister married a big time car salesmen in lansing and brought home toys for the cousin to play wiht. one year he had a sand rail with one of those turbo flat 6s in it. That thing would make your but pucker!

I had a college buddy who had a Corvair Monza turbo. It was spacious inside, handled like a sports car and was quick. Didn't like to start in the cold weather.
.
.TM7