The Chevy Corvair: Relic of an Era When Quality Was an Afterthought
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A D D E N D U M The Chevy Corvair: reliC of an era When QualiTy Was an afTerThoughT Photo of Chevrolet Corvair 164 Turbo rear- mounted engine—and spare tire compart- ment!—taken at Bay State Antique Automobile Club’s July 10, 2005 show at the Endicott Estate The 1960 Chevrolet Corvair four-door sedan (courtesy Stephen in Dedham, MA (courtesy of User: Sfoskett/ Foskett (Wikipedia user: sfoskett) and the Bay State Antique WikimediaCommons). Automobile Club show). The recent and continuing comeback to the car’s launch in 1960, two Corvairs puts it: “The carbs sit right on the engine. of the U.S. auto industry has been some- were tested at the Riverside International The carbs make the engine appear com- thing to behold. Sales are booming— Raceway in Riverside, California for 24 plicated, one on each side. Mechanical relative to the sagging economy—quality hours. One car rolled over. But hey—the linkages connect to the other carb on is king and dealerships are reopening. other completed the drive consuming only the other side of the engine. Testing Couple that with Toyota’s recall night- one quart of oil.) showed that using either a two- or four- mares and the future looks pretty rosy. So it was no surprise that the Corvair barrel carb (one carb with two or four All of which—for no reason at all, is introduced in Unsafe at Any Speed’s barrels) perched in the center of the really—might remind some people of a first chapter: “The Sporty Corvair—The engine was problematic in maintenance car that shall forever live in infamy and One-Car Accident.” That just might be and during cold and sub-freezing temps. ignominy—the Chevrolet Corvair. The because the 1960–1963 models had a Before changes were made, the carbs car debuted to great acclaim in 1960 faulty swing-axle suspension design that tended to take much longer to heat up in and was unceremoniously dropped from was prone to buckle under certain condi- cold weather, or freeze to a light film that the GM line after the 1969 model. Yes, tions—like stopping, for example. caused fuel problems.” 1960 to 1969—a time of auto industry- But enough aspersion casting. Fact A change in the 1966 model was conceived “planned obsolescence,” pre- is, the Corvair was a very popular ride a more robust four-speed synchromesh maturely rusting Bodies by Fisher and in its day, soon morphing into models transmission using the standard Saginaw on and on. like the 900 Series Monza—“the poor gear set with 3.11:1 first gear ratio used But all of that was just warming up man’s Porsche.” Did you know that the by other GM six-cylinder vehicles. But in the bullpen compared to 1965, when Corvair was the only American-made, sales began to decline as a result of Ralph Nader’s groundbreaking consum- mass-produced passenger car to feature a Nader’s book, although that may also er advocate tome Unsafe at Any Speed rear-mounted air-cooled engine? That it be attributed to the debut of the new was published. The book had a profound was Motor Trend magazine’s Car of the Ford Mustang and “inside-auto industry” effect on the U.S. auto industry and con- Year for 1960? rumors of the upcoming Panther—appar- sumer education—seat belts were just But as with many cars—in those days ently the code name for the imminent one improvement. And guess which car at least—the engine was the attention- arrival of the Camaro. Nader chose as a prime example of poor grabber. Accounts at the time regarding the quality and unsafe engineering—yep— The Corvair engine was an alumi- Corvair’s demise ranged from “sadness the Corvair. num, air-cooled 140 cubic inch (2.3 L) and regret” that such a “fine car” could Nader’s book documented problems “flat-six” that eventually evolved to 145 not survive to anger at Chevrolet’s deci- associated with the Corvair’s steering, and then to 164 cubic inches. The engine sion to continue making the car for as tire pressures and stability on the road. produced 80 hp (60 kW) and, for extra long as they did. This resulted in many accidents that, oomph, offered in 1965 a turbocharged One final note—an ironic epitaph of Nader said, could have been avoided 180 hp (134 kW) Corsa engine option. sorts: Today, Corvair engines are used with a better-designed car. Former—and Depending on the model, the engine in many small aircraft because of their legendary—industry executives John sported dual or quad carburetors—unusu- durability. DeLorean and Lee Iacocca agreed. (Prior al for the time. Or as a Corvair fan site 88 GEARTECHNOLOGY June/July 2011 www.geartechnology.com.