Eat it, Nader Jan 19, 2006
It's almost identical to the one of my memories, except that this Monza Spyder has half again as much horsepower thanks to its turbocharger.
Sometimes it becomes obvious that we live our lives according to emotion, not logic. No wonder we drove poor old Mr. Spock so crazy.
Our own proof of this tendency is sitting in the garage. It's a 1963 Corvair Monza Spyder, one of the best examples of emotion beating logic that God ever put on this green earth. There's no other way to explain a car that represented so many innovative "firsts" by its manufacturer, GM--including fully independent front and rear suspension, unibody design, and a rear-mounted, aircooled engine (Chevy's only attempt at that breed) available with the manufacturer's first production turbocharger--that it debuted to great accolades, yet came to be so reviled by an automotive-buying public thanks to Ralph Nader's sensationalist 1965 book, "Unsafe at Any Speed," that its failure is still remembered today.
Our very own Margie Suddard said, "Not that I was aware of any of this the first time I ever set eyes on a 'Vair, since I was only 7 years old. It was 1968, and my big sister Terri had just gotten her first set of wheels, a maroon 1963 Corvair Spyder that was already so rusty, and had been repaired so badly, that my dad and she plastered big vinyl "flower power" stickers all over the sides to hide the cracked body filler. I thought it was wonderful."
She adds, "I have many great memories of being trundled about in this first car by my sister and her girlfriends, who now that I think about it treated me like a sort of pet. Terri could replace a thrown fan belt in just a minute or two, and she still has stories of burly men who stopped to help her on the side of the road, only to be astonished when she calmly walked around to the OPPOSITE end of the car from where they were standing, quickly popped the deck lid and tucked the belt back into place. It's the sort of story that appeals to us Young women on several levels."
"Which brings me to MY Corvair. I've been campaigning for one for awhile," Margie continued, "and although I am happy to acknowledge the superior mechanicals (and, okay, styling) of the second-gen cars (post-1965), I wanted an Early just like the one in my memories. And eBay made my dreams come true when this all-original, rust-free example (really!) came up for auction just before Christmas. It's almost identical to the one of my memories, except that this Monza Spyder has half again as much horsepower thanks to its turbocharger."
The car is crusty but ready to roll now that we've put new 195/60R14 Hankook tires on Panasport-style wheels and a set of Koni shocks underneath it (turns out off-the-shelf C3 Corvette front shocks fit just fine front and rear). The engine was rebuilt sometime in the early '70s but ran very little afterward, and the top is new. As soon as we get a front bar on there to tune out some of the oversteer (not that Nader knew what he was talking about or anything), we'll be styling.
We're Legal Jun 28, 2006
We finally got a good title for our Corvair. For the last six months we have been going back and forth with California DMV trying to get the title squared away. It seems that the last time CA-DMV issued a title for this car, a DMV clerk transposed two numbers in the serial number. We knew that there was no problem with the car itself, as the numbers were early in the serial number and indicated detail stuff, not the car's actual serial number.
After going back and forth three times, CA-DMV admitted the mistake, fixed the issue and sent us a clear title to our Corvair.
We also have upgraded the tires. The 195/60R14 tires we had were a little too short for a Corvair. At less than 24-inches in diameter they did not look right. They also made the fact that a Corvair was not equipped with an overdrive transmission painfully obvious. We chose Firestone's Affinity LH30, sized 195/70R14 as our replacement. At 24.8-inches in diameter they are perfect for a Corvair. The 70-series aspect ration gives us more performance than the stock 13x6.5-inch tires.
The Firestone is an all season tire and it's available from the Tire Rack for $59 each. They ride well, handle well and don't look out of place on our Corvair.
The Corvair Gets Some Love Sep 1, 2006
Back on the road, with its improvements and Red Line Shockproof LT gear oil, we are continually amazed at how nice this car drives.
While our full attention is on our Tiger project, we wanted to get our Corvair ready for a local Corvair meet August 19 in the Ormond Beach, Florida area.
To that end, we had to attend to a few things. First and foremost, the shift shaft seal was leaking prodigious amounts of transmission oil onto the ground. Once the area was cleaned up, the repair was as simple as pulling the old seal out with a sharp object, putting an appropriately sized socket over the new seal and gently tapping the new seal into place. A new rubber boot was also obtained from Clark's Corvair parts. They seem to be the leader in Corvair parts. Their prices are reasonable, their service is quick and friendly, and their staff is very knowledgeable. We will be going back to Clark's to help with our future needs.
While we were under the car, we painted and reconnected the front anti-roll bar (with new bushings) that came in the trunk of the car. We also fixed a minor fuel tank leak with some epoxy. We will be replacing the tank when we can find one, but we want to keep this car on the road in the meantime.
Back on the road, with its improvements and Red Line Shockproof LT gear oil, we are continually amazed at how nice this car drives. New 14 inch Firestone tires and a set of Konis combined with the front anti-roll bar make this car handle and ride very well, especially considering its age and reputation. As we make small improvements to this car, it is quickly becoming our favorite.
When the mechanical work was done, we went over the newly buffed car with Meguiar's cleaner/wax and were impressed with how much of the shine came back.
Next up will be a thorough brush touch up and we will be looking for some new chrome and a carpet kit. A more complete front-end rebuild is also in order. We will explore disc brake conversion options, too.
Meetings May 16, 2007
A few weeks ago we took our Corvair to a local CORSA club gathering. It was great to meet everyone and we have found CORSA to be a great club. We met some really nice, friendly people who make good resources to help us restore our Monza Spyder.
Another great resource is Clark's Corvair. We have chosen them to be our primary sponsor for this project. They really seem to be the leaders in Corvair parts and have an excellent website.
With our Sunbeam Tiger nearing completion, we have ordered parts for our Corvair and are looking forward to tackling this project next.
Bent Pushrod in the Corvair Jun 5, 2007
While the pushrods appeared to be new in our engine rebuilt by the previous owner, we noticed that a pushrod had been installed incorrectly. The oiling hole was placed away from the rocker assembly, not towards it the way the engine is supposed to be built. A used pushrod borrowed from a local CORSA club member saved the day, and a call to Clark’s Corvair got us a new one. After some tuning and valve adjustment, our Monza Spyder runs better than it ever has.
While at the Carlisle Import Swap meet we picked up a pair of cool 1960s Lucas driving lights to mount on the front bumper of our Corvair. This was just the touch we needed to get started on that ‘60s rally look that we are going for on this car.