Learn Me: Corvairs

Probably an acquired taste but they seem damn cheap right now. You can get a decently running one for around $3,000. How supported are they with parts and how easy are they to work on? I'm sorta poking around for a weekend sweetheart for around 3,000$.

Corvairs seem to be the retro darlings of GRM.

They aren't for the faint of heart.....and unfortunately, you will probably sell it for what you paid.

With that out of the way, I like them. I would recommend the last bodystyle(66-69 IIRC)

Parts are in general fully available. Some things are not repro'd, like cases and cranks (there has been a custom run of billet cranks), but there are plenty around. You cannot however, get the selection of repro parts like a Camaro or Mustang. If you want body parts, most of the rust spots are repro'd, but a fender for example, is a junk part, no repro.

Working on them? Easy but different. Essentially the same as any GM car of the era, except for the drivetrain, then you are more in the Porsche / VW territory. With experience, you can drop the entire drivetrain in about an hour (earlies are a bit quicker then lates).

They certainly have some quirks, but they are easy enough to learn about, but that's what makes them interesting.

Generally very good buys, but I would be a bit weary of repainted cars (most are red btw). The cars are cheap, they don't bring much money restored, so many times work is done cheaply or not done well. There of course are well documented, properly restored cars out there, you just really want to see the documentation.

Here is a good list of some book available:

http://autoxer.skiblack.com/books.html

The Corvair Basics, and How to Keep your Corvair Alive are both good and almost essential books for anyone wanting to maintain one.

That site also has some very good performance info on it.

This site also has some good general info:

http://www.corvaircorsa.com/intro.html

Thanks for the info! Those books look like a lot of help. Essentially I'm looking for something to learn wrenching on. I've restored one car but I was deemed interior duty while my friend did the mechanics, so my mechanical knowledge is extremely basic. I have a nice daily driver so if the car isn't running that often that's fine. I just thought Corvair might be a cheap way to do this and it looks like the mechanics of it are very well documented.

Sweet, some books to add to my wishlist for Christmas. Really want a later convertible somewhere down the line, but will have to settle for reading up on them for now. REALLY shouldn't seriously look at getting one until the Elky is finished and usable...

Clark's is a good source for parts, but here's their take on the history.

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

2 - 4 -1 sale.

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/cto/4111063398.html

Actually I have some experience with this (yay for first post!) I have been fixing up a 65 monza convertible over the past year.

Parts are reasonable, Clarks (http://www.corvair.com/user-cgi/pages.cgi) will sell you about anything you need, as well as a few other venders. As pointed out above some things will be NOS or refurbs, but a lot of new or upgrade parts are available.

There are two great forums I've been relying on for information while fixing the car, corvaircenter and corvairform. Both places have people willing to help explain about anything and plenty of resources like links to videos on youtube or PDFs of manuals, etc.

I'd recommend a 65-69 unless you just happen to like the EM body style more. Also buy the one you find with the least amount of rust and the drive train in the best shape, those two will eat the most money as you can guess.

They're a lot of fun to drive and tool around in, not the fastest, but everyone loves them for how different they are. Have fun!

edit thought I'd add some things...

See if its leaking oil (likely) and from where. The o-rings for the push rod tubes are likely the cause or the oil pan gasket, both are easy and cheap fixes.

Also check the fuel pump (if it has mechanical) to see if it's new, if you have any fuel delivery problems to the carbs it's probably worn out and may be leaking fuel into the oil. This is also an easy and cheap fix unless you want to put in an electric pump.

Points on the car may also be bad if it's running poorly, you can replace those or put in something like an ignitor to replace the whole system and not mess with points.

Those are probably the main issues in a badly running corvair. If you can I'd suggest finding a 4 speed.

engines come in a few flavors, 110s are the most common i think and are good, 140s (corsas) which have 4 carbs and are a bit more finicky, and 180s (turbos) which have their own uniqueness.

I'd love either a 140 or 180 turbo for the coolness factor, but the 110 is a solid runner with not a lot that goes wrong on it once it's running.

Great! Thanks for the information. I bought two of those books suggested, will do some reading before I get to buying.