Production of the Chevy Corvair took place between 1959 and 1969, with two generations coming and going during that time. Often associated with Ralph Nader’s “Unsafe at Any Speed,” the Corvair still maintains a loyal following of fans and enthusiasts to this day. Now, this water-damaged Chevy Corvair is getting a new lease on life thanks to the efforts of one determined mechanic, as seen in the following video.
Clocking in at 43-and-a-half minutes, the video is a long one, documenting all the steps needed to get this Chevy Corvair running and driving again. As the story goes, this classic two-door was totaled in New York City following devastating flooding caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Now, more than a decade later, we’re diving into the engine bay to get this thing back on the road.
The video kicks off with a reveal of the rear-mounted Turbo-Air flat-six engine. Output when new was rated at 110 horsepower. The video host begins by disassembling the engine to inspect for water damage, after which the oil is checked and the car is hoisted up into the air.
Once we get a peek at the underside, we find loads of rust and several other issues, like loose wheel bearings and worn suspension bits. However, nothing indicates that this Chevy Corvair won’t be able to run and drive again.
Next up, the oil is drained out into a large plastic beaker to see if any water got into it. As the oil is drained, a small gas leak is discovered, while the clutch cable looks to be in need of repair as well.
The repairs continue by draining the transmission, checking on the engine balancer, and pulling the spark plugs. It’s satisfying to watch the video host go through the Chevy Corvair step by step, providing the viewer with plenty of information on what it takes to get this classic back into running order along the way.
Check out the full video right here:
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Comments
Cool car, I remember as a kid, a neighbor had a 63 convertible.
Yeah – we had a new ’63 convertible – white with a white top. We used to say, “Four on the floor, with a 5th under the seat”. Good times.
Who cares? What a waste of time and $$$.
Not a car guy?
Then what’s he doing here?
As a little kid, I always thought the 1965 and later Corvairs were extremely attractive – one of the few second generation vehicles that were a big improvement over the first one.
The ‘Unsafe at any speed’ Complaint of Ralph Nader applied only to the 1960-1963 model years… The 1964 model looked as any other first generation model, but the swing axle had been wisely dropped. My family had 1960, and 1961 model year Corvairs and – against Owner’s manual advise, my Dad *DID NOT* under-inflate the front tires…
My dad said everytime he went around a corner it felt like the car was going to flip over…. As I say from 1964 on this was a non-problem.
Those 1960 Corvairs had the gasoline Borg Warner heater – hit the button and that blow torch heater had instant heat. The kids never understood why other cars had to “warm up” before the heater would blow hot air.
Yeah – the reason for only one model year of gasoline heaters was Chrysler Corporation advertising which pointed out the large ‘compact’ Plymouth Valiant with it’s fantastic ‘Slant Six’ engine got so much better mileage in the winter.
All Corvairs had an optional gas heater not just 1960. The base heater was a forced air heater ducted through the floor and it was standard starting in 1961.
1960 is he only year the Corvair didn’t have a standard heater.
I’m not sure about ’63, but I can tell you the gasoline heater was NOT offered in ’64 or later. There may have been aftermarket heaters, but not from Chevrolet.
The gasoline heater was not an option on my ’63 Corvair.
You may be right, but the ’63s had the provision to install one. Some options were “kind of” secret.
You must get on your electric scooter and zoom to work each day.
Nice cars. The Corvairs are still affordable. Would love to have a Spyder convertible. Always keep a spare fan belt with them, they do blow off on occasion. Keep an eye on the tire pressure too.
I’m always intrigued by the diversity of cars that spark an enthusiast’s passion. Thanks for putting this classic bac on the road!
Contrary to what the article says, a turbo corvair is not rated at 110hp.
Turbo Air just means that it is air cooled. It’s not the turbo charged version. The turbo charged versions were 150 horsepower.
Sorry to say it was the 1965 model year that eliminated the swing axles. I had one, it used the same technology the Corvette independent suspension used. For the comment about Corvair using BorgWarner gas heater, wrong that was VW beetle. The Corvair used hot air blowing down over the cylinders into an air box. When no heat was required in the car a flap door at the rear of the engine on each side opened to vent heat to the rear. If heat was needed these would be closed and heat would travel into the passenger compartment. It worked very well doors were also in the ducts going into the car to prevent heat entering into the car during summer driving.
The 1960 model year was the only year to use the gas heater. The hot air blowing heat began in ’61.
Not quite correct. I had a 65 Greenbrier with a gas heater.
Gas heaters were available for (I think) two more years. Then they were dropped in favor of the direct air off the motor. There were some years you could order either.
I believe if you check your history you’ll find the turbocharged model was 180 hp, the 150 hp was the one with the 4bbl carb.
The 1962-1964 turbocharged Spyders are 150HP. The 1965-1966 turbocharged Corsas are 180HP. Chevrolet upped the ante on the 2nd gen turbocharged models.
The hot engines are the 4 carb, not 4 bbl, 4 individual carbs, 140hp engine, it was standard in the Corsa and available on all other Corvairs and the turbo engine, which was optional on the Corsa.
The most common engine is the 2 carb 110hp engine, base models were usually an 85-90hp 2 carb engine depending on if it was an auto or manual car.
More specifically, the early motors (61-63) were 145 CID and had HP ratings of 80, 84, and 102 (the ’60 was a bit smaller 140 CID). In ’64, the Corvair engine was stroked out to 164 CID, with much greater torque, and the HP ratings were 95 and 110.
Of course I left out the 4 carb 140HP, the early (62-64) Spyder motors 150HP, and the ’65 and ’66 Corsa Turbos of 180HP.
You are partially correct. The “Turbo-air” part is correct, but I believe the turbo charged version was rated at 180hp.
180HP for the ’65 and’66, 150HP for the ’62 thru ’64.
Well, the article didn’t specify. The motor in this car appeared to be a 110HP motor. However, the pictured car is a Corsa model (top of the line) and it came standard with a 140HP (four carburetor) engine, and the turbo-charged engine was an option (rated at 180HP).
This car had an engine swap some time in the past.
Nader is a Fool, just like the Rest that voted to ban it.
I need to get this off my chest. I would have a hard time letting this “mechanic” work on anything I, or a friend, might have. He is not very thorough and not very competent. Clearly, working on a Corvair is way over his head. Too many dumb comments and too much where he thinks he knows better, which is obviously not the case.
You might want to go to Youtube and look up Auto Anatomy. That guy also had a “flooded Corvair” that he is in the process of fixing up, and he is very good at what he is doing. Also a very nice guy who responds to comments on his channel.