1960 Corvair 900 Monza engine What does the 900 stand for? or is it just a model number? Please forgive me if this has been covered.
1960 was the first year for Corvairs and had the smallest engine, 140 Cu In. The engine was 80 HP. They came with either a 3sp manual trans or 2sp Powerglide Automatic. None of the 60 Corvairs were quick!
"The early 1960 models were rather boxy and had few amenities, but the line quickly grew from plain 4-door sedans with bench seats (the base 500 and slighly more upscale 700) to sportier 2-door coupes with bucket seats (the Monza 900)"
1960 engines were all 140 cubic inches. They went out to 145 in '61, and were stroked to 164 in '64. If you want "quick", find a '65 or newer 140 hp four carb engine and strap it in, along with a later 4 speed transaxle. I once had a '62 Monza coupe and, while not exactly fast, the 4 speed made it fun to drive.
Late in the '60 model run, Chevrolet released a "power pack" option for the 'vair that resulted in a whopping 95 hp. I think the gain came from a hotter cam and larger diameter exhaust system, maybe a recurved distributor as well. Keep in mind that the 144 that the Falcon used in '60 was rated at 85 hp, so it wasn't like the compe***ion was running away from it at the traffic lights. What was really cool was the small supercharger that Judson sold for them; somewhere, in an old HRM, there's an article about a Judson equipped Corvair. The blower was about the only modification they made to it, and it did close to 90 mph in the 1/4 mile. Talk about a sleeper!
Crown conversions were on 65-69 Corvairs. They mounted a V8 engine in front of the trans where the back seat would normally go. They used the 66-69 trans which was a modified version of the Saginaw trans used in RWD cars. The Crown setup used the diff, trans and engine operating in the "normal" direction. The Kelmark conversion turned the entire diff/trans 180 degrees and mounted the engine to the diff where the Corvair engine bolted up, but also in the rear seat area. Unfortunately that required the ring & pinion to operate backwards from their normal/designed rotation. In order to make them last longer a pump was mounted to pump the diff oil onto the gears. There were some gears available that were designed to run reversed but they were rare and expensive. The Crown conversion crowded the p***enger compartment which made it uncomfortable for tall drivers. The Kelmark allowed use of standard bucket seats as the engine was 18" farther back than the Crown.
You need to remember it is a economy car. I had a '63 with a 4 spd, I was getting 26 mpg out of it. They can be cool looking cars if done right.
My 1962 Spyder was pretty quick, rated at 150 HP with the stock turbocharger and side-draft Carter carb. It came with a spiffy dash cluster with a nice turned finish and great gauges...a four speed and the typical "bucket seats" that were more like small bench seats. I modified the sloppy long-throw shifter by using a modified three speed trans shifter ***embly with the four speed. Flower always said that was the nicest driving car we ever owned. I sold it when child #1 was on the way.
I got on it a little today. It's actualy not too bad, has a little snap to it. Much more than I expected.
Corvairs are very Quick and fast too even in the corners. Why do you think Don Yenko stopped racing Corvettes to race Yenko Stinger Corvairs and finally started beating the Shelby's. I don't like the performance or look of the early models but 65-69's are very nice and any of them can be made nice with a 140 or turbo engine swap. A friend of mine used to run a drag strip in Pa. and a guy had just purchased a turbo, went home and "tweaked it" a little ran 13.80's If that's not quick all those big block Ford and Mopar and Chevy guys will surely be disappointed!!!!! What did the Yenko Camaro's and Mr. Norm cars run? Here's a link to some Corvair info.http://www.answers.com/topic/chevrolet-corvair the index has a quick way to get to the racing Corvairs.
Compare that to the other Detroit offerings, like the Falcons with the 144 and 170 ci 6's, it's virtually the same. Chevy II with the 4-banger... dark days...
We had a local 65ish Corvair with the all aluminum Buick V8 in it mounted behind like the original Corvair. He claimed it was 50 lbs lighter than the cast iron flat six. I only saw it at shows in the 70s but it had to be impressive to drive. I had a 4 spd Greenbriar window van that was a blast to drive. It wasn't fast but it was fun. Sitting directly above the front wheels, you would raise way up when you dropped the clutch and settle back down when you shifted only to raise again. It was a very odd sensation. Don't mess with a Corvair unless it has a 4 spd. You have to keep it in it's power band to have any fun with it. I think the powerglide equipped Corvair may be the biggest turd ever offered from Chevrolet in the 60s although my powereglide 6 cyl Belair HT was pretty scary when trying to enter traffic also. My good buddy had a PG 'vair and he would get all upset when we referred to his as a "slinger" as in "oil slinger". He kept his in top shape. The original push rod tube seals would get brittle and crack causing an oil leak. They eventually came out with Teflon tube seals that ended the problem but it was very common to see the Corvairs with the rear grill coated with oil. Hence the nickname. Eelco and others had pages of hotrod parts for the Corvair when they were relatively new. I like them.
Had several (22) Corvairs through the years. 62 Spyder Turbo was kinda fun but not very fast. 65 and 66 Corsa Turbos werent real fast either but had great handling. The Corsa's with the 4 carb 140HP motors were great to autocross if properly set up. But, the Yenko Stinger with stage 4 motor was really quick and very comfortable on a road course SCCA type race. Just saw one of the Yenko's sell last month for $40,000 and I think they had over $60k in it on the resto. Not but a 150 or so made but few Stage 4's and lots of copies or "tributes" out there so be careful if you buy one.
You'll find that quite a few Corvair fans have owned LOTS of them, since (even today) they're one of the cheapest special interest cars out there. When I was into 'vairs, and it became common knowledge that I was, I had people calling me, asking me to drag away complete parts cars for free. I was high bidder on a crusty but complete '61 Lakewood 4 speed wagon at an auction with a $4.00 bid.
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