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76-537: The Chevrolet Corvair is a rear-engined , air-cooled compact car manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet over two generations between 1960 and 1969. A response to the Volkswagen Beetle , it was offered in 4-door sedan, 2-door coupe, convertible, 4-door station wagon, passenger van, commercial van, and pickup truck body styles in its first generation (1960–1964), and as a 2-door coupe, convertible or 4-door hardtop in its second (1965–1969). Total production

152-451: A rear-engine design layout places the engine at the rear of the vehicle. The center of gravity of the engine itself is behind the rear axle. This is not to be confused with the center of gravity of the whole vehicle, as an imbalance of such proportions would make it impossible to keep the front wheels on the ground. Rear-engined vehicles almost always have a rear-wheel drive car layout , but some are four wheel drive . This layout has

228-533: A "T" arrangement with a longitudinal engine connected to a transverse transaxle. Front-wheel-drive versions of modern Audis , from the A4 upwards, along with their related marques from the Volkswagen Group (which share the same automobile layout ) also use a similar layout, but with the transaxle also mounted longitudinally. The front-wheel-drive Renault 16 had a longitudinal engine and transaxle, with

304-616: A 1972 Texas A&M University safety commission report for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which found that the 1960–1963 Corvair possessed no greater potential for loss of control in extreme situations than contemporary compacts. To better counter popular inexpensive subcompact competitors, notably the Beetle and Japanese imports such as the Datsun 510 , GM replaced

380-523: A GM vice president. At Chevrolet, Cole pushed for many of the major engineering and design advancements introduced in the Chevrolet car and truck lines between 1955 and 1962. He was completely involved in the development and production of the air-cooled rear-engine Corvair, a ground-breaking car in its day. As chief engineer, Cole was also heavily involved in the development of the Corvette sports car. He

456-509: A cast-iron case and a redesign of the differential pinion shaft to interface with a longer transmission output shaft and a concentric pilot for the revised transmission case. These are among many of the improvements undertaken by Chevrolet by the end of the 1960 model year. The Corvair was Motor Trend magazine's Car of the Year for 1960. In 1961, Chevrolet introduced the Monza upscale trim to

532-515: A complete absence of Corvair advertising after 1967 reflected the company's priorities, including promotion of three redesigned models for 1968 – the Corvette, Chevelle , and Chevy II Nova . The Corvair was referred to as "the phantom" by Car Life magazine in their 1968 Monza road test, and by 1969 Chevrolet's Corvair four-page brochure was "by request only". During its final year of production, 6,000 cars were produced. Chevrolet had proposed

608-493: A front anti-roll bar as standard. Brakes were improved with finned rear drums. The remaining pickup, the Rampside, was discontinued at the end of the model year. Despite a vastly improved 1964 model, Corvair sales declined by close to 73,000 units that year. This was attributed to a number of factors, including the basic styling being 5 years old, the lack of a pillarless hardtop (which virtually all competing compact models had),

684-423: A front-end collision (actually a mid-1965 running change). A plastic air dam was installed below the front valence panel to conceal the front suspension and underbody, and lessen crosswind sensitivity. In front, The "lock door" emblem (covering the lockset for the trunk lock) was changed from red to blue and featured a shorter bar. At the rear, new larger taillight lenses were used featuring a thin chrome ring around

760-477: A front-engine drives a rear-mounted transaxle. This is generally done for reasons of weight distribution and is therefore common on sports cars . Another advantage is that since the driveshaft spins at engine speed, it only has to endure the torque of the engine instead of the torque multiplied by the 1st gear ratio . This design was pioneered in the 1934 Škoda Popular , and then in the 1950 Lancia Aurelia , designed by Vittorio Jano . Since this placement of

836-450: A full synchromesh, four-speed transmission (RPO 651) was postponed until the 1961 model year. This was due to casting problems with the aluminum three-speed transmission case which resulted in technical service bulletins to dealers advising of the potential for differential failure due to external leaks at the front of the transmission's counter gear shaft. The revision of the four-speed transmission designated for 1961 introduction incorporated

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912-536: A heavy-duty suspension consisting of a front anti-roll bar, rear-axle limit straps, revised spring rates, and recalibrated shock absorbers. These provided a major handling improvement by reducing the potentially violent camber change of the rear wheels when making sharp turns at high speeds. The Turbocharged Spyder equipment group featured a multi-gauge instrument cluster which included a tachometer , cylinder head temperature, and intake manifold pressure gauges, Spyder fender script, and Turbo logo deck emblems, in addition to

988-471: A pit in the middle of the bed. The more popular Rampside had a unique, large, fold-down ramp on the side of the bed for ease of loading wheeled items. In 1962, Chevrolet introduced the Corvairs with few changes at the beginning of the year. The bottom line 500 series station wagon was dropped and the 700 became the base station wagon. The "Lakewood" name was dropped. The ever-popular Monza line then took on

1064-521: A sweeping second hand, a manifold vacuum/pressure gauge and fuel gauge. A much better heater system, larger brakes borrowed from the Chevelle, a stronger differential ring gear, an alternator (replacing the generator), and significant chassis refinements were made. A new fully articulated rear suspension virtually eliminated the danger of the previous generation's swing axles and was based on the contemporary Corvette Sting Ray (Corvair used coil springs while

1140-618: A third generation (1970 onward) Corvair, essentially a re-skin of the 1965–69 model resembling the 1973 GM A Body intermediates, particularly the 1973 Pontiac Grand Am , retaining Corvair proportions. Having passed the point of full-scale clay models, Chevrolet stopped developing the model in early 1968. Unlike the Turbo Hydramatic 400, the Turbo Hydramatic 350 transmission, introduced in the 1968 Camaro and later adopted by most Chevrolet models had been configured for use in

1216-476: A traditional front-engine/rear-drive axle borrowed from the Chevy II . The 1966 lineup remained essentially unchanged from 1965. One change of note was a new four-speed synchromesh transmission using the standard Saginaw gear set with 3.11:1 first gear ratio used by other GM 6-cylinder vehicles. The steering column was changed to a two-piece design with a universal joint, lessening the danger of intrusion during

1292-637: A vinyl-edged day/night mirror were all made standard equipment. Bucket seats in Monza models were now of the same "Astro" style as those on the new-for-1967 Camaro, featuring a new-thin-shell design. Chevrolet introduced a 50,000 mi (80,000 km) engine warranty on all Chevrolet models including the Corvair. Chevrolet was still actively marketing the Corvair in 1967, including color print ads and an "I Love My Corvair" bumper sticker campaign by dealers, but production and sales continued to fall off drastically. Only 27,253 copies were built. The chrome rings around

1368-416: A wagon model to round out the top of the line. In spring of 1962, Chevrolet committed itself to the sporty image they had created for the Corvair by introducing a convertible version, then offering a high-performance 150 hp (112 kW) turbocharged "Spyder" option for Monza coupes and convertibles, making the Corvair the second production automobile supplied with a turbocharger as a factory option, with

1444-715: Is also known as the "father" of the small-block Chevy V8 , one of the most celebrated engines in American automotive history. The first time Chevrolet manufactured an air-cooled engine was briefly in 1923 with the Chevrolet Series M Copper-Cooled , which due to engineering challenges, was deemed a failure. By the late 1950s, the physical size of the entry-level models offered by the Big Three American domestic auto manufacturers (General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler) had grown considerably; effectively abandoning

1520-499: The Camaro , not the Corvair. According to GM historian Dave Newell, Chevrolet had planned on ending Corvair production after the 1966 model year. Development and engineering changes were halted in 1966 on the year-old, redesigned second-generation cars with mainly federally mandated emissions and safety changes made thereafter. An increasing lack of interest from the company, especially from Chevrolet's general manager John DeLorean , and

1596-543: The Oldsmobile F-85 Turbo Jetfire having been released earlier in 1962. Corvair station wagons were discontinued at that point in favor the new Corvair Convertible and Chevy II (built at the same assembly plant). The slow-selling Loadside pickup was discontinued at the end of the model year. The rest of the Corvair 95 line of Forward Control vehicles continued. Optional equipment on all passenger cars (except wagons) included metallic brake linings and

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1672-477: The Volkswagen Group which share the same layout , utilise a transaxle. This is mounted immediately behind the front-mounted engine (again, longitudinally) and contains the 'gearbox' (manual, automatic, DSG , or CVT ), along with both the centre differential , and the front differential and final drive unit. The Nissan GT-R and Ferrari FF (and its successors) are unusual in being all-wheel-drive cars with front-engined layouts and rear-mounted transaxles. In

1748-531: The Volkswagen Type 2 . The Greenbrier Sportswagon used the same body as the "Corvan 95" panel van with the side windows option, but was marketed as a station wagon and was available with trim and paint options similar to the passenger cars. The "Corvan 95" model was also built in pickup versions; the Loadside was a fairly typical pickup of the era, except for the rear engine, forward controls, and

1824-410: The rear-engine/rear-wheel-drive layout , which at the time had recently been popularized by the exploding success of the Volkswagen Beetle . The Corvair's engine was an overhead-valve aluminum , air-cooled 80 hp (60 kW; 81 PS) 140 cu in (2.3 L) flat-six , later enlarged, first to 145 cubic inches (2.4 L) and then to 164 cubic inches (2.7 L). Power peaked with

1900-495: The "Big Three" continued to introduce ever-larger cars during the 1950s, the new American Motors Corporation (AMC) focused its business strategy on smaller-sized and fuel-efficient automobiles, years before a real need for them existed. AMC, a far smaller company than the "Big Three", positioned itself as an underdog ; its compact Rambler models helped push AMC to third place in domestic automobile sales. American Motors also reincarnated its predecessor company's smallest Nash model as

1976-490: The "Quadri-Flex" independent suspension and "Unipack Power Team" of engine, transmission, and rear axle combined into a single unit . Similar to designs of European cars such as Porsche, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, and others, "Quadri-Flex" used coil springs at all four wheels with independent rear suspension arms incorporated at the rear. Specially designed 6.5 by 13-inch four-ply tires mounted on 5.5 by 13 inch wheels were standard equipment. Available options included RPO 360,

2052-504: The "Sprint" conversions. The 1963 model year had the optional availability of a long 3.08 gear for improved fuel economy, but the Corvair otherwise remained largely carryover with minor trim and engineering changes. Self-adjusting brakes were new for 1963. Of all the Corvairs sold in 1963, fully 80% were Monzas. The convertible model accounted for over 20% of all the Monzas sold. Significant engineering changes were introduced for 1964, while

2128-456: The "new" 1958 Rambler American for a second model run, an almost unheard-of phenomenon in automobile history. In 1959, Studebaker followed AMC's formula by restyling its mainstream economy-model sedan, calling it the Lark and billing it as a compact. The Lark success helped give Studebaker a respite for several years before the company ceased automobile production in 1966. During 1959 and 1960,

2204-522: The 1960 Corvair on its cover for the Corvair introduction in 1959, and Motor Trend named the Corvair as the 1960 "Car of the Year". Said Time : "its fresh engineering is hailed as the forerunner of a new age of innovation in Detroit." Time reported in 1960: Chevrolet sold 26,000 Corvairs its first two days on the market, taking over 35% of Chevy's two-day total of 75,000. Chevrolet had intended to sell one Corvair for every five Chevrolets. By March 1960,

2280-448: The 1965 Corvair in their October 1964 issue: And it is here too, that we have to go on record and say that the Corvair is in our opinion—the most important new car of the entire crop of '65 models, and the most beautiful car to appear in this country since before World War II. ...When the pictures of the '65 Corvair arrived in our offices, the man who opened the envelope actually let out a great shout of delight and amazement on first seeing

2356-515: The 1965–66 turbocharged 180 hp (134 kW; 182 PS) Corsa engine option. The first generation model's swing axle rear suspension, which offered a comfortable ride. The design was replaced in 1965 model year with a fully independent trailing arm rear suspension similar to that of the Corvette Sting Ray . The 1960 Corvair Body Styles 569 and 769 four-door sedans were conceived as economy cars offering few amenities to keep

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2432-409: The 1997 to 2019 model years, do not feature an integrated transaxle, where the transmission, axle and differential are combined into a single assembly. These years actually featured a rear-mounted transmission, which was a stand-alone unit bolted directly to the differential. While many, including General Motors, refer to this configuration as a transaxle, the first Corvette with an integrated transaxle

2508-655: The Big Three automakers planned to introduce their own "compact" cars. Ford and Chrysler's designs were scaled-down versions of the conventional American car, using industry default inline six-cylinder engines, and with bodies about 20% smaller than their standard cars. An exception to this strategy was the Chevrolet Corvair. Chevrolet designed a car that deviated from traditional American norms of design, powered by an air-cooled, horizontally opposed six-cylinder engine with many major components in aluminum. The engine

2584-477: The Corvair comprised 13% of Chevrolet's sales. Shortly after its introduction, the Corvair faced competition from the Ford Falcon and Mercury Comet and was plagued by problems,  although according to a 1960 Time report, "many were the minor bugs that often afflict a completely new car." Problems included an engine cooling fan belt that tended to pop off its 2-axis pulleys (unless the fan ran constantly,

2660-474: The Corvair sales in 1961. A station wagon , marketed as the Lakewood , joined the lineup in 1961 with its engine located under the cargo floor and offering 68 ft³ (1.9 m³) of cargo room; 58 ft³ in the main passenger compartment, and another 10 ft³ in the front trunk. The Corvair engine received its first size increase to 145 cu in (2.4 L) via a slight increase in bore size and

2736-482: The Corvair was introduced in February 1960. The RPO 649, marketed as "Super Turbo Air", included a hotter camshaft , revised dual-spring cylinder heads, and a lower restriction 2-inch muffler to deliver 95 hp (71 kW) at 4,800 rpm and 125 lb⋅ft (169 N⋅m) of torque at 2,800 rpm. In its first year, it was available on any Corvair model with a manual transmission. The advertised February introduction of

2812-544: The Corvair with the more conventional Chevrolet Vega in 1970. Today the Corvair has a devoted following among owners and collectors as average prices for Corvairs have steadily increased. In 1952, Ed Cole was promoted to chief engineer of the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors . Four years later, in July 1956, he was named general manager of Chevrolet (GM's largest automotive division) and became

2888-470: The Corvair's deficiencies – and the new Mustang offering V8s up to 271 hp (202 kW; 275 PS) compared to the Corvair's 180 hp (134 kW; 182 PS) top powertrain. Rumors of the upcoming "Panther" – the code name for the forthcoming Camaro, slated as a direct competitor for the Mustang ;– further undercut sales. A decision was made to discontinue further development of

2964-509: The Corvair, a derivative model could evolve within GM's standard lines of manufacturing technology. The 1965 publication of Unsafe at Any Speed sullied the reputation of the Corvair line, although the issues had nothing to do with the current model. Under competition from the Mustang and the publicity hit of Unsafe, Corvair sales plummeted by over half in 1966. GM saw the advantages of developing

3040-492: The Corvair. Production for the model year was down to 103,743. In 1967, the Corvair line was trimmed to the 500 and Monza Hardtop Coupes and Hardtop Sedans, and the Monza Convertible. This model year was the first with a collapsible steering column. A dual circuit master cylinder with warning light, nylon reinforced brake hoses, stronger steel (instead of aluminum) door hinges, "mushroomed" instrument panel knobs, and

3116-490: The Powerglide two-speed automatic transmission ($ 146), RPO 118, a gasoline heater ($ 74), RPO 119, an AM tube radio ($ 54), and by February 1960, the rear folding seat (formerly $ 32) was made standard. Chevrolet produced 47,683 of the 569 model and 139,208 769 model deluxe sedans in 1960. In January 1960 two-door coupe models were introduced designated as the 527 and 727 body styles. Despite their late January introduction of

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3192-467: The Sting Ray uses a transverse leaf). Additionally, an AM/FM stereo radio, in-dash All Weather Air Conditioning, telescopically adjustable steering column, and a Special Purpose Chassis Equipment ("Z17") handling package, consisting of a special performance suspension and quick ratio steering box, were new options for 1965. The Monza and Corvair 500 Sport Sedans were the only compact cars ever available in

3268-640: The U.S. as pillarless four-door hardtops. The station wagon , panel van, and pickup body styles had all been dropped and 1965 was the last year for the Greenbrier window van, which was retained mainly for fleet orders, with 1,528 being built. In all, 235,528 Corvairs were built in 1965, an increase of 30,000 units over 1964. Chevrolet replaced the Corvair-based vans with the Chevrolet Sportvan/GMC Handi-Van , which used

3344-546: The addition of some more power, all these factors had us driving around like idiots—zooming around the handling loop dragging with each other, standing on the brakes—until we had to reluctantly turn the car over to some other impatient journalist. […] The '65 Corvair is an outstanding car. It doesn't go fast enough, but we love it. The standard 95 hp (71 kW; 96 PS) and optional 110 hp (82 kW; 112 PS) engines were carried forward from 1964. The previous 150 hp (112 kW; 152 PS) Spyder engine

3420-492: The air-cooled engine would overheat and seize), carburetor icing and poor fuel mileage "which sometimes runs well under 20 m.p.g." The 1960 model gasoline heater was cited as a problem, which itself could consume up to a quart of gas an hour – with Chevrolet engineers quickly modifying the Corvair's carburetors to improve economy. The 1960 Corvair and designers William L. "Bill" Mitchell and styling staff received an Industrial Designers Institute (IDI of NY) award. The Corvair

3496-412: The car, and in thirty seconds the whole staff was charging around, each wanting to be the first to show somebody else, each wanting the vicarious kick of hearing that characteristic war-whoop from the first-time viewer. […] Our ardor had cooled a little by the time we got to drive the cars—then we went nuts all over again. The new rear suspension, the new softer spring rates in front, the bigger brakes,

3572-404: The center of the light. Air conditioned cars received a new condenser that was mounted in front of the engine, eliminating the previous unit mounted atop the engine, requiring its removal for most engine service. The Corvair script nameplate was moved from atop the trunk lid to a position next to the driver's side headlight bezel. Sales began a decline as a result of Ralph Nader's book highlighting

3648-447: The center of the taillights were made thicker. In 1968, the four-door hardtop was discontinued, leaving three models – the 500 and Monza Hardtop Coupes and the Monza Convertible. Air conditioning was dropped as an option, due to concerns about thermal loading added by the now-standard Air Injection Reactor ("smog pump") which probably hurt sales as factory air became more popular generally in automobiles. The GM multiplex stereo system

3724-421: The coupe one of the most popular Corvairs. The success of the Monza model showed Chevrolet management that the compact Corvair was viewed as more of a specialty car than a competitor in the economy segment to the conventionally designed Ford Falcon or Chrysler's Valiant. Chevrolet began a design program that resulted in the 1962 Chevy II , a conventional layout compact. The option of a more powerful engine for

3800-496: The coupe, these cars sold well; about 14,628 base model 527 coupes, 36,562 model 727 deluxe coupes. Following the success of the upmarket "Mr. and Mrs. Monza" styling concept cars at the 1960 Chicago Auto Show , management approved the neatly appointed bucket-seat DeLuxe trim of the 900 series Monza as a two-door club coupe only. The new Monza began arriving at Chevrolet dealers in April 1960 with sales of 11,926 Monza club coupes, making

3876-404: The cylinders and heads to the passenger compartment. The gasoline heater remained available as an option through 1963. Factory air conditioning was offered as a mid-1961 option introduction. The condenser lay flat atop the horizontal engine fan. A large, green-painted reverse rotation version of the standard GM Frigidaire air-conditioning compressor was used, and an evaporator housing was added under

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3952-524: The dash with integrated outlets surrounding the radio housing. Air conditioning was not available on wagons, Greenbrier/Corvair 95, or the turbocharged models introduced later, due to space constraints. Chevrolet also introduced the Corvair 95 line of light-duty trucks and vans, using the Corvair Powerpack with forward-control, or " cab over ", with the driver sitting over the front wheels, as in

4028-434: The displacement increase of the engine. In 1964, an improvement in the car's swing axle rear suspension occurred with the addition of a transverse leaf spring along with softer rear coil springs designed to diminish rear roll stiffness and foster more neutral handling. Spring rates could now be softer at both ends of the car compared to previous models. The heavy-duty suspension was no longer optional, although all models now had

4104-420: The engine behind the transaxle. The transaxle case was designed to allow the final-drive ring gear to be on either side of the pinion; this allowed the engine-transaxle assembly to be used in the rear-wheel-drive Lotus Europa , which had the engine in front of the transaxle (i.e., mid-engined ). Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles tend to have the transmission up front just after the engine, but sometimes

4180-399: The engine placed at the same end of the car as the driven wheels: the front-engine/front-wheel-drive ; rear-engine/rear-wheel-drive ; and mid-engine/rear-wheel-drive arrangements. Many mid- and rear-engined vehicles use a transverse engine and transaxle, similar to a front-wheel-drive unit. Others use a longitudinal engine and transaxle like Ferrari 's 1989 Mondial t which used

4256-668: The following features: This layout was once popular in small, inexpensive cars and light commercial vehicles. Today most car makers have abandoned the layout although it does continue in some expensive cars, like the Porsche 911 . It is also used in some racing car applications, low-floor buses , some Type-D school buses , and microcars such as the Smart Fortwo . Some electric cars feature both rear and front motors, to drive all four wheels. Transaxle Transaxles are nearly universal in all automobile configurations that have

4332-535: The four-door sedans and the club coupe body styles. With its newly introduced four-speed floor-mounted transmission, DeLuxe vinyl bucket seats, and upscale trim, the Monza Club Coupe gained in sales, as nearly 110,000 were produced along with 33,745 Monza four-door sedans. The four-speed Monza caught the attention of the younger market and was sometimes referred to as "the poor man's Porsche" in various car magazines. The Monza series contributed to about half of

4408-538: The gearbox is unsuitable for a live axle (due to excessive unsprung mass ), the rear suspension is either independent , or uses a de Dion tube (notably in Alfa Romeos ). Rare exceptions to this rule were the Bugatti T46 and T50 which had a three speed gearbox on a live axle. Notable front-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles with a transaxle design include: Note: The C5, C6 and C7 Corvettes, produced in

4484-419: The high-performance engine. The Monza Coupe was the most popular model with 151,738 produced out of 292,531 total Corvair passenger car production for 1962. John Fitch , chose the Corvair as the basis for "Sprint" models. These included various performance improvements along with appearance modifications. Individual components were available to customers and several Chevrolet dealers became authorized to install

4560-529: The lack of a V8 engine, and the introduction of the Ford Mustang on 17 April, which broke all records for sales of a new car (and cut into Corvair sales). The Corvair second generation arrived for model year 1965, noted for its lack of a "B" pillar and a new fully independent suspension replacing the original swing axle rear suspension. The Corvair used coil springs at each wheel. Car and Driver magazine's David E. Davis Jr. showed enthusiasm for

4636-402: The market for the smaller vehicles that had been available in the past. A successful modern " compact car " market segment was established in the U.S. by the 1950 Nash Rambler . Growing sales of imports from Europe, such as Volkswagen, Renault, Fiat and others, showed that demand existed in the U.S. market for small cars, often as a second car or an alternative for budget-minded consumers. While

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4712-406: The model lineup and styling remained relatively unchanged. The engine displacement was increased from 145 to 164 cu in (2.4 to 2.7 L) by an increase in stroke. The base engine power increased from 80 to 95 hp (60 to 71 kW), and the high-performance engine increased from 102 to 110 hp (76 to 82 kW). The Spyder engine rating remained at 150 hp (112 kW) despite

4788-498: The price competitive, with the 500 Series selling for $ 2,038 ($ 20,990 in 2023 dollars ). Powered by the Chevrolet Turbo-Air 6 engine with 80 hp (60 kW) and mated to a three-speed manual or optional extra-cost two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission (RPO 360), the Corvair was designed to have comparable acceleration to the six-cylinder full-sized Chevrolet Biscayne . The Corvair's unique design included

4864-682: The third generation Corvair. All locations are cars only, except as noted: Willow Run, Kansas City, Oakland, and Van Nuys were all Chevrolet assembly plants with adjacent Fisher Body plants. St. Louis and Flint were Chevrolet truck plants, although Chevy had full-size car plants in both cities and in St. Louis the plants were adjacent. Oshawa was operated solely by GM of Canada Ltd. The CKD plants were operated by GM Overseas Operations (GMOO). 500 – base model Corvair with lowest trim level. Always came with rubber mats, bench seats, and very little trim. Rear-engine design In automobile design ,

4940-478: Was also discontinued when new units changed wiring adapters; the Corvair's 9-pin connector would no longer fit the new units. Additional safety features, including side marker lights, and shoulder belts for closed models, were fitted per the federal government's requirements. The steering wheel for 500s was the same as the base Nova's, while Monzas got the same wheel as the Camaro. An Impala-style "Deluxe" steering wheel

5016-546: Was approximately 1.8 million vehicles from 1960 until 1969. The name "Corvair" was first applied in 1954 to a Corvette-based concept with a hardtop fastback-styled roof, part of the Motorama traveling exhibition. When applied to the production models, the "air" part referenced the engine's cooling system. A prominent aspect of the Corvair's legacy derives from controversy surrounding its handling, articulated aggressively by Ralph Nader 's Unsafe at Any Speed and tempered by

5092-510: Was high and a decision was made in November 1968 to move Corvair assembly to a special off-line area in the plant, dubbed the "Corvair Room", making Corvairs produced between that time and 14 May 1969 essentially hand-built by a dedicated Corvair team. Assembled bodies arrived from Fisher Body and awaited final assembly in the off-line area. While the 1965 Corvair was received as a well-engineered high-performance driver's car, that accomplishment

5168-552: Was highly praised and very warmly received upon its introduction and well thereafter. While the Corvair was being developed, a Pontiac version, named Polaris, was proposed. A number of full-size mockups were built by the General Motors Styling Studios, but the project went no farther than styling markup before Pontiac division chief John Z. DeLorean turned it down, being suspicious of its air-cooled rear engine and drivetrain. Time featured Ed Cole and

5244-446: Was mounted in the rear of the car, driving the rear wheels through a compact transaxle . The suspension was independent on all four wheels. Bodywork used monocoque rather than body-on-frame construction. The tires were a wider, low-profile design mounted on wider wheels. The clean, boxy styling was unconventional for Detroit, with no tail-fins or chrome grille (as the car had no radiator). Its engineering earned numerous patents, and it

5320-506: Was optional on 500 and Monza models with manual or Powerglide transmissions. All engines got some of the heavy-duty internal parts from the Turbocharged engine for better durability. New refinements appeared on the 1965 redesign. The Corsa came standard with an instrument panel featuring a 140 mph (230 km/h) speedometer with resettable trip odometer, a 6,000 rpm tachometer, cylinder head temperature gauge, analog clock with

5396-519: Was optional. All advertising was stopped and sales were down to 15,400. The final 1969 model-year Corvairs were assembled with the Nova in Willow Run, Michigan, the same facility Corvairs had been built from the beginning. A total of 6,000 Corvairs were produced of which only 521 were Monza Convertibles. The Corvair was the only GM car in 1969 that did not get a locking steering column. Demand for Novas

5472-420: Was overshadowed by the phenomenal market success of the Ford Mustang . GM saw advantages to the route adopted by Ford with the Mustang, a four-seat semi-coupe body on a standard compact (Falcon) chassis with a small-block V8 motor and four-on-the-floor offered as power options. The Corvair was not cheap to produce; developing and marketing a Mustang-style model based on the Nova platform had cost advantages. Unlike

5548-417: Was produced in the eighth generation Corvette, which was released in the 2020 model year. Volkswagen and later Porsche made extensive use of transaxles in their rear (and mid) engined vehicles. Over the years, models adopting this configuration have included: All Audi cars with longitudinal engines and their 'trademark' quattro four-wheel-drive (4WD) system, along with their related marques from

5624-443: Was rated at 98 hp (73 kW). The base engine was still rated at 80 hp (60 kW) when paired with the manual transmissions but this increased to 84 hp (63 kW) when mated to the optional automatic transmission in Monza models. To increase luggage capacity in the front trunk, the spare tire was relocated to the engine compartment (in cars without air conditioning) and new "direct air" heater directed warmed air from

5700-511: Was replaced by the normally aspirated 140 hp (104 kW; 142 PS) for the new Corsa. The engine was unusual in offering four single-throat carburetors , to which were added larger valves and a dual exhaust system. A 180 hp (134 kW; 182 PS) turbocharged engine was optional on the Corsa, which offered either standard three-speed or optional (US$ 92) four-speed manual transmissions. The 140 hp (104 kW; 142 PS) engine

5776-801: Was sold in two generations, the first from 1960 to 1964, the second from 1965 to 1969. It sold more than 200,000 units in each of its first six model years, and 1,835,170 in all. Chevrolet positioned the under $ 2,000 car as an economy compact , and highlighted its rear-engine design , which offered a low silhouette, flat passenger compartment floor, and spacious interior. There was excellent traction , no need for power-assisted steering or brakes, good ride quality , and balanced braking . The design also attracted customers of other makes, primarily imports. The Corvair stood out, being larger, more powerful, and offering more features than comparable imports, and engineering unique from other American offerings. It used GM's Z-body , with design and engineering that advanced

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