Cool In Its Own Right: 1965 Corvair Sedan
As many of you probably know, I’m a Corvair nut. One general trend in the land of flat-sixes is the lack of love for “bloated whales”- the sport sedan Corvair. I, for one, like the longer roofline and convenience of four doors. I suppose I lack the chromosome that makes me hate sedans. This 1965 Monza Sedan is a great example of a highly-optioned and somewhat original sport sedan. You can find it here on craigslist in Watkinsville, Georgia for $4,400.
Allow me to break this car down for you in terms of options and equipment. According to the data tag, this car came equipped from the factory with the following options: Group 1: E – factory tinted glass, O – two tone paint (sedans only), Group 2: E – factory air conditioning, M – powergilde transmission, R – rear speaker, Group 3: Padded dash, Group 4: F – Z13 comfort and convinience group (two speed wipers, windshield washers, day/night mirror), Group 5: “Custom Deluxe” front and rear seat belts with front retractors. Phew! What a handful. The car appears to retain all of these options and I have a feeling that the two-tone paint may be original too!
Mechanically, this car is supposedly well-sorted. According to the seller, the A/C condenser was removed to change the carburetors. It appears as though the correct ’64-’69 air cleaner assembly has been swapped for a ’61-’63 unit with an pre-filter – good for trading for necessary parts!
If I had the room and funds, I would have no second thoughts about buying this car. The factory AM/FM push button radio, rear over-riders, and the slew of other options make this car a great driver and occasional show car. Two-tone paint cars are hard to find, as are ones with no rust. Anyone with $4,400 laying around and a space in their driveway should seriously consider picking this car up!
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Comments
Looks like a baby ’67 Impala. I love it.
i like pillarless hardtops, in dash shifters and corvairs in general. the two tone paint is classy. nice ride.
the advert mentions the functionality of a fold down rear seat. why would this be helpful if the engine is in the back?
Fold down back seat is for the convenience of hauling items without putting them on your back seat. I have a 65 Coupe and like it because it makes it look more like an actual 2 seater.
You could haul bulky stuff. I had a similar ’66 and hauled a full set of drums in it to many gigs.
so nice, but wish it had a four speed!
I may be (quickly) proved wrong, but I don’t think any late model air conditioned Corvairs came from the factory with a manual transmission.
Seems like a lot of car for $4400.00. Someone will have an enjoyable little cruiser.
Being a Vair nut myself I have also gravitated toward the pillarless hardtop several times over my 30+ years of owning them. I gave my first girlfriend a ’67 500 series automatic, tan on tan and we drove that car everywhere. We did do the folding rear seat modification (a very easy late model hinge swap) that gave us a totally flat surface to hall around crates of records (I am a career DJ) as needed. Or at least that is what we told her dad ;) . I will also add that the rear packing shelf in both the early and late sedans are a fantastic place to build and place four 6×9 Jensen Tri-Axles. My step mom had a ’66 4D Monza that my Dad painted two tone brown. He upgraded the engine to the 140 and installed alcohol injection. The mixture absorbs heat and vaporizes, temperatures inside the cylinder are reduced and the propensity for detonation is decreased. She loved that car too. There is a ’65 with factory air that sits in a used car lot not far from where I live. Back in the 80’s I tried to buy it, tried to save it, but the owner knew I wanted it, and it has sat there ever since, rotting away into the ground.
Is the car green in PA?
James
I stopped and looked at the local ’66 (I referenced above) to see how much worse it has got since it was then last time I looked at it (2002). I noticed the battery is now almost touching the ground… I sure wish they would have put the air cleaner back on to keep the water from running down into the cylinders..
I tried to attach a photo… lets try again.
I watched as a nice driver 65 sedan with 4 spd, 140, positraction, radio delete car rotted in a known aquaintence’s property from 1996 to 2015. Wouldn’t sell it to me in 1996, price was steep in 2015 but I talked him off his lofty perch by qualifying myself as a knowledgeable Corvair guy. I finally pried the car away from him but in all that time it had never been covered or driven. So, all I got was a donor car for another perfect shell. Everything was ruined.
I’m also a Corvair nut, AND [gasp! horror!] a sedan lover. Looking over the list of “options” made me laugh .. rear speaker, 2 speed wipers WITH washers!!, seat belts .. Hard to imagine that we survived without those items that are now standard issue on every car
These late 4 door corvairs are some of the prettiest cars ever made.
The rear glass on these alone makes these stunners!
I nearly bought this car last year;
https://www.hemmings.com/magazine/mus/2007/06/-Vair-force/1466604.html
Looks like an extremely nice Corvair Sport Sedan with some pretty rare and desirable options. The air cleaner is correct for an air conditioned car and with the pre-cleaner option makes it an extremely rare item. And the body plate says artesian turquoise over ermine white as the original colors.
Unless there is something wrong with the car not apparent in the photographs it should not last long.
I thought I had said that the two-tone was original…
I did check the paint codes.
62-65 AC cars had the individual air cleaners as the condenser mounted where the 64-65 center mount cleaner mounted. 66-67 had condenser moved to the firewall and had the center mount air cleaner. I have owned a 63,65 and 66 ac cars. The 66 was the only one with the center mount cleaner. Corvair manual also supports this.
That is a great price, no doubt. It’s funny, I’m usually one of the ones who stands up for four-doors, and this one is very nice, but the 2nd generation Corvair 2-doors are so, so pretty that they distract me from the sedans. But when you compare this price and what you get for it to, say, a just-off-lease Elantra, how could you say no?
The air cleaner is correct for a 65 as the ac condenser mounts where the air cleaner would normally be.
I love it. Wish I had an extra $4400 laying around, I’d be on my way to GA!
This is a sweet looking car! Great find, and a serious candidate as a daily driver.
I’m with you….given money and space it would be mine. All of those options, especially A/C, make it wondrous.
Yeah, I like the looks of the Corvair, especially the later models. I am not even opposed to a 4 door but the lack of a manual is a killer for me. I know these are not road rockets, but there is something to be said about rowing your own gears.
Do they mention anywhere if the AC works?
This car also retains the factory stainless steel trim pieces on the C-pillars that separate the two colors. This is a rare item found only on two-tone Corvairs and is often missing from cars that have been repainted. Just one more item that makes this Corvair special.
Now this is one of the nicer Corvairs I’ve seen on here. Seems like so many just haven’t been cared for. I’ve mentioned before that I had a ’64 Monza Spyder. I still regret letting that one get away from me.
I was looking at buying this car. Shade’s out in Nebraska ended up snagging it .