Turbocharged! 1964 Chevrolet Corvair Spyder
Chevrolet’s first foray into the compact car market was the Corvair, unlike anything else the company had offered. The small auto had an air-cooled, rear-mounted six-cylinder engine, similar to the VW Beetle, one of the cars Chevy had hoped to stop in its tracks. Over 10 years, more than 1.8 million Corvairs were built, but most of the action was before Ralph Nader authored a book about the novel vehicle. This 1964 edition is from the last year of the first generation and cures some of the potential ills that Nader addressed. This Spyder has a turbo-charged engine and may need little more than paint to finish it off. Located in Powder Springs, Georgia, this Chevy is available here on eBay where the bidding has reached $3,700, but there is a reserve yet to be met, and you could buy it now for $5,800.
For an automaker like General Motors, the Corvair was the road less traveled. Its design was unlike anything else in the sales brochures, but it filled a niche as sales approached a quarter-million units in just the first year. With the rear-mounted drivetrain, most of the weight of the Corvair was over the rear wheels rather than up front, so the earlier cars were known to oversteer. A series of Corvair accidents caught Nader’s attention and he wrote a book in 1965 called Unsafe at Any Speed and – whether you side with his position or not – second-generation Corvairs (1965-69) sold in far smaller numbers, yet the car was vastly improved by then.
Chevy made some significant engineering changes to the ’64 Corvair focused on the car’s swing axle rear suspension. They added 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. Take that, Ralph Nader! However, sales of the car declined over ’63 as the body style was aging and the Corvair had a new competitor of sorts mid-year in ’64, the Ford Mustang.
The seller’s car is the Monza Spyder which is equipped with a 164 cubic-inch, turbo-charged flat-six engine that produced 150 hp. The Spyder is rare compared to the rest of the Corvair lineup as just 6,480 coupes and 4,761 convertibles were built in ’64 out of a total pot of 207,114 cars. Because the seller wasn’t a Corvair expert when he bought the machine, he engaged several experts to help refresh the car mechanically. This would include new brakes, battery, generator, rebuilt carburetor, turbo unit, voltage regulator, valve cover gaskets, tune-up, and more. It runs well now, though the turbo needs adjusting, and comes with some unused parts. The seller can send interesting parties a link to a video of the car running, upon request.
Whatever bodywork was needed has been addressed and the bottom half now wears grey primer and is sanded and ready for paint (the original colors are black over red). The interior is original though the floor pans and carpeting have been replaced. Since it’s a running automobile, it looks to need little more than paint and TLC to start showing the little Chevy off. It also sports new tires and aftermarket “mag” wheels. We’re told the Chevy will only come with a Bill of Sale as the State of Georgia does not require titles for cars of this vintage. Whether that will create any DMV issues in another state is something the buyer should research before pulling the trigger.
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Comments
I like.
Me, too!
For $5800 (or maybe less) plus a paint job, well worth checking out!
Suspension mods to cure the swing axle syndrome are still available and make a huge difference in handling. That and the turbo engine should make this car a bunch of fun. I like it too!
Best looking Corvair I have seen lately.Paint or not just drive her.
Nader’s book, “Unsafe at any Speed” wasn’t written about the Corvair. It was about automobile safety, and what he perceived as the auto industry’s, and Federal government’s disregard for safety. Only one chapter dealt with the Corvair.
A later NHTSA study found there were no “potential ills” to the Corvair’s suspension design, and contrary to Nader’s claims, the Corvair was no more likely to roll over than any other car. The study actually found the 60-63 Corvair’s handling to be at least as good as other contemporary cars, if not better. Unfortunately GM had already killed the Corvair, by the time the study was completed.
While the Chamber Compensator (the leaf spring) added to 64’s, did improve handling, the big improvement was the addition of outer u-joints to the 65’s rear end’s half shafts.
This looks like a nice little car, that someone may be able to put together and enjoy, fairly reasonably. Personally I prefer the look of the 65-69’s, but there’s nothing wrong with the shape of the 60-64’s. I do have to wonder why you would put in new carpet first, when the rest of the interior still appears to need a fair amount of other work?
In the 70’s I was a teenage kid and Corvair nut. I knew all about the handling issues and tire inflation and even joined the national club. I was a careful driver for that age but still managed to do a 360 in two different pre ’64 Corvairs, barely living to tell about it. My next ‘Vair was a ’66 and had much safer handling characteristics. It’s probably a good thing Nader wrote the book, without it we might not have had seat belts, air bags, etc. for many years.
Exactly what I was going to post, with one addition. The Mustang was also the Corvair’s killer (but I’d rather have a Corvair any day.)
Can a Porsche 3.6 engine fit?
A couple of dumb questions.
1. Is this model a manual transmission? I’ve seen a manual with a similar gearshifter, but can’t see a clutch in these pictures.
2. What is the circular thing on the top of the front driver side panel? Is it the gas tank access?
Thanks.
1. Yes, all Spyder models were 4 speed manual transmissions.
2. The circular thing is the fuel filler door.
If you click the red highlighted hyperlink “here on ebay” in the beginning of the article it will take you directly to the ebay ad with a full description and all the photo’s.
Spyder and Corsa Monza 500 and 700 we’re all std 3 speed, 4 speeds was optional.
Kenneth, manual transmission.
https://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTYwMFgxMjAw/z/34QAAOSw~rhh5Fvq/$_32.JPG?set_id=880000500F
The door jambs and carpet are red. The seats are white. The roof is black. The body is primed. What color was this car?
Round door is the gas cap, just like my Dad’s.
Why would you want a Porsche engine in this?
The trim tag (Paint 905) indicates the car was originally Meadow Green. That was a popular color for the car. For a while I had a ’64 900 4 door with an automatic. It was a good driving car and could comfortably seat four people.
I’m not sure the VW and the Corvair engines turn the same direction. See to recall a friend who did a Corvair engine to VW swap and had to….change the Corvair engine rotation? Also had another friend who hit a bump and the engine in his Corvair fell to the pavement.
GlennH… We put one of the 4 carb engines in a ’59 VW panel van and all we needed was the adapter to bolt it to the transmission. It was a support vehicle for dirt bike desert runs in Nevada. With the Corvair engine and the reduction gears the van had it would out climb the bikes.
Russ: not sure if you were just quoting the seller, but if so, ask him how you “adjust” a turbo?
gbvette62: think you meant camber compensator?
Arthur Brown: (the original colors are black over red).
I had a 1963 Spyder. Very neat and fun car. Sure wish I had it now.
Very nice. Hope it goes to a good home (wish it were mine!).
Turbo needs adjusting?
I may be forgetting, but I think the fan belt on this Corvair is inside out and could be a potential problem soon. Had a few Corvairs ages ago and this looks pretty good really, just needs a bit of finishing.
The belt is installed correctly and appears to be a Dayco “Top Cog” belt, the design claims to improve flexibility and increase airflow around the belt. There are several manufacturers of belts that have the “cogs” (often referred to as slotted or grooved) on the inside or V side of the belt.
I’m going to get killed for this but I like the way it looks now. How long could you leave it like that (with shined primer)?
Indefinitely, given my track record with car projects.
LOL, exactly what i was thinking, get the mechanicals right, and drive it !!
Sold for $5800. Someone got a good deal.
Here’s what I’d like to do >
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEX_x2KCIng&t=35s
Turbo adjustment won’t cure the factory omission of a wastegate…..?
My parents had an early corvair wagon, it was “retired” to the side yard when i was a just a youngster [ i do barely remember it sitting unused ], and by the time i was old enough to care about cars it was long gone. how i wish i could’ve been old enough to mess around with it…..
Imagine a dropped wagon with a Crown V8 kit…hmmm
I always liked the looks of those early Corvair coupes. Does anyone else think that beltline lip was copied by BMW for the 1967 BMW 1600?
https://s1.cdn.autoevolution.com/images/gallery/BMW1600-1636_1.jpg
Very interesting…
Does anyone remember seeing the first year Corvair with a clear engine cover? I saw one when a salesman friend brought one to our house.
Mark396, surprisingly these do come up for sale. Last one I saw was around October of last year, it sold for somewhere in the $600 range. Most dealers received one for showroom floor display purposes, the kit even came with 2 lights to illuminate the engine compartment.
Thank you 19sixty5, especially for the picture.
Interesting note about the Vair in Powder Springs , Ga. In the early 1970’s I bought a kit from an outfit in Powder Springs to mount the entire Corvair drivetrain to a shortened VW floorpan on a dune buggy I was building . . The kit was called “Transvair” from Hadley Engineering . . The body was a Myers Manx knockoff from Columbus , Ga . .