What works with a corvair engine

[Little Mouse]

A falcon was light like the corvair was in that time period the 150 hp turbo spyder in the 63 would run with the 260 ford V8s. A lot of people just could not except that you were supposed to run no more then 18 lbs air pressure in the front tires and did 35 or more and really screwed up. Car had no weight on the front. The VW sold millions of cars with a swing axle rear but did not get the unsafe at any speed BS of ralf nader. Nader was behind the 5 mph bumber bull shit.

[Truckedup]

Dick Griffin ran a turbo Corvair in an NHRA stock class and held the record for several years with a best of 13 flat at 113 mph.
The early swing axle Corvairs could be a handful for unaware drivers. Same for the VW before 1968..they could flip over more easily than ther cars...Search U Tube for GM tests of Corvairs being chased by a Falcon on a test track.Lots of shots of test drivers rolling Corvairs. But Nader was still an asshole..

[Little Mouse]

Ya the truimph spitfire with its swing axle was another mess the wheels would try to tuck under bad on them. They did nothing to fix the problem until the 1970 model they called it the mark 3 version. Spitfire with the hardtop on it is another car i liked the looks of. Got in one of the later 1500 versions at a dealer. With about 4 more inches of leg room i could drive one comfy.

[Krooser]

Put a 327 in the back seat like normal guys do....

I had a normal friend in high school put a 327 in the back seat of a VW bug. That was after he built a Harley minibike.

[Little Mouse]

Ya or even a 4.3 V6 would be a big upgrade in power.

[enigma57]

My first experience with swing axle rear suspension was with a 1960 VW I had cut down into a Baja Bug many moons ago. Used it mainly for offroading weekends and as a work car during the week. Did OK until one day on the way home from work, I was just entering a long sweeping bend in the freeway at 70 MPH (which for that car was flat out). Was in the 'fast lane' and a wreck up ahead caused the cars ahead to brake. The VW would never have stopped fast enough to avoid plowing into the cars ahead, so I cut the wheel right.

My intent was to simply shift over a lane, but as I cut over, each successive lane (it was a 4-lane freeway in each direction) shut down as well and I soon found myself up on 2 wheels with the inside rear wheel tucked under....... Leaning towards the 'high side' to shift my weight that way and keep from rolling the car. My head was nearly out the passenger side window. Much like shifting your weight on a small sailboat to keep from capsizing. Good thing I had no seat belt preventing me from doing that. Probably wouldn't be here today if I'd had seat belts in that car.

Managed that across all 4 lanes of traffic and once on the shoulder, cut the wheel back just enough to straighten out and drop down on all 4 wheels. Later, as I neared home, I stopped at the local speed shop and spoke to the guy there. He sold me some adjustable suspension travel limiters which I set to limit the amount the rear wheels could drop to 2" max from road height. That did the trick. No more inside rear wheel tucking under on turns.

A few years later, I had a Triumph Spitfire sitting on a GT-6 frame. Also a swing axle design. Made up some suspension travel limiters for it and swapped in a 2.4 litre Toyota Celica engine and 5-speed transmission. Handled like a go cart. Lots of fun to drive, but not a lot of fun to get into nor out of for someone my size. So eventually sold the car.

Thanks for the memories,

Harry

[wyrmrider]

Crower still has reverse rotation cam blanks
be sure an put in kit that liimt thrust in ditributor shaft
gear moving tears up both gears
ask me how I know
go to forabodiesonly and PMndart19666 at crower or call and ask for shaun

[Little Mouse]

Im not tall at 5 11", 32 inseam but i needed more leg room for the spitfire. Worst thing i tried to get into was an MG midget.

[allencr267]

So im wondering if a boat trans normally used for say a sbc or bbc can be mounted up to a corvair engine.

Probably not common or cheap, or plug & play, two adapters might need a longer input.
I don't know if I'd want to be out in the water with one engine, that being a Corvair.

[Little Mouse]

Ya hear what your saying. The really gutsy or maybe crazy put them in airplanes. Not a chance in the world id get in a plane knowing a corvair was powering it.

[enigma57]

Here ya go......





Have a good flight,

Harry