tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61845462011-04-21T14:48:18.612-07:00Corvair Blog1965 Corvair Corsa TurboMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.comBlogger721100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-36297651187900971082008-02-13T02:37:00.000-08:002008-02-13T02:39:24.828-08:00Time for new PointsSo as I mentioned 9(!) month ago, I missing some power when I boost. I've changed the coil and the plugs with some fancy high end plugs. What I haven't done is replace the points. My next purchase will be a tune-up kit with new points, rotor, condenser and distributor cap. I could go with the pertronix electronic points, but I think I'll keep it old school and see how it Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-52548281800274009072008-02-13T02:30:00.000-08:002008-02-13T02:39:45.343-08:00A Noisy LifterWell, with all things Corvair, once one thing is fixed a new thing breaks. This time its the Lifter. I don't think its really broken, much. It could be loose.I've talked to my mechanic, he said he would take a look at it and we'll move on from there.Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-39590368426763556642007-05-13T02:12:00.000-07:002007-05-13T02:44:44.609-07:00Where's the Power??So, the Corvair is running great. I took it on a long run to Sandy Valley without a hitch. I have no gas leaks. So where's the power when the turbo kicks in? That is the big question. The one thing that people seem to agree on is that I am experiencing "Flame Out".Flame Out seems to be a condition that doesn't allow the spark plugs to put out a strong enough spark ignite Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-44576094301855981812007-04-27T21:49:00.000-07:002007-04-27T22:01:14.129-07:00The Big Drive.Well, I fixed the leak by removing the return line to the gas tank. I replaced the turbo fuel filter with a simple straight through filter. I then blocked off the return line and reran the fuel line to the carb so that the pressure regulator is much easier to adjust.After testing for leaks, I did some short drives around town and everything seemed to go well. I decided a long drive Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-20022824072489932872007-04-21T00:28:00.000-07:002007-04-21T00:31:56.734-07:00The Gas Leak!Well, after talking with the mechanic, and after all the modifications to the fuel system, we're going to try to remove the fuel return line from the system. I'll just block it off for now and change the fuel filter. If there are no adverse effects, the line is coming out!The Springs!Clark's has springs! They say they don't on their web page, but they do. Now the decision to go Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-86480678741927124082007-04-02T03:05:00.000-07:002007-04-02T03:12:58.193-07:00Gas Leaks and springs.Well, I've been driving the Corvair pretty much as a daily driver for the past 2 weeks. Two reasons for that. First, the weather here has been perfect, second, the Jeep is at the shop. Unfortunately, all this driving has shown a few weak points in the car.The Gas Leak!I started smelling gas yesterday and the problem has just gotten worse. The leak is where the fuel Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-78212086679639461682007-03-13T03:35:00.000-07:002007-03-13T03:41:01.749-07:00The Results Are In!The Corvair is running great! I took it to work today and the car is running great. No wierd hesitation, no knocking, no funny noises from the engine compartment, and I can see how fast I'm going. I'm looking forward to doing many drives in the near future.The next big thing will be paint. As I mentioned before, I'm not going crazy on the paint job yet. I'll get a moderateMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-71013152880678407842007-03-12T02:13:00.000-07:002007-03-12T02:15:53.087-07:00New Harmonic Balancer in!Well, the new harmonic balancer is in the car. I have not had a chance to give the Corvair a real test drive, but I will. I also had a new Viton seal put in by the crankshaft and had the speedometer finally installed.With the new pressure retard unit, I had to have the carb adjusted. The car was just running too rich. Hopefully the bugs are mostly out. I should know Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-32492357597124590672007-02-28T22:25:00.000-08:002007-02-28T22:32:47.150-08:00I think its time for paint.Paint is a tough one. On one hand, I want the car to look good while I continue to work on it. On the other I'm not ready to spend a ton of money to get a great paint job when the car isn't there yet. I've heard two theories on this. Many people like to do the body work first and have a great looking car to inspire them to get it working great. Other people like toMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-43467277264519652352007-02-28T22:16:00.000-08:002007-02-28T22:21:16.072-08:00One thing fixed, new thing broken!So, I finally figured out the pressure retard unit on the distributor had gone bad. The little device retards the spark advance up to 12 degrees when boosting. Without it, the car knocks like crazy! It took a good amount of time to find one. They have become pretty rare these days. I need to send my old core to Dale Manufacturing and have them rebuild it forMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1252490439539947582006-12-21T15:32:00.000-08:002006-12-23T05:28:25.178-08:00Spoils, no... SpoilerOne tiny project I should do right away (if the weather would warm up a little) is install the spoiler on the front end of the car. Even though the 65 did not have a spoiler installed, its recommended to add a 66 to it for the added handling on the freeway. The spoiler adds about 150 pounds of downward force to the light front end which is exactly what I need.I could Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-29962325118933205352006-12-20T17:20:00.000-08:002006-12-23T05:29:25.072-08:00Out on the Toy RunWell, the car has been running great. I've been taking it out once a week just to keep it from sitting idle. I would classify it as a Sunday Driver right now. There is still plenty of work to do, but its becoming a reliable driver.This past Saturday we took it to the yearly Toy Run. Cars of all types go down to Henderson to donate toys and have a good time. There were over Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1161583587277550762006-10-22T23:00:00.000-07:002006-10-22T23:06:27.293-07:00Corvair Aligned - Then Dead - Now alive!!!! Oh and fuel pump moved....Busy week for the Corvair. I finally got the alignment done. It sure does drive straight now! On the way home though, the clutch died! It was only a year old, but the pressure plate broke. Sheesh! Those old parts are unpredictable.I limped over to the mechanic and had the clutch replaced. I also had him install an Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1159872712219179962006-10-03T03:49:00.000-07:002006-10-03T03:51:52.256-07:00New Problem Solved!One of the great advantages of belonging to a car club is the pool of knowledge there to suggest fixes to your problems. That's what I did at the last meeting and the solution to my problem was discovered there. It turned out to be a bad coil! Coil replaced, problem fixed! Now I just need to get back to the alignment!Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1154123451074559422006-07-28T14:50:00.000-07:002006-07-28T14:52:30.316-07:00New Problems!Okay, so now when the car gets hot, it loses power when I try to maintain speed. So badly that its like the engine cuts out altogether. It happened first when I was boosting down the freeway. The engine cut out completely. Then, it came back. Now, whenever the engine gets hot, it does it. I've already changed the points and reset the timing. It could be a carburetor issueBack Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1148534640669911042006-05-24T22:20:00.000-07:002006-05-24T22:25:32.493-07:00Progress is still being made!The new steering box is in! It handles much better! I need to get the alignment taken care of to make it drive even better. I think after that, it may finally be time to put a working speedometer. There's a project on the back burner for some time. I'd also like to get a stereo in there some time soon. Then I can be cruising to the tunes! Alignment first though. My Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1131277740470998812005-11-06T03:40:00.000-08:002005-11-12T15:20:33.173-08:00The Next Big ProjectWell, now with the fender repaired, the next big thing is replacing the steering box. The Corvair tends to drift pretty easily and is pretty loose when it comes to steering it. When I had the shocks and springs replaced, the mechanic tried to adjust the steering, but its just too old and needs to be replaced.Luckily, Corvair Motorsports make a brand new quick steering box for Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1131077316633127812005-11-03T20:04:00.000-08:002005-11-03T20:09:48.786-08:00Here's the picture of the broken fenderYou can see the fender is trashed! It's amazing that Joe (the body guy) got it as straight as he did! Kudos to Joe!Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1131016038450821652005-11-03T03:03:00.000-08:002005-11-03T03:08:39.536-08:00Front pic of the repaired front endWell, there it is. Body work done. It looks pretty good huh. I guess I should get a picture of the smashed front end up so you can compare. Son now on the top of the list is get the front steering box replaced and having an alignment done. Then there is all the other projects I'd like to do to the car. I have to keep reminding myself, one thing at a time!Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1130815356535403462005-10-31T19:15:00.000-08:002005-10-31T19:22:36.586-08:00Corvair Fixed!!!Well, the bodywork is done. It looks pretty darn good. I'ts not perfect, but I think I can live with it. Now I need to get it painted. I'm thinking of keeping it yellow, but I'm also thinking about the maroon color from 1965. Changing colors would be a much bigger project. So I'm guessing it will stay yellow!Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1129093666439772682005-10-11T22:00:00.000-07:002005-10-11T22:07:46.446-07:00The Repairs Start!I found a guy to do the repairs on the fender of the Corvair today. I actually knew him for some time, but did not realize he did body work. He was a former co-worker of mine but previously he customized cars in California. He has all the body work and paint tools so he's ready to go. I took the car to him today to get a look at it. He would like to try to work on the Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1122627882646991392005-07-29T02:01:00.000-07:002005-07-29T02:04:42.653-07:00No Progress made on the Vair yet.I have high hopes though. Its been an interesting few months. Money is tight. I've been buckling down on the expenses so hopefully I'll be able to get the body work done soon. No promises though. Between work and personal stuff, auto work is low on the priorty list. The car runs like a champ though. I started it up the other day and is strong. Starting it Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1114316672751911482005-04-23T21:18:00.000-07:002005-04-23T21:55:28.886-07:00Sheet Metal ProcuredWell, I have purchased new sheet metal for the Corvair for repairs. It had to be cut off another 65 in California. A buddy is going to California next week and has offered to pick it up for me. Next I have to find somebody who does body work on older cars. The fender has to be welded in place and worked.It might give me an excuse to paint the whole car Maroon. That would be Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1113628814829715972005-04-15T22:09:00.000-07:002005-04-15T22:20:14.830-07:00Tragedy!The Corvair was involved in a hit and run accident. Everybody is okay! A car pulled out in front of me and I couldn't stop in time to avoid hitting it and then he took off! Ran away! I've never been the victim of a hit and run before. Let me tell you it sucks! I have some major damage to the right front fender. The only thing I can think of doing is ripping it out and putting a Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1113022533742533892005-04-08T21:45:00.000-07:002005-04-08T21:55:33.743-07:00Vapor Lock!The mystery is solved. I suffered my first attack of vapor lock. The conditions just happen to be perfect for it. I had gotten the engine up to temperature and it sat for 20 minutes or so. It started up no problem and I drove it about 800 feet and it died. I tried starting this morning after some time and it ran without a problem.I was looking into installing an electric fuel pump Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1112950442319216442005-04-08T01:48:00.000-07:002005-04-08T19:05:32.260-07:00New look for the Corvair:Well, here it is. The new improved turbo! It rides much lower than before and feels great! The mechanic did a great job on the springs and shocks as well as an amazing job on the clutch. It rides great.The bad news:Unfortunately, about an hour and a half later, the car died. It just stopped firing. It seems more like an ignition issue than a fuel issue so we'll have to doMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1112577407150864722005-04-03T18:08:00.000-07:002005-04-03T18:16:47.150-07:00"The Worst Clutch I've ever seen"So says my mechanic. Yes, the Corvair finally made it to the mechanic. The biggest problem was logistics. Our schedules don't line up at all. He's been working on it for the past few days and says everything is going good. The new springs are in and the passenger front looks fine. I was concerned because the Chamber was so severe that it was purhaps bent, Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1108120847910572752005-02-11T03:15:00.000-08:002005-02-11T03:20:47.910-08:00Two Weeks Away!I talked with my mechanic at our monthly club meeting and we have a tentative schedule for two week from now. He's going out of town for a while. When he gets back, we'll get the car over to his shop and start getting the Corvair road ready.I'm looking forward to it. Las Vegas has car cruise nights every third Friday of the month and I'm hoping to go to some of these events soon. Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1107431826324279742005-02-03T03:48:00.000-08:002005-02-03T03:58:53.390-08:00
Now part of the Corvair Webring.
I decided to add my blog to the Corvair Webring to get a little more traffic here. If you happen to come via the Webring, welcome. I look forward to your comments as I continue to work on the corvair. Hopefully soon it will make it to "daily driver" status. My plan is not to make it a show car, but a reliable car that I can enjoy all the time. Once the major Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1107065087021203182005-01-29T21:34:00.000-08:002005-01-29T22:05:39.836-08:00Parts are in!
I have new springs and shocks waiting to be installed on the Corvair. The mechanic is getting a new flywheel for the transmission. We should be able to get both changed out in one shot. I just need to make the appointment. I also have a spoiler sent as well. I wanted the stock spoiler for the car but Clark's no longer has them. I purchased the Camaro spoiler instead. I'm not sure ifMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1105781511589866172005-01-15T01:24:00.000-08:002005-01-15T01:36:31.323-08:00Happy New Year!
Well, It's time to get the Corvair up and running so that I can take it out like a "daily driver" First things first, I need to get the clutch fixed. I talked to my mechanic this past Wednesday and we should be getting it in the shop in the next few weeks. Second, I need to work on the suspension. I've ordered some new springs from Corvair Motorsports. They are Heavy Duty springsMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1101546742403635322004-11-27T01:07:00.000-08:002004-11-27T01:12:22.403-08:00No progress on repairs!
Well, I'm a little bugged with myself. My last post was in July and here it is November and nothing has been done. Granted, I have a lot of stuff going on in my life. I recently got married, we had a honeymoon, work has been out of control, I have a lot of work around the house. Enough said. I'm determined to get the Corvair out of the garage soon! My first step is Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1090579875801329192004-07-23T03:44:00.000-07:002004-07-23T03:56:35.326-07:00New Problems (again)
Well, just when things are coming together, something new breaks. Its been a while since I wrote anything here. A few days after I changed the motor mounts, the clutch started to feel funny. It gave me a thunk and that was it. I let it be for a month until last week. The clutch is now slipping.
The transmission is out of my comfort zone so I'll be calling the Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1088539429735430412004-06-29T12:59:00.000-07:002004-06-29T13:03:49.736-07:00Suspension still high
I installed coil spring compressors on the front end of the car recently. Although the spring was 1 inch shorter, it didn't lower the ride height of the car at all. I posted my results on the Corvair Center forum and the basic answer I got is that I need to cut off 2 coils of the spring. They say it can be done while still in the car. That's a little scary to me, and I Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1086666918410264452004-06-07T20:48:00.000-07:002004-06-07T20:55:18.410-07:00New Motor Mount installed
It wasn't too difficult to do and it was badly needed as you can see from the photo of the good and bad mounts together. My one snag was that whoever put the mount on before me used an SAE nut and a Metric nut to hold the engine to the mount. I had made one trip to pick up some deep SAE sockets, got home, pulled one nut off and then had to go out again to pick up Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1085260104865293562004-05-22T14:02:00.000-07:002004-05-22T14:08:24.866-07:00Time for preventative Maintenance
Well, now that the car is running well, I think its time to think about a few pending repairs that were put on the back burner while the car had a hard time running. First thing is the rear motor mount. It is definitely in need of replacement. The process looks pretty easy. I need to jack up the engine so that the pressure is off the rubber part of the mountMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1085018978863820042004-05-19T19:05:00.000-07:002004-05-19T19:09:38.863-07:00
New Wires are in!
I got the new wires today and installed them. The car is running GREAT! I took it to work today and it didn't have a single misfire. It also boosted like it used to before I got the mag wires that turned out to be bad! The new oil line is looking good, no leaks. I also fixed a leak by the turbo, so there should be less oil loss from now on. We shall see!
I think I'll Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1084847703443442472004-05-17T19:30:00.000-07:002004-05-17T19:35:03.443-07:00New Oil Line in
While I'm waiting for new plug wires to come in I thought I'd put the correct oil line to the turbo in. The job turned out harder than it looked since the old line was wrong, I had difficulty pulling it out. I had to remove the fuel lines from the pump and the oil sensor before I could get the old line out. It turned out looking good though. You can see the new line in theMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1084700882853315562004-05-16T02:44:00.000-07:002004-05-16T02:48:42.866-07:00Not a good day for wires
I went to swap the boots on the cables today and had gotten through most of them when I managed to pull off the crimped connector that's inside the boot from 2 of them. Looking at the wire, its not hard to see why. I'm sure pulling on all of the boots stressed all the wires and the jacketing of the wire is very soft. The crimp pulled right off. Needless to say, I Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1084511636695785232004-05-13T22:10:00.000-07:002004-05-13T22:13:56.696-07:00Another possibility arrives in the mail
So Check this out. I get a package from Clark's Corvair that was unexpected. All my orders were already delivered. Inside the package are 6 spark plug wire boots. Apparently the boots that came with my newly purchased mag wires were faulty. They were made with the wrong rubber. These faulty boots could cause "Skipping and Arcing". So now I have Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1084206549900050812004-05-10T09:29:00.000-07:002004-05-10T09:29:09.900-07:00Still no luck
I've replaced the diaphram on the carb yesterday, but I still seem to have misfiring problems. I'm back to thinking the problem is electrical. My next step is to jump to the coil so I know the wires are okay. There is a resister that drops the voltage down to 6volts. Many people bypass that resister to get extra power to spark. I may end up doing that as well.Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1083496500987252242004-05-02T04:15:00.000-07:002004-05-16T02:53:05.176-07:00Misfiring still a problem
I've replaced the coil, the points with an electronic ignition, the plugs. No true success with the misfiring problem. I thought I had it once or twice, but after some initial success, the car started to misfire again. After some discussion on the Virtual Vairs discussion list, It looks like I'll be pulling the carb apart again to check the pump diaphram. It seem Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1081107136258415772004-04-04T12:32:00.000-07:002004-04-04T12:35:59.030-07:00The New Coil is in
Well, I replaced the coil today. I'm not sure if it was my problem or not. As I was working on it, the hose that goes to the pressure retard unit was so loose, it fell right off. I'm wondering if the lack of any kind of seal would cause my misfiring. The pressure is come right behind the turbo so if if there is not a good seal, that would be gas blowing out of the hose. Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1080988714424853032004-04-03T02:38:00.000-08:002004-04-03T02:42:15.200-08:00New Coil is in
My new Flamethrower coil is here now. Replacing the old one should be a snap. I also picked up an electronic ignition or electronic points system. That may take me a little longer to get installed. Once I do, I won't need to worry about new points ever again.
Water injection
I've been looking into a water injection system for the turbo so I can eliminate detonation problems Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1080280314655120482004-03-25T21:51:00.000-08:002004-03-25T21:55:24.000-08:00New Problems
On the way home from Mesquite, the car had some mis-firing problems. I'm thinking that the coil has gone bad. The wires and distributor were already replaced. I can also change the points although I'm thinking about going to electronic ignition. I'll Order the parts in the next day or so and see how it goes.
One Hot Car
On the drive home, the car was pushing 500 degrees and Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1079841341762261052004-03-20T19:55:00.000-08:002004-03-23T02:45:19.466-08:00Back from Mesquite
What a great time. Here are the pictures pomised. just click on
Corvair Gathering 2004 and check it out. Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1079765429153362852004-03-19T22:50:00.000-08:002004-03-19T22:53:50.340-08:005th Annual Corvair Gathering
Well, here I am in Mesquite, NV attending the 5th annual Corvair Gathering. I'm having a great time meeting other Corvair nuts. I've gotten lots of great advice on improvements to the car as well as some praise on the Corvair. There are some beautiful cars here. I've taken a bunch of picture and will post them as soon as I get to my computer to download them from Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1079454847635773072004-03-16T08:34:00.000-08:002004-03-16T08:37:24.110-08:00Car is running once again
At least I can say that nothing I fixed has failed again! The new wires and distributor cap seemed to do the trick. It took a while for the car to start though. I had to jump start it with my other car and it took a few attempts. Once it got started though, its seems pretty strong. I drove it around all day yesterday running errands and it never had a problem Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1079384657286752142004-03-15T13:04:00.000-08:002004-03-15T13:07:33.060-08:00More Parts In
The New Wires are here. They should be in the car in a few hours. Hopefully, this will be the solution to my non-starting Corvair. Looking through the Clark's catalog it mentions that old wires are susceptible to moisture and I definitely had a lot of moisture in the trunk the last time I drove the car. Buckets of steam is a better description of what was going on in the engine Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1078642300738253352004-03-06T22:51:00.000-08:002004-03-06T22:56:03.950-08:00Long Delay
I know. By now I should have the speedometer in. Unfortunately, the car won't start and I don't know why. I'm thinking its electrical. I mentioned I took the car out in the rain a little while back. Its been humid and wet since then and I think that since the engine compartment is not sealed I may have gotten some moisture into the distributor. It off right now. I'm hoping a Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1077534855179866772004-02-23T03:14:00.000-08:002004-02-23T03:19:01.733-08:00The New Speedo
So I'm ready to toss in the new Speedometer! Its funny because this was the first part I purchased for the car. That was back when I thought the guy who sold it to me was honest about what the car needed. A lot of things "came up" before I was able to consider putting this in. To be fair, I did try to install the speedo much earlier, but you need to pull the steering wheel Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1077533723337562112004-02-23T02:55:00.000-08:002004-02-23T02:58:09.810-08:00Another Rain Observation
So I went out for another run in the rain tonight and it was interesting. Armed with my one windshield wiper, I turned on the defroster and headed out of the garage. Las Vegas drainage isn't the best so there was a huge puddle at the end of my street. I drove through it not thinking about it too much, but then my windshield instantly fogged up. It was amazing. I had Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1077513027144310942004-02-22T21:10:00.000-08:002004-02-22T21:13:13.140-08:00A little bit of silliness
It was raining today so I thought it would be a good test for the Corvair in the rain. Living in a desert it was a rare opportunity to run the car on a short trip. It would be better than if I were on a long drive and got caught in the rain and something didn't work. It turned out to be a good plan. Halfway on our way to dinner, I hit the windshield switch and the Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1077185516099497132004-02-19T02:11:00.000-08:002004-02-19T02:16:24.466-08:00A different fuel leak
Driving the car to work the other day, everything was going great except that when I hit the gas to engage the turbo, I get the old gas smell. It only happens when the turbo is boosting so I'm guessing I have a small leak somewhere between the turbo charger and the manifold. There aren't too many places for gas to leak out there. It also must be a small leak because I Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1077171912480533472004-02-18T22:25:00.001-08:002004-02-18T22:27:52.826-08:00Possible Solution to Turbo Heat Shield
I was talking to a guy at work who's girlfriend works with metal and he seems to think that building a custom heat shield for the turbo would not be that big of a deal. The question is, do I want to have one made that looks stock? Or since it would be a custom job, to make something different all together. The biggest thing is to make sure the tire would Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076996905775840852004-02-16T21:48:00.000-08:002004-02-16T21:52:55.873-08:00Return Line Work Done!!!
I took the car out for a test drive today. Every thing is looking good on the fuel side of things. I had a small leak, but I think a strategically placed hose clamp fixed it. I'll double check it tomorrow. I'll take the car on the freeway to give it a real test! Next job looks like the speedometer since I have those parts in. I also have the steering wheel puller soMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076900612001383902004-02-15T19:03:00.000-08:002004-02-15T19:08:06.920-08:00Return line work continues
I wish I had a car lift. That would make this job so much easier. I had a success getting the fuel line to the tank, so that end of things is pretty much done. I have to tie up the line in a place or two. I did have the engine side all connected, but I had to pull it out because I didn't have enough steel line to make it from one end of the tunnel to the other. Oh Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076794979727500962004-02-14T13:42:00.000-08:002004-02-14T13:46:52.246-08:00Carburetor fixed!!!
The float was bad! I pulled it out today and it was half filled with gas. I put the one in from my early model carb and no leaks. The car ran great at high RPMs and idle. No gas to be seen anywhere! For the life of me I can't find the leak in the bad float though. I'll have to put it in some water and squeeze it. Maybe some bubbles will appear.
So that leaves me with Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076731355036096012004-02-13T20:02:00.000-08:002004-02-15T00:10:17.716-08:00Pressure Regulator not the solution
Well, the pressure regulator is finally in and working after some initial problems. I managed to cross-thread the fuel line to the fuel filter and gas was shooting all over the place. Luckily I had another set of fittings and had the thing back together in no time. Unfortunately, the carburetor is still leaking. At 2000+ rpm, there is no leak, but at idle Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076624040226104512004-02-12T14:14:00.000-08:002004-02-13T22:27:31.360-08:00The First Pressure regulator a Failure!
I picked up a pressure regulator at the local Pep Boys and installed it. The thing was a piece of garbage. I had the car running for about a minute when it died. It was starved for gas because the dial setting on the regulator vibrated to 1 pound. No gas was getting to the carb. It turns out the spring in the regulator was dead and could hold any Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076367758019694542004-02-09T15:02:00.000-08:002004-02-09T15:05:05.793-08:00Maybe a Solution
A quick question on the Virvutal Vairs mailing list and someone suggested putting on a fuel regulator to hold back the pressure on the carb. I'll be heading down to Pep boys today to pick up some jack stands and a jack to get under the car to work on the fuel return line. While I'm there I'll see about a fuel pressure regulator. Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076287052270917152004-02-08T16:37:00.000-08:002004-02-13T22:28:18.826-08:00And a Setback!
Well, I have the filter in, but now the carburetor is leaking like nothing I've ever seen. There is a stream of gas flowing out of the carb when I get the engine running fast. Man this is frustrating. I feel like I've taken 2 steps back.
Now I'm looking into getting a whole different carb setup, but its expensive and I'd rather spend my money elsewhere, but if I have to get Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076271807868678152004-02-08T12:23:00.000-08:002004-02-15T03:47:17.093-08:00Fuel Filter Success!
By adding the fuel filter to the engine, the car no longer floods out. It was amazing the amount of gas that was being pushed to the carb that it didn't need. The car runs great now. Below are a few pics to illustrate the difference.
Here's the fuel line before. It goes from the pump (blue) to the Carb (green). The Yellow marks where the fuel filter should be. The Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1076033770970248392004-02-05T18:16:00.000-08:002004-02-08T12:15:30.140-08:00The fuel return line is looking like a bigger deal than I originally thought. Naturally, the return line goes to the top of the gas tank in the front of the car and on early inspection, it looks as if all the old lines have been removed. I need to get ramps so I can get the car up. I need to remove a plate that runs the full length of the car to expose the fuel lines.
First things first, I'm Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1075401387403239262004-01-29T10:36:00.000-08:002004-01-29T10:38:39.340-08:00The parts came in the other day. The car pretty much decided what I need to do next. Yesterday I started it up to take to work and the carb completely flooded out. Gas was draining all over the place. Apparently, the pump is too powerful for the turbo carb and pumps too much gas into it. To fix the problem, a return line is placed from the fuel filter back to the gas tank to handle the Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1074464465211501772004-01-18T14:21:00.000-08:002004-01-18T14:23:02.483-08:00I just ordered more parts for the car. Parts in are marked in red, parts on order are in blue. Unfortunately, the turbo heat shield is going to be a hard find. Clark's doesn't have it and a few inquiries at other venders has not been sucessful. Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1073503576850517312004-01-07T11:26:00.000-08:002004-01-07T11:26:36.426-08:00So I put together a list on the sidebar. I'm sure its not complete. What started as just a few things is quickly ballooning up to a sizable list. A lot of the stuff is not critical. I can get by without a stereo for some time and my headlights are mostly working. Other stuff needs to be looked at soon. The suspension/alignment is top on the "big projects" list. The list is more of a Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1073313449031342462004-01-05T06:37:00.000-08:002004-01-05T12:49:34.640-08:00IT IS ALIVE!!! The new Carb and turbo assembly are in and the car is running great. I had to purge a bunch of oil out of the engine and muffler from the leak, but within a couple of minutes, most of the oil was burned away and the car is running pretty much smoke free. There may be some residual oil left in the muffler that still needs to burn away, but things are looking great.
Upon Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1071325982245740812003-12-13T06:33:00.000-08:002003-12-13T13:53:59.680-08:00Talked to my mechanic today. He got the turbo pulled apart and discovered whoever worked on it last didn't put it back together correctly so the seals were not at all doing their job. That's good news. It probably means the rings are good. So he has the turbo parts on the way and I've got a new late model carb on the way so we should have this thing back together soon!
Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1071051227062973472003-12-10T02:13:00.000-08:002003-12-10T02:13:59.333-08:00So I'm on a quest for a late model turbo and carburator. Since the carb in turbo in my corvair are the wrong type. It will still work, but I'm not getting the boost I should from the turbo. My mechanic tells me if I get a late model impellor and housing and keep the early model turbine, I can get the boost I'm supposed to, but get it soon in the power band. So I'm on a quest for the carb and Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1070966875390063252003-12-09T02:47:00.000-08:002003-12-09T03:01:37.526-08:00The car looks like its on fire when I drive it. There is a ton of oil getting into the cylinders. It looks like the turbo charger is leaking oil into the compressor pushing oil into the cylinders. The Turbo has been pulled and I discovered that the Turbo and carburator were from an earlier model Corvair. Unfortunately, because its an earlier model, I'm missing some extra boost that I should Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6184546.post-1070966304618307982003-12-09T02:38:00.000-08:002003-12-09T02:38:36.296-08:00Welcome to my Corvair Blog.
I am a new owner of a 1965 Corvair Corsa Turbo. While it looks pretty clean, it has some mechanical an cosmetic problems that need to be addressed. This blog will document the work on the car.Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15234015536931058423noreply@blogger.com0