The Chevy Corvair was designed by a team of engineers and designers at Chevrolet. The chief designer at the time was Ned Nickles, who worked alongside Carl Renner on the Corvair’s design. The Corvair represented several production firsts for Chevrolet, including their first rear air-cooled engine, first unitized body, first production car turbo, and fully independent suspension for each wheel.
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Contents
- Who made Corvair engines?
- Why did General Motors stop making the Corvair?
- Why did the Corvair fail?
- Why was Corvair unsafe at any speed?
- Was the Corvair a bad car?
- What does Corvair mean?
- Who designed the Chevrolet Corvair?
- What went wrong with the Corvair?
- Why Corvair was an unsafe car?
- What was the Chevy Corvair common problems?
Who made Corvair engines?
The Chevrolet Turbo-Air 6 is a flat-six air-cooled automobile engine developed by General Motors (GM) in the late 1950s for use in the rear-engined Chevrolet Corvair of the 1960s. It was used in the entire Corvair line, as well as a wide variety of other applications.
Why did General Motors stop making the Corvair?
By 1967, however, the Corvair line was not showing an advantage in automotive sales and just over 27,000 cars were produced. The eventual phasing out of the Corvair was also aided by consumer advocate Ralph Nader who included a chapter on the rear-engine car in his now famous book, “Unsafe at any Speed.”
Why did the Corvair fail?
However, its tendency to oversteer and spin out of control caused problems that led to a redesigned suspension in 1964. After Nader’s book appeared, Corvair sales dwindled. General Motors withdrew the car from production in 1969.
Why was Corvair unsafe at any speed?
In his 1965 book, Unsafe at Any Speed, Nader called the Corvair “the one-car accident.” He wrote that a design flaw in the rear suspension made the car likely to flip over when driven in abrupt maneuvers, like, say, avoiding a ball that suddenly rolled into the street.
Was the Corvair a bad car?
The Corvair’s alleged problems stemmed from its unusual rear-engined lay-out and the suspension that held it up. That design led to unstable emergency handling, according to Nader. It’s hard to say whether the Corvair was much more dangerous than other cars of its time.
What does Corvair mean?
Corvair: meaning a sports car popular in the 1960s, made by Chevrolet. Cuss: or to swear. Dig: or to understand or like something. Fuzz: which refers to the police. Hacked off: or to be angry.
Who designed the Chevrolet Corvair?
Led by General Manager Edward N. Cole, Chevrolet designed a revolutionary new car. It was powered by an air-cooled horizontal six-cylinder engine made almost entirely out of aluminum. The engine was mounted in the rear of the car, driving the rear wheels through a compact automatic transaxle.
What went wrong with the Corvair?
The Corvair relied on an unusually high front to rear pressure differential (15psi front, 26psi rear, when cold; 18 psi and 30psi hot), and if one inflated the tires equally, as was standard practice for all other cars at the time, the result was a dangerous oversteer.
Why Corvair was an unsafe car?
The rear engine placement in the Corvair caused a weight imbalance that resulted in poor handling. As a performance vehicle, many people enjoyed driving the Corvair at high speeds. When combined with poor handling, high speeds can lead to an accident when the driver attempts to correct a steering error.
What was the Chevy Corvair common problems?
Only the inboard ends of the shafts could articulate, so as the suspension compressed or extended, the wheels tilted at extreme angles. This had the effect of dramatically reducing the rubber on the road. In an aggressive turn, the rear end tended to lose traction before the front, causing oversteer, or fishtailing.
