Latest news with #Corvair
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
At $15,000, Is This 1966 Chevy Corvair Monza A Safe Bet?
Arguably the prettiest car in Chevy's '60s fleet, today's Nice Price or No Dice Corvair still holds up. Let's decide if there's any hold-up with its asking price. Wouldn't it be nice if we could do our part in saving the planet while still being able to have a little fun in the process? I mean, most conservation efforts, despite instilling an intense sense of noblesse and self-satisfaction, don't often engender any adrenal-exercising Kool-Aid "Oh Yeah!" moments. The 2011 Honda CR-Z Hybrid we looked at yesterday might very well be a notable exception to this unwritten rule. It, after all, had that rare commodity on any car, much less on a hybrid: a manual transmission. And it was a six-speed row-yer-own, to boot! That makes for some fun while sipping fuel and zipping through electrons to lower one's carbon footprint. Another fun factor was the Honda's $5,900 asking price. You all gave that a solid 65% Nice Price win. Read more: Popular Cars Consumer Reports Recommends You Skip In Favor Of Something Better The 1970s was a weird time for ironic deaths. Notably, There was the passing of Euell Gibbons, the healthy diet advocate whose eating habits didn't prevent his dying of a ruptured aorta. Then there was Jim Fixx. His fame arose from writing a best-selling book on the health benefits of running and died of a heart attack while, you guessed it, out running. Having demonstrated so cruel a sense of humor, it wouldn't have been surprising for fate to have marked safety advocate and perennial presidential candidate Ralph Nader for a fiery death behind the wheel of a Chevrolet Corvair, one of the targets of his screed against the auto industry's lackadaisical attitude toward occupant safety in the '50s and '60s. "Unsafe At Any Speed." Instead, Nader dodged that bullet and is still kicking it today at the ripe old age of 91. The Corvair, however, is not. First introduced for the 1960 model year, the Corvair was a very obvious answer to the best-selling import of the time, Volkswagen's Beetle. It became the unfortunate object of Nader's aggrievement due to the quirky handling characteristics of the early models. Those suffered from snap oversteer due to the back-forty engine placement and a cost-saving swing axle rear suspension. By the time the second generation arrived in 1965, those demons had been exorcised. A redesigned and fully articulating rear suspension tamed the handling and allowed for more horsepower out of the air-cooled pancake six. To fete the feat, Chevy's designers imbued the revamped models with knuckle-bitingly beautiful styling. On the downside, the model line was pared down to pillarless sedans and coupes, as well as a convertible. The previous generation's station wagon and forward-control vans and pickups were no more. This 1965 Chevy Corvair Monza proves that Chevy's stylings really knew what they were doing. The car's long, low, and clean design is immediately familial. It shares its subtle Coke bottle side profile with the Chevelle, but with more purpose in its shark nose and Corvette homage quad tail lamps. Under the deck lid is the 164 cubic-inch displacement flat-six, but in this Monza, it's fitted with four single-barrel carburetors. The carbs are set up like a four-barrel, with two primary carbs and two secondaries that only open upon full throttle. The benefit over a single 4BBL carb is better response and more torque down low. As fitted, the naturally-aspirated "Turbo-Air" engine offers 140 (gross) horsepower, which can move the 2,300-pound car smartly. Ahead of that is a four-speed manual shifted via a curvy lever sprouting from the Corvair's iconic flat floorboard. Other notable features of the Monza include a black crinkle finish on the dash and glovebox door, a tach in the instrument panel, and bucket seats for the driver and front passenger. According to the ad, this Monza also wears a set of SS wheels off a Chevelle or Camaro and features an older respray in the factory Aztec Red. Some bubbling under that paint is evident just ahead of the windshield, but there doesn't seem to be any major road rot anywhere structural. Things are just as nice in the cabin. The vinyl upholstery is wholly intact and doesn't suffer from fading. And while this is a sixties car with a reputation for danger, it has been updated with seat belts and a dual-circuit brake system. The seller says it also has had a "sporty exhaust" added to improve the sound. Overall, it appears to be a good ten-foot car, and aside from that bubbling under the paint, seems to need nothing to be a great classic weekend cruiser. A clean title and the seller's suggestion that "In these uncertain times, why not drop the top and enjoy the journey?" add to the car's advocacy. Any and all upgrades and replacement parts are said to have come from a Corvair specialist, so nothing janky or weird should pop up for the next owner. It's also fun to think that Chevy built this sports car, which offered more power than its next-closest layout competitor, Porsche's then-new 911, as well as a full convertible roof when the German car could only manage a Targa top. The only real question, then, is whether it's worth the seller's $15,000 asking price to gain that experience. What do you think? Is this Corvair a deal at that $15K asking? Or do you stand with Nader that this Chevy is unsafe at any spend? You decide! Nice Price or No Dice: Seattle, Washington, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears. Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at robemslie@ and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your commenter handle. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Electrified gasoline engines may be the powertrain of the future
In 1966, General Motors built the Electrovair II, an electric version of the Chevrolet Corvair packed with the latest technology from the aerospace and electronics industries. The car's acceleration nearly matched the 110-hp gasoline-fueled Corvair, but without the noise and vibration of a combustion engine. Still, the Electrovair II lacked the driving range and rapid fill of its gasoline sibling. In a promotional video, the narrator says: 'Electrovair II can only travel 40 to 80 miles depending on how you drive it before its silver zinc batteries must be recharged. Recharging takes almost six hours. Obviously, a better battery must be found to make a practical car, but Electrovair II has demonstrated for the first time what electric car performance could be like when that better power source is found.' Six decades later, scientists are still looking for that better battery — one that charges as fast as a pump fills a gasoline tank and propels the vehicle for well over 350 miles before recharging. Sign up for the weekly Automotive News Mobility Report newsletter for the latest developments at the intersection of transportation and technology. As Automotive News celebrates its 100-year anniversary, we are taking a look at today's topics through both a historic and future lens. This installment looks at the future of powertrains. The effort to displace gasoline as the primary fuel for automobiles is as old as the car itself. Steam, turbines that could run on anything from french fry grease to perfume, hydrogen and natural gas have all been looked at as replacements. Until recently, battery-electric vehicles looked to be the successor. But a flurry of announcements from various automakers in recent years saying they wouldn't invest heavily in new combustion engines has turned into a false alarm for those who like the roar and vibration from putting the pedal to the metal. Toyota is working to improve the thermal efficiency of its engines, a move that increases fuel economy and reduces emissions by converting more of the heat generated in the combustion process into work. Toyota's Dynamic Force engines can achieve 41 percent thermal efficiency. Most combustion engines run at about 30 percent efficiency. (EVs operate in the 70 percent range, according to the Department of Energy.) Porsche plans a combustion-engine SUV that could be a replacement for its gasoline Macan as the automaker boosts investments in gasoline models amid slower-than-expected EV sales. Mercedes-Benz said this year that is it developing a new combustion engine, a reaction to its tepid EV sales. But even as they start to invest in new engines, automakers are also looking at how to pair electricity with gasoline motors. 'I believe that the most cost effective gains can be made by modifying the internal combustion engine's operation through the use of electrification,' said Greg Davis, director of the advanced engine research laboratory at Kettering University in Flint, Mich. 'Internal combustion engines do not have broad regions of high efficiency, so combining them with electric drives in hybrid electric vehicles is a great way to limit the use of the engine to operating regions with better efficiency,' Davis said. The early Toyota Prius and Honda Insight were the first step in this direction. They used electricity to launch from a stop — the portion of the drive cycle that needs the most power — and then let the gasoline engine take over. What may emerge, at least in some global markets, is a permanent marriage between gasoline engines and electric motors. Even early tinkerers, including Ferdinand Porsche, recognized the benefits of electrifying the gasoline powertrain. In the early 1900s, Porsche installed electric wheel hub motors in a giant wagon called the Lohner-Porsche. That vehicle debuted in 1900 at the World Exposition in Paris. But the excessive weight of the 80-volt lead-acid batteries and electric motors severely limited driving range. On his next vehicle, the Mixte, Porsche added a gasoline engine to power a generator to recharge the batteries. It was the first range-extended hybrid. Fast-forward 125 years and the range-extended gasoline-electric powertrain that Porsche pioneered is on the cusp of making a comeback. Ram is launching the extended-range Ramcharger truck this year. Scout plans to offer a range extender in its SUVs and pickups. Ford CEO Jim Farley said a range-extender powertrain in the company's SUVs and pickups is coming in 2027. Nissan's e-Power engine, used in a range-extended vehicle sold overseas, achieves 50 percent thermal efficiency and will launch in U.S. versions of the Rogue in 2026. Mazda and Subaru are also working on a new generation of engines geared specifically for hybrid powertrains. And Mercedes-Benz's AMG division is working on a 'highly electrified' V-8. Davis believes we'll see electric motors not just bolted to a gasoline engine but integrated into its design. 'This also allows the use of smaller displacement engines, lowering costs, as the engine output can be combined with the electric output during transitory high-demand situations,' he said. Nonetheless, EVs are a potent challenger to the combustion engine's reign. EVs made up 8 percent of new-vehicle registrations in the U.S. last year, or 1.28 million vehicles, according to S&P Global Mobility. That was an 11 percent gain from the prior year and outpaced the 2.5 percent gain for all light-vehicle sales last year. Those vehicles all rely on forms of lithium ion battery chemistry. For most models, that allows a range of at least 250 miles, high-voltage charging in 45 to 60 minutes and easy overnight home charging. Two emerging battery chemistries, sodium ion and solid state, have the potential to replace today's lithium ion cells in most EVs, allowing them to match combustion engine convenience. Sodium ion batteries could be less expensive to manufacture because the raw materials they use are abundant. But lower power density and a shorter life are two major issues battery engineers are working to solve. Solid state batteries, which could be on American roads by 2030, promise faster charging, lower risk of fires and greater energy density. But solid state batteries have challenges, too. They are expensive to manufacture. In China on March 17, BYD announced that its Super e-Platform batteries can deliver 248 miles of range in just five minutes, bringing an EV into parity with the speed at which a gasoline-fueled car can be refilled. Chris Borroni-Bird, a research scientist who worked on fuel cell development at Chrysler and General Motors, said he sees a very different type of automobile on the road a century from today. Powertrains will be battery electric, getting most of their energy from solar panels, he said. Advanced wheel motors will improve maneuverability and provide greater design flexibility. The powertrain won't be the only part of the car with a smaller environmental footprint. 'Right-sized vehicles made of recycled and natural materials and having a solar panel roof can be used to complement public transport and make moving people and goods easier on the wallet and on the planet,' he said. Throughout 2025, we will honor our legacy by connecting topics of today with our historical coverage as we look ahead to the next 100 years. Have an opinion about this story? Tell us about it and we may publish it in print. Click here to submit a letter to the editor.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Audacity of Air-Cooled Engine Featured at the Audrain Museum
Air-cooled engines were once commonplace in the auto and moto industries. The most well-known were the Porsche flat six, VW flat four, Corvair, and numerous motorcycle engines, from BMW to Harley-Davidson. But ever-tightening emissions regulations have seen the cooling fins and large oil displacements all but disappear. Well, a new exhibit at the Audrain Automobile Museum in Newport, Rhode Island, has not forgotten them, and examines the history and successes of cooling by air. Below are just nine of the 16 cars and 12 motorcycles in the museum, from now until July 13. Make it a point to fire up the air-cooled Tatra V8 and drive down to Newport to see it. The address is 222 Bellevue Avenue, Newport, RI. You can call ahead at (401) 856-4420. Next up at the Audrain is STEAM Power: Automobile, Marine & Stationary, July 19 to November 1908 Cameron introduced four models of the 20-hp 4-cylinder. The one you see here carries four passengers and cost a whopping—for the time—$1,100. The gearbox was mounted on the rear axle, a feature for which Camerons were famous. In 1913 the first Cameron cars with water-cooled engines arrived. Apart from the position of the gearbox, the later Camerons were conventional regarded for comfort, durability, and technical innovation, Franklin was established in 1901 by John Wilkinson, a Cornell-educated engineer. Franklin gained fame as America's longest-running producer of air-cooled automobiles—and was also an early champion of the use of lightweight aluminum. Franklin was a truly innovative automobile manufacturer. The company initiated a strong advertising campaign that promoted their high quality and lightweight vehicles. Their engineering was progressive and introduced many new features. Wilkinson used a wooden frame constructed of three-ply laminated ash. The benefits were two-fold; decreasing the weight of the vehicle and providing a better material to absorb shocks. Franklin employed other advanced technologies, including an electric starter, electric choke, and a single unit which housed the speedometer, odometer, and time piece. Consequently, it was difficult for the company to maintain large profit margins. There were simply cheaper and easier ways to produce automobiles and Franklin chose the more innovative but complicated and his team had set out to make a tractor for the people, or 'Volksschlepper' in German. The first Porsche Tractors were released in the early 1940s with a 12-hp, two-cylinder engine in V formation. Production evolved to include the smaller sized Junior, seen here, up to the 55-hp Master model. These tractors performed as well as they looked, and over 120,000 tractors were sold until production ended in the late the success of Volkswagen's air-cooled Beetle, American manufacturers, particularly General Motors, raced to produce a suitable competitor. Thus, in 1960, the rear-engine Chevrolet Corvair entered the market. Was it a success? Within the first two days in showrooms, 26,000 Corvairs were sold. The name took the first part of Corvette and the last part of the Bel Air and put them together, aiming to bring a familiar yet exciting feel to the new Lakewood station wagon was marketed as an economical solution for family travel with its easy-lift rear door, durable and easy-to-clean interior, and front and rear trunks for storage: The 1961 model boasted 68 cubic feet of total storage space. However, it paled when compared to the Ford Falcon, its main (and more successful) competitor, and the Lakewood only lasted two had been an early developer of streamlined, aerodynamic cars in the 1930s, and their postwar designs also followed the 'Tatra Concept,' which consisted of a central load-carrying tube and axles with independent swing axles in the front and rear. This streamlined style allowed for more efficient fuel usage and handling. The first air-cooled model was the Tatra 11 in 1923, but the company used both water and air-cooled engines throughout their early history. T603 production began in 1956 and lasted until 1975. The car was used mainly among senior members of the USSR's political and industrial establishments, evidenced by its plush, roomy rear seats and stock petrol-fueled heated seats in the front. The car was not generally offered for sale to the 2.5-liter, OHC V8 produced anywhere from 97-105 hp, and its top speed is estimated to be between 105 and 110 Fiat 500 Moretti Coupe rides on Fiat 500 mechanicals, put there by the Moretti Motor Company from 1961 to 1969. The oddball little coupe was actually designed by Giovanni Michelotti, who also penned cars for Ferrari, Lancia, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, BMW, and even Kremer K8 Spyder represents the swan song of Porsche's air-cooled racing origins, standing as one of the last endurance racecars that competed with an air-cooled Porsche K8 was an evolution of the Kremer's successful Group C Porsche 962-based CK6, which they had already adapted into an open prototype class CK7. The Kremer K8 won the 1995 24 Hours of is the Miami-based maker of what are called Nostalgia motorcycles. NMOTO's Nostalgia project is a one-of-a-kind endeavor to capture the ambition of the legendary 1934 BMW R7 Prototype—regarded by many as the Mona Lisa of motorcycles, according to the Audrain. It has been painstakingly designed to evoke the graceful lines of the singular R7 while being supremely capable for today's conditions. Produced by The Pierce Cycle Company, an offshoot of the Pierce Arrow Motor Car Company, makers of some of the finest cars of the era, the Pierce 4 revolutionized motorcycles in the US. Founder Percy Pierce was intrigued by a Belgian made FN 4-cylinder motorcycle he purchased while in Europe. Before that, motorcycles made in the US were very basic adaptations of bicycle frames with either single- or two-cylinder engines essentially bolted to the frame offering little in comfort, safety, or reliability. The FN used an inline 4-cylinder oriented front to back. Pierce commissioned a new engine for his bike, taking a page from the automotive technologies employed by his father's famous Pierce Arrow cars and designed the new engine to use side valves in what was known as a 'T-Head' configuration. The result was a smooth and reliable powerplant that even offered a compression release to facilitate starting.
