<VV> Performance Engine Mods

[ken campbell]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave Keillor" <dkeillor@ultrex.com>

 While I have the engine out of the car, I thought I might like
> to add a little more power.
************
If your goal is to outrun those dang ricers out there, you are looking
somewhere between " impossible" and " $$$bucks$$$"  ... I personally find my
110 /4 rig just fine for cruising around and feeling good .... and fast
enough to pass someone slow and heavy even while going uphill ....  If I
somehow managed to double the horsepower, I would still be getting outrun by
serious old ladies in their Buick 3.8's.  sigh.
I had a 66 140/4 car, and always felt it was about right .... especially
when it comes to making passengers really nervous ... a nice thing about the
corvair setup is that you can get on the throttle going * INTO * corners
....  that gives passengers a feeling that ... something is about to happen
.....
********
Some bang for the bucks you could do is :   keep that 4 carb rig in good
tune ... does wonders.
Also, throw away some weight ... liteweight wheels are good, but weigh your
stock steel ones first .. you will find it a little hard to find really
lighter ones .... also, don[t go to fat ( heavy) tires, stick with 195 at
most .... that's why God put the engine in corvairs on the rear tires, to
give you more traction than power .... go to lower profile for gearing and
cornering;  if you can spare the bucks, go to a tick or two gummier tires
... corvair tires wear well anyway ...
.... you can gain a little by using lighter seats, although your '69's
aren[t too bad.  If you are driving around town, not long trips, you might
switch to the gnarly " racer " glass seats.  If you promise to lay down
fuzzy rear carpet, you can throw away all your rear seat assembly.  You can
buy a lighter, smaller battery if you have a Pertronix or other good sparky
ignition.
*******
Also, if you are now running a 3.27 rear end, you can get significant grins
from going to the 3.55 gear set ...   again, if you are going to drive
mostly around town.
**************
Oh, on the smog stuff ... I had a 110/4  '69, I took pump and plumbing off,
honestly I couldn[t tell any improvement in acceleration or top speed ... it
would hit about 95 on the level, which is as good as any 110 rig I have had
.... it did seem to run just fine with the smog stuff off, tho ...  and I
always wondered if the pump brackets etc. would have been a good place to
bolt on a tbird supercharger, or one of the new centrifugal belted chargers
.....
***********
Hope this helps; Ken Campbell, Iowuh.