<VV> Best Minivans Ever - Corvair

[Tony Underwood]

At 03:38 PM 8/30/2007, J R Read_HML wrote:
>He WANTED to sell them, but with unibody construction, independent 
>suspension, rear engine, etc - I guess they were about 25 years 
>ahead of their time.  Well, the price was a bit steep as well.
>
>Later, JR
>
>----- Original Message ----- From: "Mark Corbin" <airvair at earthlink.net>
>To: "J R Read_HML" <hmlinc at sbcglobal.net>; "Rodney Spooner" 
><corvairenterprises at yahoo.com>; <virtualvairs at corvair.org>
>Sent: Thursday, August 30, 2007 7:53 AM
>Subject: Re: <VV> Best Minivans Ever - Corvair
>
>
>>The difference there is mass production vs dream car prototype. The Stout
>>Scarab was hardly that. I think that in order for it to be considered the
>>"first" minivan, it would have to be more than the curiousity that it is.
>>
>>-Mark


If nothing else, it's certainly not hard to see where Fiat got the 
idea for the world's first *genuine* minivan, the Fiat 
Multipla.    And NO the VW microbus is not a real "minivan" by strict 
definition since it wasn't a mini-anything by the standards of the 
day when it first hit the streets.  It was simply a van, pretty much 
the same size as its contemporaries on European streets... the 
difference of course being that it got imported *here*, where when it 
was compared to vans built here it was considered tiny.   The 
Multipla was indeed a minivan, and rather tiny at that even when 
compared to the VW van... while still able to seat 6 people if 
they're friendly.

The Multipla is also recognized as the first MPV.

VW has enough "firsts"... give that lowly little Fiat minivan its 
due.    ;)   It shares a lot with the Corvair FC, with IRS, is 
rear-engine'd, has unitized body construction, is in fact a 
forward-control vehicle like the Corvair 95, even has a sway bar up 
front although not sure what it's supposed to do since the little 
bugger is taller than it is wide and quickly becomes a bicycle if you 
round a corner too quickly.

...at least one family member thinks this sort of thing is "fun" and 
actually will sometimes deliberately tip the little sucker up onto 
two wheels when rounding tight corners, just for the novelty... but 
not when *I* am in it.

Lunacy.



tony..    two Multiplas in the fleet and neither have scrapes on the 
door handles.  yet.