<VV> Corvair and their lack of appeal

[Dennis Dorogi]

This is not a new problem.  It was hard to get mechanics to work on corvairs 
when they were new.  My unbelieveably healthy neighbor was a Chevy mechanic 
in the 60's.  He was the main corvair mechanic in the dealership. He said 
often there would be 7 or 8 corvairs waiting for service (by him) while the 
other mechanics were doing next to nothing.  He told the manager that he 
would quit if they didn't start sharing the work on the corvairs more.  The 
reply was "But Frank, your the best mechanic on the corvairs.   Well,  Frank 
quit on the spot and went to work in the local steel mill.
        I am proud and lucky to have him as a neighbor as he can always fix 
any problem I have.  At 88 he is 15 years older than me and I can't begin to 
keep up with him.He can perfectly balance carbs by feeling the vacuum with 
his finger.  You have to see it to believe it.   Dennis Dorogi
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Russ Moorhouse" <corvair65 at verizon.net>
To: "VV" <virtualvairs at corvair.org>
Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2008 9:15 PM
Subject: <VV> Corvair and their lack of appeal


>I was writing to a friend in New Zealand, telling him about my experiences
> with my Corvair, and how they haven't seemed to catch on or appeal to the
> mainstream old car people over here as the Mustang and other pony or 
> compact
> cars have.  Then while I was telling him how parts for the Corvair aren't
> readily available in the local auto stores and that it's hard to find 
> anyone
> who can or will work on them, it dawned on me that maybe that's why they
> haven't caught on with the mainstream car people.
>
> I work with several people who have bought old cars who have never turned 
> a
> wrench in their life and they all bought mainstream cars, one a 67 Mustang
> V8 and the other a 57 Chevy BelAire V8.  Both cars are very nice, with the
> Mustang costing them in the ballpark of a nice Corvair and the 57 about
> twice that.  The one thing about both these cars, is that they can and 
> have
> taken their cars to local mechanics to have them worked on.  They and the
> mechanics can also go to the local auto store and get the parts they need
> that same day.  Then I started looking at those car owners at the local
> cruise-in and I would venture to say that probably more than 50% of those
> there don't do any kind of mechanical work to their cars.  About as far as
> the work they do is cleaning them for the shows and I know a few of them
> even have somebody detail their cars for them.
>
> So here we are with the Corvair, that for most engine parts you have to 
> send
> for and then wait and then once you get them, unless you are one of the
> fortunate few who have a Corvair mechanic near you or a club that is into
> working on each others cars, you're going to have to do it yourself.  Most
> of you enjoy doing this, but there are many more car people out there that
> don't know how nor want to work on their cars and once they find out about
> this with Corvairs, they are going to look for something else.
>
> The only way to over come this problem is for clubs to become more active
> with tech sessions and making more appearances at car events other than 
> just
> Corvair events, which mostly just draw other Corvair people.  By appearing
> at highly visible cruise-in and car shows with several members from a 
> club,
> those that may be attracted to a Corvair will be able to have their
> questions answered and see that there are people in the local area who can
> help them with problems they may have once they decide to go ahead and get 
> a
> Corvair for themselves.
>
> Russ Moorhouse
> '65 Corsa coupe 140 HP
> Kent Island, MD
>
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