<VV> Corvair Reliablility Queston

[Bill Elliott]

Corvairs average about 43 years old. The types of questions and answers 
you see listed here are similar to questions and answers of the owners 
of any old cars... it's more a function of the age and the era (60's 
cars when new required a much higher level of owner maintenance and 
general repair than more modern cars).

So can a well-maintained Corvair make a 2300 mile trip? Sure. Virtually 
as reliably as it could have made that trip in 1965. To those of us who 
are used to dealing with 50's and 60's cars, that's pretty darn 
reliable. For someone who has never owned or driven a vintage car, 
that's not very reliable at all... so a lot of your questions depends on 
your expectations and abilities.

Compared against other cars of the same vintage, I consider a Corvair to 
be more reliable, easier to maintain and repair, and cheaper to restore 
and operate. Given the choice between a 2300 mile trip in any 60's car, 
a Corvair would be pretty high on my list...

In fact, in the summer of 2006, I sent my non-mechanically inclined wife 
and daughter out on a 10,000 mile lap of the US in a Corvair powered 
VW... you can read about their experiences here: http://fnader.com/TRIP.htm

Some people would read that and think they had a very successful 
essentially troublefree trip while others would think they had a lot of 
trouble. If you're one of the former, a well-maintained Corvair would be 
fine for you for a 2300 mile trip. if one of the latter, I would 
recommend staying with a more modern car.

Bill


>
>When I review the questions & answers given on this thread, it gives
>pause to the question of the reliability of a Corvair when contemplating
>long trips.  Based upon the myriad of Q & A's the  overall inference
>quickly leads you to the conclusion that the car is somewhat delicate.  
>     Obviously, I reliability reference is to cars that have more than
>minimal mechanical restoration.  
>     On the presumption that the mechanics of a car has been attended to
>on current basis, what is the likelihood of it completing a 2300 mile
>journey??  (Naturally, with a modicum of spare parts) Or am I kidding
>myself?  
>     It seems to me. it the car was engineered well enough than, then
>with proper maintenance, the car should perform well on such a trip.  I
>you cannot trust the reliability for nothing but short trips --- why
>bother with the expense of buying one. 
>    Chime in with your thoughts. You have more evidence that i. Thanks
>
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