<VV> how many miles do you drive your Corvair a year and on one trip?

[Bill Hubbell]

Well... technically speaking, Corvairs don't usually "come with a list of people you can call in the middle of the night to come help you for free" either, but I get your point. 

Bill Hubbell

On Sep 19, 2012, at 12:01 PM, Joel McGregor <joel at joelsplace.com> wrote:

> There is an illusion that new cars are inherently more reliable.  It may be true in some areas but...  Most areas that I see are simple things to fix.  Electronic ignitions and fuel injection make most people think their vehicles are more reliable in that they require less maintenance.  The thing is they still break and when they do they are much more difficult to fix.  Corvairs get an unfair bad reputation even on this list because of their age and sometimes bad aftermarket parts.  (fuel pumps)  The things that can strand you on the road with a Corvair aren't any worse than any new car.
> Fuel pumps?  I don't see any difference in reliability and no newer car is as easy to replace.
> Blower bearing?  What new car doesn't have more bearings to deal with?  Water pump, idler, tensioner etc
> Alternator/Generator?  They seem to fail quite often on newer vehicles and are again usually harder and more expensive to replace.  Solid state regulators are an improvement that we can and do easily use.
> Carbs?  This is one area that isn't as reliable as new vehicles but is usually easy to repair on the side of the road and also normally gives lots of warning.  Fuel injection usually gives no warning.
> Valve seats - this is a problem.  I've never had a valve seat fall out of anything but a Corvair but I've driven tons of miles and only lost one.
> Transmissions?  I've had and seen far more trouble with newer cars.
> New cars - how many new cars come with a list of people you can call in the middle of the night to come help you for free?
> I am about to replace the steering wheel sensor on my wife's CTS.  You have to remove and disassemble the steering column to do it.  I've never had to replace the steering wheel sensor on any of my Corvairs.
> I've also replaced 2 window regulators in the CTS.  Never had to do that in any of my Corvairs either.
>