Michael J Harrison

Personal Info:

23724 Warner St.

Farmington, MI. 48336 USA

Member of CORSA
Local Chapter/Club:
Detroit Area Corvair Club

1965 Corsa Turbo Convertible, Red/red/white top - this is my 5th Corvair, but the first I've owned in 28 years. Have recently completed a total ground-up restoration (2 yrs.) and it is ready for the show.

It is very possible that my father purchased one of the first Corvairs made at the Willow Run Plant. He picked my brother and I up from grade school on October 2, 1959 in a white 700 4-door/PG, and drove us all up to northern Michigan to see the newly built Mackinac Bridge that weekend. I remember loving the attention and stares we got all the way up and back. In subsequent years. our family owned a succession of Monzas, Lakewoods, and Corsas. As a member of SCCA and other local clubs, I participated in many rallies, gymkhanas, ice races and time trials up until 1970. I even won a couple of trophies at Motor City Dragway in 1969 in a 140 Corsa converted to a Carter 4 bbl. They let me run as a stock class and couldn't figure out how I was beating 289 Mustangs! My current Corvair was purchased in South Carolina in 1999, trucked to Michigan, and subsequently carved up like a holiday turkey. The 2 rear quarters are from Chicago (NOS), and Arizona, the trunklid from Larry Claypool, doors from Texas. All bodywork was professionally done by a local restorer with a soft spot in his heart for the Corvair. It is my hope to be able to gain an invitation to our big show here in Michigan at Meadowbrook to let some of the auto elitists see what a great car the Corvair really is. I am really enjoying re-connecting with my childhood roots, and love the smiles my car brings to peoples faces, especially when they see my license plate which reads "RALFWHO".

Last modified on October 14, 2002