Volktales' special 1965 Corvair Monza

[Volktales]

I introduced this car briefly in another thread, but this will be the proper "build" thread for the project. For those that didn't see it, this is what I have in my possession...

I had wanted a Corvair for years, and have been actively looking to buy one for over two years. I was not having any luck locating something locally, but a very good friend spotted this, quietly bought it, then deposited in my back yard and GAVE it to me! How cool was that???

Sure it is needy, but it was the year, model, and colour that I wanted the most. Why? Decades ago I sat in one just like this and fell in love with it. I always hoped I would find one just like it one day. And incredibly that is exactly what happened.

It turned out that my "new" car was actually the very same car that I sat in all those years ago! Too cool! But what did I actually get myself into??? The car was pretty much complete, but some things were disassembled. The original carbs were rusty blobs, but luckily a previous owner had bought other carbs that were sitting in a moldy cardboard box on the seat. Missing was some critical throttle linkage, the PCV tube assembly, and the complete exhaust system. Where to start???
_________________
1974 "Restfalia" Camper 2000 cc EFI 2001-
1970 Beetle first car, rotten, yard art 1985-
1966 Sunroof Beetle, restored 1998-
1964 Ghia, ongoing project 2007-
1962 Beetle Beryl,original paint survivor 2012-
1970 Savannah Beige Beetle 2012-
1992 16v GTI, 100% stock 2006-
1991 "Terseo", wife's old daily 1995-
1969 Chevrolet CST/10 (family owned since new)
1965 Gold Corvair Monza 2021-
1966 and 1965 Monza 2022-

[Volktales]

Before getting this car, another friend loaned me these manuals, stating I could have them if I actually got my hands on a Corvair. He ain't getting them back!

A good clean and assessment was in order. As was installing the hubcaps that were in the trunk. Naturally the tires all went flat in a few hours...

I knew the engine was not seized as my friend had turned it over by hand before I got it. Marvel Mystery oil was poured into each sparkplug hole for some pre-lubricant. This was allowed to soak for awhile. Note the door that would not close once it was opened. Had to remove the latch mechanism and unseize that, as well as pretty much all the opening panels and windows.

Next the spare carbs were all disassembled (seized from sitting), and cleaned. Turned out they were fully rebuilt and never used. Installing back on the engine was straightforward.


[img]https://i.imgur.com/JKPvJhih.jpg?1[/img]


Compare the 34 pict 3 on the left, to the Rochester on the right. Stock Corvairs don't breath that well, do they?

Carbs bolted on (still missing some linkage at this stage), points cleaned in distributor, some dodgy wiring connectors repaired, spray bottle of gas at ready...

Hooked up my previously made "bench starter" that was intended for VWs, but worked just dandy for the Corvair. Added an ancient lawnmower fuel tank, and this was the result...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Tc73zrBf5A
_________________
1974 "Restfalia" Camper 2000 cc EFI 2001-
1970 Beetle first car, rotten, yard art 1985-
1966 Sunroof Beetle, restored 1998-
1964 Ghia, ongoing project 2007-
1962 Beetle Beryl,original paint survivor 2012-
1970 Savannah Beige Beetle 2012-
1992 16v GTI, 100% stock 2006-
1991 "Terseo", wife's old daily 1995-
1969 Chevrolet CST/10 (family owned since new)
1965 Gold Corvair Monza 2021-
1966 and 1965 Monza 2022-

[Volktales]

So another friend stopped by and dropped off these rims and tires. From a Camaro, I don't really know if this is the look that I want eventually, BUT they all hold air nicely, and they were my favourite price of free!

They will stay on for now, anyway...

I later heard about a complete 1965 engine and transaxle available locally and could not help myself. This unit provided the missing carburetor linkage, exhaust system, and later a much better starter, alternator, and pulleys. I didn't really want to spend the $500, but in reality I was very glad I did. This engine was rumored to run, and in fact started right up nicely. Unfortunately the lifters rattled nicely, and the blow-by was quite spectacular. Oh well, it did provide many needed parts...

It also provided the biggest mouse nest I have ever seen in an engine before...

While this was going on, I experimented with rust removers. I am quiet pleased with Krud Kutter Gel. Removed the rust bits without harming the paint on the dash. Nice! Around this time, I also finished the procedure to get this car legally registered to me. Fun as it came with no papers at all, and was an abandoned car on someone else's property. Not my first rodeo with this and it worked out just fine...

Thought I would try out the car's electrical system and see what would work. And this was pretty much it. Happily the starter turned over on the key and the oil pressure light still functioned...

Fusebox turned out to be a goner. This was a bummer as it is part of the wiring harness, and very expensive. Plan B was put into motion...

Wiring in a cut down fuse panel from an old Toyota Tercel did the trick. Of course this is not how to restore a car, but will do the job for now, and do it well. And it was my favourite price of free...

And hey, the glove box light started working, so we are really getting somewhere!
_________________
1974 "Restfalia" Camper 2000 cc EFI 2001-
1970 Beetle first car, rotten, yard art 1985-
1966 Sunroof Beetle, restored 1998-
1964 Ghia, ongoing project 2007-
1962 Beetle Beryl,original paint survivor 2012-
1970 Savannah Beige Beetle 2012-
1992 16v GTI, 100% stock 2006-
1991 "Terseo", wife's old daily 1995-
1969 Chevrolet CST/10 (family owned since new)
1965 Gold Corvair Monza 2021-
1966 and 1965 Monza 2022-

[Volktales]

The fusebox replacement fixed many things, including all the dash lights. Instrument illumination began to work as well which was nice. Lots of other issues still, though...

The alternator would not charge, and this is what the inside of the regulator looked like. Lots of corrosion. A new regulator was the first "new" part I actually bought for this car, and ordered it and a dimmer switch from RockAuto. Turns out they list quite a few Corvair parts, and for a much better price then my local parts store...

My first brand new parts to go into the car. The dimmer switch was made in Taiwan and worked great. The regulator was surprisingly made in the US which made me happy. Turned out it needed some 'tweaking" later to actually work...

Cranking speed was erratic, so the starter was checked out. Note the wire that supplies full voltage to the coil during cranking was not even attached... The starter itself had issues and I swapped it for the much better one from the spare engine. Cleaning the very rusty contact points on the transaxle helped as well and now it cranks nicely under all conditions.

Various parts like these rusty pulleys were swapped for the much better components from the parts engine.

Finally got around to installing the exhaust from the other engine and fiddling with the chokes for the carburetor (remote on this design).

It was good to finally get the air cleaner assembly back on for the first time in years...

And at last, getting rid of the 20 plus year old oil and changing the filter. Much easier than doing an oil change on a VW, actually...

And finally, I removed the distributor with great difficulty (it was seized in the housing), and repaired the stuck centrifugal unit, and falling apart vacuum unit. Then reinstalled and retimed correctly. And the result was...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32y98ITyfHw


This was the best the car has ran since I have owned it, and ran great until just after this video was shot. Then the right bank cut out completely, presumably due to dirt in the carb idle jet or something like that. Unfortunately the blow-by did not improve throughout this, and the oil leakage is excessive. As the car is outside, and dark and wet, I am going to have to give it a break until I decide what my next move with this car is...
_________________
1974 "Restfalia" Camper 2000 cc EFI 2001-
1970 Beetle first car, rotten, yard art 1985-
1966 Sunroof Beetle, restored 1998-
1964 Ghia, ongoing project 2007-
1962 Beetle Beryl,original paint survivor 2012-
1970 Savannah Beige Beetle 2012-
1992 16v GTI, 100% stock 2006-
1991 "Terseo", wife's old daily 1995-
1969 Chevrolet CST/10 (family owned since new)
1965 Gold Corvair Monza 2021-
1966 and 1965 Monza 2022-

[Volktales]

Oh, and finally if anyone wants to see much more detailed info and photos of this project, you can view them on our local VW site...

https://miacvw.proboards.com/thread/1580/wishes-come-true-corvair-monza?page=1
_________________
1974 "Restfalia" Camper 2000 cc EFI 2001-
1970 Beetle first car, rotten, yard art 1985-
1966 Sunroof Beetle, restored 1998-
1964 Ghia, ongoing project 2007-
1962 Beetle Beryl,original paint survivor 2012-
1970 Savannah Beige Beetle 2012-
1992 16v GTI, 100% stock 2006-
1991 "Terseo", wife's old daily 1995-
1969 Chevrolet CST/10 (family owned since new)
1965 Gold Corvair Monza 2021-
1966 and 1965 Monza 2022-

[Marcdeb]

You are a lucky guy to have so many good friends. That says a lot about you.
Corvairs were one of my favorite cars as a kid. My favorite was and still is the first generation convertibles.
_________________
Marc
68 Karmann Ghia Cabrio Autostick
71 Karmann Ghia Cabrio

Previously Owned:
2011 VW EOS Hard Top Conv
2008 Saab 9-3 2.0T Conv
2003 Saab 9-3 SE Conv
2001 Saab 9-3 Conv
1998 BMW 3 Series Conv
1997 Saab 900 Conv
1997 Mazda Miata

68 Ghia Vert Survivor with 22,350 miles: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=768107&highlight=
71 Ghia Vert Restoration: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=726710&postorder=asc

[&Dan]

Helpful friends...or folks that want to see you wrapped around a long, long project? Heh.

Watch out for Rock Auto, I have received several wrong parts from them after trusting they knew what they were peddling Corvair-wise. Neither happy nor impressed.

California Corvairs over Clark's. CC is pretty good.

Watch yr wallet, these things can become costly and w/o the resale value of other collector vehicles.
In the dictionary there's a picture of a Corvair next to the phrase, "Sunk-Cost Fallacy".
Accept you'll always be upside-down and thereafter you'll be happier.

All that aside, you are doing great.

[slayer61]

Very nice. I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the Corvair.

It was the first car I remember my Dad driving when I was just a kid & the 'Vair was brand new.

One day......
_________________

[Lingwendil]

Love corvairs, really good work so far.
_________________
73 super beetle thread http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=649622 Back on the Road!

Modify your Kadrons for SVDA http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8115884#8115884

Cast iron VJU4BR8 SVDA reference thread- https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...mp;start=0

Need replacement filters for original Kadron aircleaners? WIX #42087 is a perfect fit, as is Napa Gold #2087!

[KTPhil]

The gen2 models' front end almost has a "Leiding nose" look to it.

I always thought that model was one of the most beautiful and well-proportioned cars of the era. It has the same styling cues as the larger cars; but once your eye gets used to the Corvair, the other cars just look bloated and elongated.

GM really got that one right. Too bad Nadar and his ilk poisoned the well on it. That gen2 was safer yet it was already in a death spiral.

[Volktales]

The above similarity to the Type 4 in the front is quite interesting. Never even thought of that one. And thanks to @Dan about the warning when using RockAuto for Corvair parts. I have not bought hardly any new parts for this project. Yet... Being a Canadian and buying parts from the US is always a pain. You have no idea how hard we get dinged on the exchange rate and shipping. Recently a $9 US part cost me $32 CDN by the time it was in my hands. As much as I would like to call up Clark's Corvair and order a whole bunch of cool stuff, it just isn't going to happen for most items...

I have restored several cars before with my Dad, and he was always the bodywork and paint guy, while I handled pretty much everything else. Dad is now quite elderly, and can no longer do this work. For this Corvair to be a viable project, I will have to do everything myself from now on. My painting skills are not that bad, but welding is still not my greatest asset. I can easily see this car gobbling up $20,000 in parts and materials alone, without one cent of labour charges. Not cost effective at all, but then that is not the reason we do things like this, is it???

Recently another Corvair has popped up for sale, not too far away from me. A very nice '65 top model Corsa, with the turbocharged 180hp engine, and supposedly garage kept all its life (does look like it) for $21,000 CDN. Yes this has tempted me, and given I recently sold one of my "nice" VWs, I for once in my life could afford it too. This would make WAAAAY more sense financially then restoring the gold wreck. But I can't pull that trigger and would rather use my "fun" funds on improving the rest of my VWs I already own. At least that is what I keep telling myself. Here is a photo of the Corsa for sale just a ferry ride away...

Someone buy it and put me out of my misery...
_________________
1974 "Restfalia" Camper 2000 cc EFI 2001-
1970 Beetle first car, rotten, yard art 1985-
1966 Sunroof Beetle, restored 1998-
1964 Ghia, ongoing project 2007-
1962 Beetle Beryl,original paint survivor 2012-
1970 Savannah Beige Beetle 2012-
1992 16v GTI, 100% stock 2006-
1991 "Terseo", wife's old daily 1995-
1969 Chevrolet CST/10 (family owned since new)
1965 Gold Corvair Monza 2021-
1966 and 1965 Monza 2022-

[&Dan]

Nice work!

Your instincts are correct: do not wind up as one of those individuals with 16 Corvairs.
It's just not worth it, despite their being cool vehicles.
I've never seen a car that engenders the need to accumulate like the Corvair.

"How many Corvairs you got?" "All of them."

[Volktales]

[&Dan]

[Jacks]

I think the Camero wheels look terrific on your car
_________________
Jack Staggs
Actual name

[oprn]

I find this fascinating yet at the same time depressing. Back in the mid '80s I found and bought a '65 Corvair Corsa turbo in the rough but very complete, rust free and it ran. Well it did run but was pretty rattily so I didn't run it for more than a minute or so. Financial issues forced the sale of it. I regretted selling it then and still do to this day even though I tripled my money and did nothing to it.
_________________
We had the stone age, the bronze age, the industrial age and now we are in the age of mass deception and mind control for corporate profit. (The mass media age)

[Jacks]

So… you made $300. Ok
_________________
Jack Staggs
Actual name

[Randall]

If you can get it looking as good as Jay Leno's '66 Corsa then I will be very impressed.


Link

[Volktales]

If I had Jay's money and restoration staff, you bet my car would be as nice as his!!! He does have lots of really neat stuff in his massive garage... Still imagine mine in shiny gold paint all of the time!
_________________
1974 "Restfalia" Camper 2000 cc EFI 2001-
1970 Beetle first car, rotten, yard art 1985-
1966 Sunroof Beetle, restored 1998-
1964 Ghia, ongoing project 2007-
1962 Beetle Beryl,original paint survivor 2012-
1970 Savannah Beige Beetle 2012-
1992 16v GTI, 100% stock 2006-
1991 "Terseo", wife's old daily 1995-
1969 Chevrolet CST/10 (family owned since new)
1965 Gold Corvair Monza 2021-
1966 and 1965 Monza 2022-

[LAGrunthaner]

I love this story, what an awesome friend. Bookmarked!