1 of 42: 1965 Solar Automotive Cavalier

At first glance, you would say the seller’s car looks like a customized 2^nd generation Chevrolet Corvair. And you would be correct, except that it was built by Solar Automotive in the early 1970s. After buying up the leftover inventory of John Fitch’s Sprint of the late 1960s, Solar went one step further by retrofitting them with V8 engines. This Solar Cavalier is based on a 1965 Corvair and has a 327 cubic inch V8 (not installed). Located in a garage in Danielsville, Pennsylvania, this rare oddball is available here on Facebook Marketplace for $4.000. A shoutout goes to Barn Finder Gary for this nifty tip!

Race car driver John Fitch cooked up the Fitch Sprint in the 1960s to compete (on a smaller scale) with GT cars out of Europe. They were built on available Chevy Corvairs and usually involved tricking out the Corvair’s air-cooled engine. When that effort went bust, along came Solar Automotive and its owner Art Herschberger, who took Fitch’s extras and went the V8 instead, resulting in 42 assemblies at most.

The Solar Cavalier kept the “Astroroof” that Fitch developed (a tunnel back like on the Dodge Charger). Camaro taillights were embedded, and changes were made to the headlights, with the rest of the car retaining its Corvair looks. This Cavalier may have been assembled in 1971, and some of the 42 were factory builds while others were kits. This one may be the former and is said to be car #1 out of the bunch.

We’re told the seller has documentation that includes material provided by Solar’s owner. It was featured in at least one magazine article and has a 4-speed manual transmission. The 327 V8 isn’t pictured but comes with the deal, with no reference as to its mechanical health. The body is in fair shape while the interior has fared better, with perhaps newer upholstery. If you’re a fan of the Chevy Corvair and wouldn’t mind a customized project, here you go!