We all know the Chevrolet Corvair around here; there’s no secret about that. But it sure seems like the turbocharged Corsa model remains a bit of a secret despite being an awesome alternative to any number of pricier performance cars from the same era. This 1965 Chevrolet Corvair Corsa Turbo is a project car, but one that appears to be largely complete. The seller reports it does have some rust after years of being parked outdoors and is generally a neglected specimen. But it does run off of a gas jug, and its overall level of completeness suggests it’s worthy of rescuing. Find it here on eBay with bids to $2,300 and the reserve unmet.
The Corvair Corsa is one of those cars that’s fun to describe with your eyes closed: rear-engined. Flat-six. Turbocharged. Manual gearbox. Mention those qualifiers to someone who’s never seen a Corvair and it’s highly unlikely they’ll guess it’s a Chevy product from the 1960s. Cars like these remind me of the times when automotive manufacturers used to be fun, taking chances on cars that didn’t necessarily make sense on paper but building a model anyway to appease the cheap enthusiast masses. The Corvair was already an impressive platform for a low-buck car, but the turbocharged Corsa trim made it all the more compelling. As you can see, the interior of this example is quite heavily sun-damaged.
The seller has seemingly worked to get this Corvair up and running, but definitely not driving. It does run but the carburetor needs to be rebuilt, which isn’t surprising for a car of this vintage that has been sitting. Hopefully, a carb rebuild will make this Corsa even more compelling to work on further and restore. The seller has installed a new battery, alternator, plugs, and wires, but the rest of the refresh will be up to the next owner. The engine bay looks clean for a car that’s been sitting for years; hopefully, it was looked after before getting shoved under the trees.
In addition to the patina on the hood, the seller reports that the years of tree droppings falling onto the car and getting stuck in various passages has allowed rust to accumulate on the floorboards, around one of the windows, on the left rear lower quarter panel, and the left front fender. Overall, it doesn’t seem like a rolling catastrophe, and it comes with a factory tachometer and two-bar steering wheel. While it will never be worth a ton of money, these turbocharged Corvairs show their value in more meaningful ways than the price tag. Have you ever driven a Corvair Corsa Turbo?
Looks similar to my 65 Corsa Turbo which is currently in the body shop. Mine has a lot less rust though. Although after it came back from media blasting another 1-2K was added to the repair cost:( fixed up and in good condition a 65 Turbo coupe will bring low 20’s in the current market. Unless you do all the work yourself you will have that in the restoration. The carburation will be tricky on this one. They can be difficult to get right. That carburetor is a Carter YH which first appeared on the Corvette blue flame 6 and a couple others. Most likely the turbo will need rebuilt as well. If the engine is tired add 5K to the build.
I put mine back together when I first got it. That way I could drive and enjoy before deciding to take the plunge and restore it. Still somewhat undiscovered and under appreciated they are among the best handling cars of the 60’s with the best brakes as well. Steering is a little slow but there are quick steer arms to correct this. Parts availability is also good making them an ideal candidate for a first time classic buyer.
…. great commentary alphasud! My pops was the “Corvair Man” in the small Michigan city that I grew up in waaay back in the day. The local Chevrolet dealer had sent him to GM training school just prior to the unveiling of Corvairs back in 59″/60″ but when GM stopped producing them in 69′ Pops opened up his own small private repair shop. My mom must have driven no less than 20 Corvairs as Pops would end up buy his customer’s cars when the customer wasn’t interested in spending money to repair them. Typically it was a repair job to replace the oil leaking push rod tube rubber O-rings. The repair “parts” were fairly cheap but the labor to do the repairs and stop oil leaking all over one’s driveway AND sucking that burnt oil smell inside the cabin anytime you attempted to heat the inside of the car in Winter wasn’t cheap. When the customer found it was a $300.00 repair job (a hell of a lot of money back in the late 60’s and early 70’s) they would always ask Pops if he was interested in buying the car. Of course when you’re the mechanic your time is your own and a set of push rod tube rubber O-rings were probably under $10 bucks at the time. The car would sit in the shop’s parking lot until Pops had the time to do the needed repair job. Then he would sell my mom’s current Corvair and give her yet another one to drive. My first two cars in high school were Corvairs. The first was a 64′ that I found in a farmer’s “front 40″ one day driving down a country road. I paid $25 bucks for it and got a buddy (who had his driver’s license before me) and 4-tires that held air from Pop’s shop and we towed it back to the shop. Spent the next year rebuilding it with Pop’s guidance. Fortunately, he also knew how to paint cars. I gotta say that little 64″ looked absolutely brand new when my Pops and I got done with it about a year later…. just in time for the arrival of my first Driver’s License! My second Corvair was a 65” Convertible. However, I owned it during the Winter/Spring months so the “drop top” adventures were limited as I fell in love with my first T-bird a month and a half before High School graduation. It was a one owner 69″ T-Bird Landau that still had the clear quilted plastic protecting the bucket seats and rear seat. The factory paint had lifted off the rear fender but Pops took care of that quickly. Unfortunately, the power windows and A/C weren’t working either and in June in Michigan that can end up pretty ugly driving the car. Although, my girlfriend and I looked dam good on grad night pretending the A/C was working! My buddy’s parents took us out afterwards to the Yacht Club so I proudly drove up to valet park…. just a little sweaty! It would be great to see your Corsa when its finished!
Good story Robert. I love to hear stories of kids learning how to work on cars. It definitely helped having someone in the family to mentor you. People often ask how I learned to be a technician. They are surprised my knowledge was self taught. My dad was a car guy and his passion rubbed off on me enough to combine with my curiosity to learn how stuff worked. Looking back through the years I can think of many young kids I mentored not even thinking I was shaping a young mind. Now I see them as car enthusiasts.
I will post pictures on BarnFinds as a success story of finding a barn find and bringing it back to life.
Loved our ’65 Monza. This looks solid enough to build into a nice car.
“it’s worthy of rescuing.”
If you say so.
In 1965 I purchased a Corvair Monza 4 door hard top. The best engine available was the four carb. 140 HP. I had the automatic trans, wood wheel, wire wheel covers, AM/FM,(first year). I placed this corvair on a chassis dynameter and had it load tested. I had a “big” 34 horsepower at the rear wheels. Drove the car to Boston from Detroit and back and loved the drive. I felt very safe in the winter on ice and snow. Traded for a 1967 Cougar XR7 with 3 speed and factory AC. 50 years later I am still driving very rare automobiles.
A lot of rust for an Az car.
I know next to nothing about Corvairs, except that you don’t see them near as much as you do their competitors of the same period. And the ramp side trucks were ahead of their time. I’m really surprised that hasn’t been brought back yet. Is there good aftermarket support for them?
You’re welcome, Jeff.
Great aftermarket support for Corvairs. Check out Clark’s Corvair Parts in Maine.
John Klintz,
Clark’s is in Massachusetts, Shelburne Falls. Unless they moved recently. I had a 4 carb Corsa and it had the quick arms that reduced the normal 4.25 turns lock to lock to just under 3. So sorry that car rusted in half years ago and I couldn’t save them or the four speed posi rear. They are a blast to drive.
My girlfriend’s brother had one in the ’70’s. His dad, a solid mechanic, removed the turbo … for obvious reasons. I never drove it, only got rides, but it was still quick and a lot of fun! I’d love to have one.
Speaking of fun, the twin carb Corvair engine we put in a ’58 VW panel van was a whole lot of fun. We used it as the support vehicle for Nevada desert motorcycle runs. Climbed mountains better than the bikes. Turbo would have really been something but probably too much for the reductions gears.
I had been driving a Renault. The Chevy dealer had this Corvair Monza that was fully loaded, wire wheel covers, AM/FM, wood wheel, and the 140 engine. this was the best available in a 4 door Corvair. I kept the car for two years until Ford Motor complained about a GM car on their property. I then went to a 1967 Cougar XL7. Told Ford their prices were too high so I got a special deal for $2,750.00 for a demo. I loved the Corvair and felt very safe. Before the warranty ran out the engine dropped a valve requiring major repairs. I only had to pay for new oil.
Don’t post cars on this website unless the new owner can make money on it. The car culture is now all about the $$$. The people who are paying six figures for an old VW bus or old Bronco probably never even sat in one.
Thanks, Tony Bitetto; my mistake. I had a 4-carb Corsa back in the ‘70’s. Rescued it out of a wrecking yard. I rebuilt the engine and a neighbor did the body work. Loved that car; just as you said it was a blast to drive. I still casually keep up on Corvair sites and issues which is why I’d heard about Clark’s. Thanks again!
CORVAIR CONFESSION I was driving my Corvair on I-94 from Detroit to Ann Arbor. Midpoint the engine seized and I had to call for road assistance. I had the car delivered to my shop. I reset the odometer to 35000 from 42000. I then had a tow truck take it to the Chevrolet dealer in Ann Arbor. A week later I called them up and reported that my car stopped running and had it towed to you. They repaired it and I had to pay for the oil and filter only. The engine had dropped a valve and required extensive repairs. This is in 1966 when this trick was possible. . Warranty was 3 yr/36000
alphasud…. thanks for the response and kind words! While I’m an “old guy” now, I get enough emails from my high school reminding me of how many of us are still keeping in touch that I can’t seem to forget those early teen years! One thing I do remember clearly is 8th Grade Shop Class. Back in the day it was a requirement for all boys to take. While I was fortunate to have learned about cars from my dad and design & construction from my gramps (which I turned into a lifelong career in shopping center design/construction & management), it was the common-sense basic stuff I learned in that 8th Grade Shop Class that has benefited me my entire life! It’s unfortunate that school systems don’t or can’t afford to mandate that class to all BOYS & GIRLS today. Back in my day the girls had to take “Home Making” (or something with a simular name) as if they had no other aspects for life…. like wanting to be a doctor, scientist, engineer, MECHANIC, etc. The things I/we learned in Shop Class would benefit anyone and everyone. So many young people even in their early 20’s have no common sense, can’t even handle a simple household repair, etc. A few years back prior to the pandemic I took in a late 20’s young man that needed help. While he is very intelligent (Book wise/ academically), he has a long way to go in the commonsense dept. He has turned out to be the son I never had but since I’m so late in the parenting position (and his father passed away shortly before I took him in so I don’t want to dishonor his father) that I’m afraid I might be too late for passing on my interpretations of “common sense”. That being said, I really believe that returning classes like “Shop Class” to the curriculum of our public schools would not only benefit our young people but in the long run, all of us! What a relief it would be if the person repairing your car had plenty of “common sense” and or the person you just signed a contract with to do a $100,000 remodel of your home had an overabundance of common sense? While I’m sounding like the stereotypical “old guy” lamenting about the “good ole days”, I really believe we would all benefit from the return of things like “Shop Class”!
REALLY good point, Robert; completely agree!