Poor man's Porsche

"DipodomysDeserti" (dipodomysdeserti) 01/29/2015 at 21:05 • Filed to: Corvair RalphNader

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I have really been wanting some sort of classic car, so I worked a little Craigslist magic and brought home a 1963 Corvair with a four speed manual transmission. I traded my 325e project for it and the other guy threw in $500 on top of the deal. I was only into the E30 for a total of $2,200, so I made out really well. The Corvair came with a set of Datsun wheels fitted to it. The original wheels were also included. The engine and transmission are in working order, but the engine needs some seals replaced. The interior is pretty stripped and some of the switches need to be replaced. This car gets a lot of stares.

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 21:22

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Awesome at any speed.

Tuned-Port-Injected-Rage > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 21:27

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Sweet!

Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 21:31

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soooo when's the LS swap happening now hahaha

DipodomysDeserti > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata 01/29/2015 at 21:36

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I want to do it up old school road rally style, and I'm stealing this and painting it down the side.

DipodomysDeserti > Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero 01/29/2015 at 21:37

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death on wheels

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 21:41

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Haha do it! That would be so... ugh... whats the word... AWESOME.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 21:46

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They are cool cars but the owners are in the AARP/get off my lawn demographic.

DipodomysDeserti > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) 01/29/2015 at 22:07

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That's for damn sure. Going from an E30 board to a Corvair one is shocking. Even the site layouts are antiquated.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 22:40

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Are you going to turbo it?

DipodomysDeserti > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) 01/29/2015 at 22:44

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Not sure. There is a place by me that builds spyder engines from new parts, but thy are pricey. I kind of want to stick a Subaru engine in the back.

JR1 > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) 01/29/2015 at 22:54

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Let's face it all cool cars are owned by AARP people.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > JR1 01/29/2015 at 23:05

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Lol Mike Musto approved

itranthelasttimeiparkedit > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 23:08

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I'm torn between liking the corvair and being disappointed you sold an e30

JasonStern911 > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 23:29

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The engine and transmission are in working order, but the engine needs some seals replaced.

Awe! Beat me to my "prepare for oil leaks" post!

Seriously cool cars, though. Especially in turbocharged form.

DipodomysDeserti > JasonStern911 01/29/2015 at 23:39

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I've owned old Subaru's and BMW's so I'm well versed in oil leaks. This one seems to have a leak coming from the crank seal and the oil cooler which should be an easy fix. I have an Abarth so this car is meant to be more of a cruiser. Those turbo'd spyders are really cool though.

DipodomysDeserti > itranthelasttimeiparkedit 01/29/2015 at 23:43

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I'll definitely buy another E30 again. They're really easy to find for good prices. Corvairs are pretty rare around me and finding running ones for this cost is extremely rare. The kid I traded with was a young college kid who got in over his head. It was too good of a deal to pass up.

JasonStern911 > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2015 at 23:46

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Wasn't worried. You sound like you know what you're getting into. I personally don't have too much experience with Corvairs, but if they're anything like Porsches, it's easier to drop the motor and work on it than to try to work on the engine in the engine bay. If that's the case, I suggest replacing the all of the easy to get to gaskets when you have the chance to help eliminate the potential of future problems, at least in the immediate future.

DipodomysDeserti > JasonStern911 01/29/2015 at 23:49

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Yeah, I might just drop the engine and replace all the risky seals. If the engine ends up going I might just drop a Subaru plant in there.

JasonStern911 > DipodomysDeserti 01/30/2015 at 00:06

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I know Subaru swap kits exist for the Porsche 914, but do they exist for the Corvair? I'd be careful with fabbing a cooling system on an air cooled, rear engine car every setup I have seen is not reversible, so there's no going back. And also you kill any potential for collectability.

That said, if I had a project 914 and didn't have my 996, I'd strongly consider an EJ25 Subaru swap for daily driver use.

DipodomysDeserti > JasonStern911 01/30/2015 at 00:25

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I have a buddy who can fab stuff up, but in reality it's more of a pipe dream. In all honesty, I'd really just like to keep the engine stock and running well.

Rock Bottom > DipodomysDeserti 01/30/2015 at 11:14

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DON'T PUT A BASURA ENGINE IN IT

DipodomysDeserti > Rock Bottom 01/30/2015 at 13:47

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Old Subaru engines aren't trash. I own a 23 year old Loyale with 213k miles on it and the thing still runs like a sewing machine.

Rock Bottom > DipodomysDeserti 01/30/2015 at 13:56

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But Subarus sound like farts. That's all I got.