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On Saturday, September 12th, Heritage will host a Celebration of American Automobiles. This event will highlight some of the amazing, American-made automobiles from our collection, and also pay special tribute to the 60th anniversary of the Chevrolet Corvair, one of the most forward-looking vehicles of the early 1960s.
Photo courtesy of the Bay State Corvair Club
The Chevrolet Corvair was a revolutionary auto when it was first introduced in 1960. Before the 1950s, the American auto industry made cars in one size – large. As sales of imported cars from Volkswagen, Renault, and Fiat increased, American manufacturers learned that there was a market for smaller cars in the U.S. The Corvair was Chevrolet’s response to this trend.
With the Corvair, Chevrolet designed a new car that deviated from the traditional American norms of design. The car was powered by an air-cooled, aluminum engine that was mounted in the rear of the car, leaving the front free for the trunk. The engineering earned numerous patents.
Photo courtesy of the Bay State Corvair Club 2019
The styling was unconventional for Detroit, subtle and elegant, with no tailfins or chrome grille. Time magazine featured a cover story about the car, and Motor Trend named the Corvair as the 1960 “Car of the Year.” Americans bought them due to their unique style, and affordable price, well under $3,000. They even earned the nickname, “The Poor Man’s Porsche.”
The Corvair was manufactured in a number of body styles, including 4-door sedan, 2-door coupe, convertible, station wagon, passenger van, commercial van, and pickup. The name was a combination of Corvette and Bel Air, with the “air” also referencing the air-cooled engine.
Most people know Corvair today because of its inclusion in Ralph Nader’s book Unsafe at Any Speed. He contended that the rear engine mount made the car difficult to handle and prone to spinouts. Although later cleared of any mechanical problems, sales of the Corvair suffered and Chevrolet dropped the car in 1969. While spurring the downfall of this revolutionary car, Nader’s book did bring more awareness to the importance of safety in vehicles and the public response to the book played a role in the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966.
Today the Corvair is still the only American-designed, mass-produced passenger car with a rear-mounted, air-cooled engine ever made. The cars have a small but devoted following to this day. Jay Leno has a 1966 Corvair Yenko Stinger in his collection. “This is a wonderful road car,” he said. “A lot of people put down the Corvair, but I consider it one of the 10 best General Motors cars of all time because it was just so different from anything else they built. They’re a lot of fun.”
Despite its ignominious end, the Chevrolet Corvair’s smooth, sophisticated, and highly original styling initiated a revolution in the design of small and mid-sized cars. Join us on August 29th as we celebrate this remarkable feat of American ingenuity.
Interested in learning more about the Chevy Corvair? Check out these resources:
