GM Concept cars that influenced Corvair design- Part 2

[CarMel]

Here's a good Waldorf shot of the Lasalle II hardtop, built in 1955 along with the Biscayne. This actually was an early design study for GM's still-secret compact car development project. The name Corvair hadn't been applied to the project and it was so early that it used the regular engine-front layout. But this car was more of an engineering prototype, than a styling effort. It had 13" wheels, with full independent suspension all around, and the transmission was attached to the rear differential, with a driveshaft running forward.

Power exited the V-6 engine and went through a gearset, down to the driveshaft, which ran along the bottom of the interior, without any noticeable hump in the floor. It had a wheelbase of about 105"-108", I can't remember, but I could measure it anytime, since it still exists to this day, in Joe Bortz' collection.

And here's the Lasalle II roadster, built at the same time, using identical mechanicals to the 4-door hardtop. It has a wheelbase of about 90" and what appears to be wheelcovers on these cars, are actually outboard-mounted, finned brake drums! The model posing behind the car gives it a larger appearance, but I've stood next to this car and it's very compact, indeed. Now you can see where the Corvette got its side-cove!

[CarMel]

Here are the two cars as they exist these days. The hardtop is still languishing, but out of the elements at least and awaiting its full restoration. Under the front hood, the Overhead Cam V6 looks like you could start it up, it's that complete, with every last wire still in place! Here, you can see how the brakes were mounted outboard, and this finned drum has been removed, to allow the car to roll a bit easier. This shot also reveals how compact the car actually is, in a regular parking space.

The roadster made it to Pebble Beach along with the Biscayne in 2008, but as you can see, there is still much work to be done, rebuilding the interior. Both cars were non-powered originally, like so many other concepts and that may have been the reason they were slated for destruction, but we can thank Joe Bortz for his perseverance in saving these earliest designs, as GM's engineers wrestled with the design of their compact car of the future, the Corvair.

[johnsons63]

here's an article that i read about corvair from ezinearticles:

You'd have to be over 60 to remember the Corvair. As soon as I had a good paying job, I plunked down $2100. on a new 1960 Corvair Monza. I was attracted to the unusual engineering and features that no other car could claim. It had a heater that started warming your feet in 1 minute, the first comfortable bucket seats on any American car, and drove like a kiddy car around curves. The dash was simple and no nonsense, but since the Corvair was advertised as an economy car, I didn't mind the Spartan treatment. The first thing I did was rub down the Roman Red paint with white compound to a brilliant cut-glass shine, coat all the chrome (cars still had chrome bumpers) with clear lacquer, and insulate the engine from the interior. The six cylinder engine had plenty of power, but I wanted more and drilled out the economy carburetor jets for 15% more
horsepower.

All the furor about the Corvair handling badly was brought out by Ralph Nader's book, 'nsafe at any speed'. It read like a scandalous disclosure and sold millions of copies. It was his contention that the rear weight bias snuck up on a driver and caused too many accidents. He used any and all statistics to prove his point and I'm sure scared the hell out of prospective buyers and Corvair owners alike. One statistic he omitted from his book was one from a large insurance company who stated that the Corvair proved to be the safest car in the country when you looked at the number of accidents per mile driven. This was attributed to the quick reacting independent suspension which helped avoid many an accident. Further investigation discovered that many of the accidents involving Corvair and other rear engine cars were due to the fact that the tires were being driven on contained only 10 to 15 psi!

In a front engine car, this dereliction of tire safety would result only in premature tire wear and more resistance to turning. But in a rear-engined car, this low tire pressure could result in the swapping of ends, front for back, surprising the driver. Of course he would have to be going around a curve at three times the posted speed or on glare ice for this to happen.

I drove the 1960 Corvair for about 60,000 miles and sold it three years later for $50.00 less that I paid for it. My sister and I made a car trip out to California and back with no trouble at all with the exception of one flat. While not being strictly legal, the back seat folded forward to make a nice bed with the addition of an air mattress. There was room for an ice chest and the front trunk held two medium sized suitcases and many other items. The Corvair was American ingenuity at its best, the car lasting for nine years, bringing driving fun and economy with a flair.
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Still finding a good GM Performance Parts online shop that i can have a good deal...

[cad-kid]

Neat Stuff!

Thanks for posting the pics