Long distance....

[tommy44432]

I know some Corvair owners use their cars as daily drivers and taken them on vacations. I've got two collector cars besides my Corvair and while I don't use either of them as daily drivers I have on occasion used them on vacation trips. I plan on using my '63 'vert to drive down the Blue Ridge Parkway from Northern Virginia to Cherokee, NC. next summer. By the way, everyone should put the BRP on their bucket list. This will be our 3rd venture but first in a car, the other 2 were on motorcycles. I'm not concerned about my car making the trip but I am curious to hear from other owners and how many miles you drive your 'Vair either yearly or the longest trip you've taken in one.

[flat6_musik]

Man, I took my '65 140 corsa from L.A. down to Mexico twice back in the 80's (probably over 500 mi. R/T). Now that I look back on it, I can't believe I did that. No AAA, no credit cards, no cellphone (of course), and probably $150 in my pocket. But it was my daily driver, logging around 40~50 miles per day, so I had confidence in it. One thing I love about the corvair is that the placement of the starter......it never soaks up heat from the engine and fails. It's one less thing to worry about. I also like the idea of carrying an extra distributor and making sure all your bearings are fresh in your fan, idler pulley and even alternator.

(And I know I don't even have to mention spare belt)

[bbodie52]

I have driven a 1965 140 hp Corsa coupe and a 1965 140 hp Corsa convertible on several coast to coast trips in the USA, plus four long trips in Germany...

1973: Thousand Oaks, CA to Warner Robins, GA (2,395 miles)

1980: Bremerhaven, Germany to Kaiserslautern, Germany (400 miles)

1981: Thousand Oaks, CA to Lake Tahoe, NV, to Bayonne, NJ (3,191 miles)

1981: Bremerhaven, Germany to Kaiserslautern, Germany (400 miles)

1983: Kaiserslautern, Germany to Bremerhaven, Germany (400 miles)

1983: Kaiserslautern, Germany to Bremerhaven, Germany (400 miles)

1983: McGuire AFB, NJ, to Tybee Island, GA, to Atlanta, GA, to Thousand Oaks, CA (3,247 miles)

Plus numerous other trips over a long Air Force career with my wife and two children. Mechanical breakdowns during those trips: 2 — One broken fan belt and one failed right rear wheel bearing assembly.

1981: Two speeding tickets in Iowa.

Also no AAA, no credit cards (traveler's checks), and no cell phone.

[tommy44432]

Thanks guys for the replies. While I understand people being afraid of damaging their "babies" I adhere to the notion that cars are meant to be driven and enjoyed and why own it if you're afraid to drive it. I can always fix it again if something happens.

[bbodie52]

Unless we get too old and if we can find the funds, my wife and I hope to circle the USA and occasionally swing into Canada in our 1966 Corsa sometime soon. We will drive north to New England and into Canada, and then meander back and forth between the USA and Canada as we drive west. At the Pacific we will head south to Los Angeles and San Diego, and then plan on Route 66 as far as it goes, and finally back to North Carolina.

[reidmier]

Our '65 has been driven 34K miles in the past 3-1/2 years. Longest single trip was 1,250 miles in 2 days. Only failure on that trip was a intermittent windshield wiper switch. Most common show stopper has been fuel delivery related. Gunk in the tank, lines, fuel pump, stones, carbs... Items in the long distance kit: spare belt, spare distributor cap-rotor-condenser-points, spark plug or two, rocker arm & nut, lifter, oil filter, 2' of wire, small box of tools, Corsa member directory. That last item can really be the most valuable thing on the list as I've found Corvair people to be very helpful when asked. Have a great trip!

[DAVECS1]

I did Hot Rod Power Tour this year, and I believe we drove through the Blue Ridge area. The car was absolutely a blast on those small curvy roads. Like it was made for it. I was giving many newer cars a run for their money:-)

It took me the better part of two months to prepare as my car was a 15 year old barn find just 8 months prior. Rear axles were my biggest concern. I rebuilt the stockers and threw new spares in the trunk. The regreased axles held just fine. I took a spare belt, clutch cable and pulleys, spare ignition, plugs, starter, and some bulbs. I ended up using one bulb and 4 quarts of oil, that was it. The oil was due to a weak front cover crank seal and turning 3600-3800 RPMs a majority of the trip to keep up with my groups modern cars doing 75-80 on the freeways.

We had 3253 on the odometer when I pulled in the drive, and a newfound respect for how tough these little cars are.

[flat6_musik]

That's what I'm talkin' about......

[tommy44432]

Well done, guys. Since owning a Corvair I am pleasantly surprised to learn how tough the cars are. I personally ran my car pretty hard when I first got it. I actually wanted it to break. No matter how much I pushed, the car kept delivering. And all the testaments of others just reinforces what I've learned. Chevy was right, Nader was wrong.

[freedo]

daily drive my 64 spyder. first year i owned it and the first time it was on the road since 73 i drove over 10,000 miles. had to work out alot of kinks from it sitting, i replaced over time both axles and bearings after the bearing went bad (lost a wheel on the one when it went), u joints, front bearings, new brakes, brake lines, brake hoses, carb rebuild, turbo rebuild, electronic ignition (a huge must have), gas tank, rear leaf spring bolt snapped and the dragging spring destroyed itself and a few odds and ends.

this year being my second year of owning it i probably did 7,000 miles so far. this year i broke the dif, trans, replaced the engine with a 180 turbo, tie rods, u joints again, coil pack, pistons in the new engine, rebuilt turbo again, clutch X2 (learning experience, forgot to replace the rear main) and a boat load of gas lol.

results are not typical because im 20 and beat the living hell out of my car. also its slammed down low which is why the u joints go bad.

[BIGTWIN]

That kid knows how to enjoy a car. You GO Freedo