New shoes on the 65 Sedan

[azdave]

I got some new rims and rubber on the LM sedan this weekend. We took it up to the local car show that was swamped with visitors due to the Barrett-Jackson auction in town. It was a wild crowd with some very unusual cars. I even saw an old BMW M1 drive past us. I don't think I've ever seen one of those in person. We got a nice parking spot and spent the night talking to many Corvair lovers.

[cad-kid]

Classy looks great

[bbodie52]

Ya' know, a four-door sedan used to be associated with a stodgy (dull and uninspired) reputation. But that has been changing with sports sedans from companies like BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, Infiniti, and their imitators. This four-door Corvair sedan looks absolutely GREAT with those sporty rims and tires! The whole image has changed. Classy, elegant and sophisticated!!

BMW 5 Series (BBS RC090) 17 x 8, 25mm offset, 225/45-17 rear, 215/45-17 front, (1" spacer used to obtain zero offset and adapt BWM bolt pattern to Corvair pattern.

Do you have a source for those 1" spacer adapters you mentioned?

I went from a four-door Lexus GS460 (aluminum 4.6 liter V8, 8-speed automatic, etc.)...


...to our current 1966 Corvair Corsa convertible last year...


But I really love the look of that four-door Corvair sedan! Now I want one!!!

[Scott H]

I like the new shoes!

[azdave]

Do you have a source for those 1" spacer adapters you mentioned?

Adapt-it USA located in Indianapolis
http://adaptitusa.com/5x475to5x120wheeladapter.aspx

Made in the USA! Right down the street from where I grew up too. They were they only company I found willing to make the correct GM (5 x 4.75") to BMW ( 5 x 120mm) bolt pattern adapter for a fair price (USA or China). The company was excellent to order from with constant updates and around $11 shipping. From order to delivery was about 10 days.

They also included the correct 7/16-20 sleeved nuts to be sure the adapters run true when bolting to the car. I like this system because the adapter locates on both the sleeved lug nuts and the tapered seats.

For bolting the new rims to the adapters I chose the standard 12x1.50 stud option. You must supply your own bulge seat acorn lug nuts and I got those from ebay for $15 delivered.

[bbodie52]

Wow! Thanks for such a complete and detailed answer. I'm sure that this information opens up a lot of possibilities for many LM Corvair owners!

Thank you again!

[flat6_musik]

Wow, that's really cool rubber on yer "Quattroporte" there......LOL I always thought the LM 4-doors REALLY have a Euro feel to them, more than the 2-door 'vairs. It just looks like it's begging to take on some twisty mountain roads!

[azdave]

Wow! Thanks for such a complete and detailed answer. I'm sure that this information opens up a lot of possibilities for many LM Corvair owners!

I try to give many details knowing someone else will find this later and want to know how to make it all work for their Corvair without so much guessing.

I really love the look of that four-door Corvair sedan! Now I want one!!!

I have two more at home! They are project cars of course. One is a 110/PG and the other is a 110 4-speed with factory A/C.


In the photo the 4-speed sedan is on the lift and the PG sedan is just peeking it's nose out behind the garage. The Corsa is not for sale.

[sam60]

Wow! Thanks for such a complete and detailed answer. I'm sure that this information opens up a lot of possibilities for many LM Corvair owners!

I try to give many details knowing someone else will find this later and want to know how to make it all work for their Corvair without so much guessing.

I really love the look of that four-door Corvair sedan! Now I want one!!!

I have two more at home! They are project cars of course. One is a 110/PG and the other is a 110 4-speed with factory A/C.


In the photo the 4-speed sedan is on the lift and the PG sedan is just peeking it's nose out behind the garage. The Corsa is not for sale.

[azdave]

Update:

Some final details on the new rims and rubber as well as info about lowering the car for a better look.

I liked the new rims and rubber but wanted a slightly more modern look so I removed one coil from the front springs and 1.5 coils from the rear springs. I am now quite pleased with the looks and the ride height. At this height I get no wheel rub on the top of the front fender during compression while turning (entering driveways) and I can still easily roll my lift under the chassis for service work.
Please note that the front springs on this car are OEM springs but are slightly thicker than normal coupe springs to compensate for the extra weight of the spare tire and A/C components in the trunk. Your results may vary if you do similar cuts. The rear springs are the same for LM sedans and coupes regardless of factoty A/C. Convertibles have different springs too.

I also upgraded to the C4 Corvette strut arms while I had the rear springs out.

[DT-VAIR]

Wow! Looks great!

[bbodie52]

Thanks for the update.

I also upgraded to the C4 Corvette strut arms while I had the rear springs out.

I have heard that these performance strut rods arms with heim joints (Heim Joint Control Arms) are not necessarily recommended for the street. How do you feel they perform on your car? Yours look a little different in design in your photograph. Are they similar to the items shown below from Clark's or did you buy them from another source?

[azdave]

I have heard that these performance strut rods arms with heim joints (Heim Joint Control Arms) are not necessarily recommended for the street. How do you feel they perform on your car? Yours look a little different in design in your photograph. Are they similar to the items shown below from Clark's or did you buy them from another source?

These are not heim joints. I agree with others that heim joints are not for street use. Here are some better pictures.

These have soft urethane inserts that closely replicate the feel of rubber and I cannot feel any change in softness or harshness when I changed from OEM struts to these. I followed several threads on corvaircenter before I did this upgrade and found everyone buys these at MAMotorworks which is where I got mine. The rubber in my OEM struts was looking bad so I figured it was cheaper to install these than replace the OEM inserts.
http://www.mamotorworks.com/corvette-c4 ... -1139.html

[bbodie52]

Thanks for the link and details. I thought they looked like a different assembly, but I had not seen them before and did not know where to get them.