'65 '500' sedan project from the dry Central Valley, CA

[cad-kid]

Looking nice :)

[viewmaster]

Thanks Jeremy, took her for a spin yesterday morning, up in the mountains. She ran well...I have to say tho, to all out there with a PG...make sure you watch your fluid level. I made the mistake of slightly overfilling the trans fluid. She ran good all the way up there, about 35 miles and about 2500 ft. of elevation gain. As i pulled into where we were having a picnic, it was on an incline, so i believe the overage of trans fluid seeped into the intake. She started burning trans fluid and smoking a bit. I was worried about what was causing the issue, until i figured that i had over-filled the night before. I found a piece of 1/2" plastic hose, and siphoned out about 8 oz. from the dipstick tube. Luckily the plugs were'nt too fouled, and when it was time to leave, she fired right up. Smoked a little, but then cleared right up. She idled a little low, since we were up at 3500 ft., but that wasnt too long, then we started back down the hill. It was a pretty warm day too, 101 degrees, we left home about 10:00a, and headed home about 4:00p. It was pretty darn hot by then. We made a bee line for the closest watering hole with air-conditioning. Had a cold drink, and waited for it to cool off a little, then headed home. Prolly about a 100 mile round trip tour, and it was fun for me and the wife. Glad the car issues were not too serious.

Happy motoring Corvair folks.

-m

[bbodie52]

The large diameter dipstick tube on the left is for the automatic transmission fluid level. It should be checked with the engine running, the transmission warm, and the transmission in Neutral. Transmission fluid can be added through this dipstick tube. The fluid should be red in color and not have a burned smell (a brown color with a burned smell can be an indicator of internal transmission clutch or band slippage, which can be caused by low oil pressure, worn clutches or bands, low transmission fluid, etc.)

Corvair Powerglide transmissions have something of a "bulletproof" reputation and yours should serve you well with fluid maintained at the proper level. Low fluid can starve the transmission for fluid, while high fluid levels can cause the rotating components to spin in a bath of fluid – creating foam and causing problems internally. Everything in the transmission operates hydraulically (kind of a hydraulic fluid computer, using fluid switching, oil pressure for clutch and band actuation, fluid coupling (in the torque converter), fluid lubrication and cooling. Improper fluid levels can cause significant damage, but if your transmission is in good condition proper fluid levels will keep it that way. If a transmission fluid leak should occur, it should be corrected quickly to ensure that fluid levels do not become low, which can cause significant damage.

Note the comments from Clark's Corvair Parts below regarding checking the transmission dipstick length in the section entitled Powerglide Diagnosis Guide.

...As I pulled into where we were having a picnic, it was on an incline, so I believe the overage of trans fluid seeped into the intake. She started burning trans fluid and smoking a bit...

I don't believe an over-filled transmission would normally have any path into the engine intake system — unless there is possibly a ruptured diaphragm in the vacuum modulator on the right side of the transmission. This would be the only connection between the automatic transmission and the engine intake system. Normally a vacuum modulator would prevent any transmission fluid from making its way into the vacuum hose and tube, and on into the engine vacuum balance tube. I would recommend temporally disconnecting the vacuum hose from the vacuum modulator and inspecting it. If it is wet with ATF inside the vacuum hose, you probably need to replace the vacuum modulator unit. It is not rebuildable.

Vacuum Modulator

(See the comments below under Item 59 from the Clark's Corvair Parts online catalog regarding the vacuum modulator).

http://www.corvair.com/user-cgi/catalog ... N&page=135




A few comments regarding the differential fluid...

Differential gear oil is added through a plug in the side of the differential. Normally gear oil rated as GL-4 is recommended, and if you have a Positraction Limited Slip differential, the gear oil you choose should be rated for use with a LS differential as well. Corvairs with manual transmissions share gear oil between the transmission and differential, and should never use GL-5 gear oil because it can damage the manual transmission. Corvairs with an automatic transmission do not share oil between the two components in the transaxle, and GL-5 gear oil will not harm the differential components.

[viewmaster]

Brad,
Thank you for all the info. I have wondered myself about the modulator, and i have a new one on hand. As the car has not given me any trouble, as it pertains to the transmission, i have waited on the installation of the new modulator i have. With your advise and information here, i plan to look at the vacuum tube and test the modulator, and replace as necessary. I will post results of inspection and test soon.

Cheers,

-m

[viewmaster]

Okay...looked at the modulator, took the hose off. The hose was wet with trans fluid, but not dripping. Took the old modulator off and here is what i found.

Shook and tapped the vacuum connection on my hand and trans fluid came out. Also...once i made a test drive, i found it wanted to rev up between shifts. Once it got up to temp tho, the shifting settled in. Once i got back from the test drive, i kept it idling in neutral, made sure my trans dipstick was the correct length (thanks Brad), and checked fluid level. The dipstick needed some straightening to make it the correct length, and i was about 1 qt low on fluid, so i topped it off. I will go out in a little bit and make another test run.
Thanks again Brad for the info and help. I was just reading about the proper trans dipstick length and was gonna check as soon as i could. I am just glad there were no major issues yesterday out on the road.

[bbodie52]

Clark's says about ten years on a vacuum modulator, but yours looks like it might be the original! It could be almost fifty years old!!

Hopefully each of these steps are getting you closer to where you want to be with your Corvair.

[viewmaster]

Clark's says about ten years on a vacuum modulator, but yours looks like it might be the original! It could be almost fifty years old!!

The way the short vacuum hose snapped like a twig when i removed it...i believe you are correct Brad. LOL

[viewmaster]

Well...been running the 500 as a daily driver for a while, since my last post and issue with the PG. She has run like a top!! In fact, she made the journey to Palm Springs this past October, for the Fan Belt Toss. No issues all the way there and back from Fresno, Ca.

Was driving home from work early April, when i got on the freeway ramp and something happened. Loss of power and a rhythmic shooshing sound. Was unsure...so i did a compression check and got 0psi in #5 and a reduction of 40psi in #3. Thought i may have broken head studs or something. People said "...you dropped a seat". I didnt want to hear that...but...taking the head off...fears were confirmed.

Dropped intake seat on #5

Smiley face on piston...

So...needless to say, i have been working on getting the 500 up and going again.

Engine out...

Did some other oil leak reduction practices while she is out too. Also...freshening up the tins and cleaning engine. She gone run really fast now.

Engine on stand...gettin a spruce up.

[cad-kid]

Great job for digging in and getting it done

[viewmaster]

Thanks Jeremy...i appreciate the motivation. I havnt posted that much lately, as well, because i have found that Corvairforum does not like Google Chrome for Android. It would log me out everytime i went away from login page. Im like "WTH!?!?!?!" So...just the old browser for CVF. Gonna keep up on my project pages here now..
Keep on motoring...

-m

[viewmaster]

Got the engine back up in the mounts this weekend. Freshened up tins surrounding it. Rebuilt the carbs and should have her on the road this week. Been down since April 6.

[cad-kid]

Nice! Bob's book is the best!

[viewmaster]

Well...its been more than a week LOL... Other projects taking time away, but finally got "Whitey" back on the road. BOY...what a great difference rebuilt carbs and new gaskets make. She is running as smooth and strong as ever. Also...put the Clark's finned oil pan on her, it was donated from the "turbo'd" Monza project. That sucker puts out alot of heat. I think this will so wonders for bringing engine temps down.

-m

[PaulR]

The other day, I was playing around with wheel/tire combo's. I like the looks of this, but the tire guy said he couldn't get them anymore. I have been using the tirecalc tool from another thread to figure our a replacement. I don't want, and my tire guy won't let me use trailer tires on my car. I hope I can find a 14" whitewall close to the size I want, that won't break the bank.

You could have gotten 185/80 white stripe tires for the Corvair. They are readily available through the internet, buy from Clark's and pay more. They are passenger car tires too. Yeah, they are made in Red China (a.k.a. cheap), but you could have kept the original wheel size and they are an equivalent tire size. I love the '65 hub caps and painted wheels. I suppose you took out the radio filler plate and installed a stereo if the car came originally without a radio too. I had a '65 500 Sport Sedan, all rusted out, and I love strippers.

[viewmaster]

^ Paul, it did come with an AM radio which is still in and working. I am planning a secret stereo install soon, since it is a daily driver. I did find some white walls, both 13" and 14". I am planning on painting the 13" rims and polishing up the '500' poverty caps. I am enjoying this car.

[Duane in Bakersfield]

I gotta admit; I don't particularly care for the looks of an early model 4 door, but the late models are pretty cool looking. Great project!