New Corvair Owner Houston area

[rjonec]

Hello Group and members. I just purchased my first VAIR actually the second Chevy I have owned. It is a 1966 Corsa Turbo. The car is very orginal with one repaint. Overall it is a solid driver. She needs some TLC to make her a perfect a little body work as it has some door dings and paint scratches and some rot on the drivers rear quarter due to battery acid neglect. The rest of the car is really solid. Looking forward to upgrading the suspension and just driving it.

I am located in the NW Houston area and plan to get involved with the local club.

Will post pics soon.

Cheers,
Richard

[Trip]

Welcome to our forum =)

A 66' Turbo is about the most desirable Corvair there is in most of our eyes, congrats on the purchase! I guess you'd have mentioned if it is a convertible so I assume a coupe... less rare but I strongly prefer coupes myself.

What color is she? (original?)

Looking forward to the pics!!

[Chicago Guy]

Welcome Richard

Hope you enjoy the forum, there are some nice folks here.
Post some pics, love those Turbo cars.


Gene

[rjonec]

Yes its a coupe. Its light blue, looks pretty close to marina blue, but I am not 100% sure. Where do I locate the build tag? I have had the car for a week so just learning about the car which I know very little. I am Ford guy I've owned various high performance Mustangs.

Suspension is the first area to tackle. Steering box is loose, various bushings are worn so i am going to replace those over the next couple of weekends. Which books or manuals would you guys recommend.

Richard

[Chicago Guy]

Thats a good looking car ya got Richard.






Gene

[Gregory_Miller]

Vairy nice looking 66. I'm partial to that color of blue.

[Jimbo]

GOOD LOOKIN RIDE

[Corvair.crazy]

Nice score for your second Chevy!!
I recommend the CORSA tech guide as a resource and the Chassis shop manual and supplement.
The chassis manual is for the 1965 model year and the supplement is for the 1966 model year. You of course would need both.

[sgurske]

Nicely optioned car. I see what looks like a rear antenna, remote adjustable mirrors and head rests. Nice!!

[bob022004]

Thats a great looking car! That blue is one of my favorites.

[flat6_musik]

Hi Richard and welcome.....yes, nice car! Looks like my '65, but a bit more rare being a '66! How's she run?......boosting good and all that? How far over does the boost gauge needle go?

[cad-kid]

Looks Sweet! Welcome.

[rjonec]

Thanks for the compliments guys. The car has the wrong vacuum advance, needless to say the shop who worked on it prior to my purchase most likely did not have a clue that there was a special unit required. So I need to locate a proper one. She will ping when you really get in it. I thought it was bad gas, but not the case I am running 93 octane and octaone boost. I am going to check the timing and make sure she is to spec. I'll probably pull some timing out of it until i locate the proper advance.

I have been doing a little research and it appears it should have a full 42 degrees (24+18) at 4900 rpm. If you guys know otherwise let me know.

I have been doing more research and the car has 16 options based on reviewing all the details.
AO1, Tinted Glass Complete
A39, Custom Seat Belts
A67, Folding Rear Seat
A82, Head Rests
F41, Special Performance Suspension
G81, Positraction Differential
G95, 3.55:1 Rear Gear Ratio
K84, Heavy Duty Alternator 47 Amp
N34, Deluxe Wood Steering Wheel
N36, Telescopic Steering Wheel
N44, Quick Steering Ratio
U60, AM Radio
U73, Rear Antenna
V31, Front Bumper Guards
V32, Rear Bumper Guards
V74, Hazard Flashers
Z19, Convenience Group

Just having a good time researching the car.

Hope all had a great Thanksgiving

Richard

[Homebrew]

Look into Bob Helts books. For a first corvair purchase seems you did very well. Good luck as these car alway multiply...just ask anyone.

[TikiRalf]

COOL !!!! :-)

Enjoy it !!!

[flat6_musik]

Thanks for the compliments guys. The car has the wrong vacuum advance, needless to say the shop who worked on it prior to my purchase most likely did not have a clue that there was a special unit required. So I need to locate a proper one. She will ping when you really get in it. I thought it was bad gas, but not the case I am running 93 octane and octaone boost. I am going to check the timing and make sure she is to spec. I'll probably pull some timing out of it until i locate the proper advance.

I have been doing a little research and it appears it should have a full 42 degrees (24+18) at 4900 rpm. If you guys know otherwise let me know. Richard

I'm not positive, but you've gotta factor in how much timing the boost retard unit "pulls out". I looked around online and saw about 14 to 15 degrees. And just to be sure, get the casting number off the distributor to make sure it's for a turbo. That sucks when an unknowing mechanic shop will just "pop in" a rebuilt distributor in a turbo car....lol.....then turn in that correct distributor as a core. I'm sure that's happened a lot. Looking at your car and how nice and original it is, I would imagine it is correct. Yes, pinging is a creepy fragmentation grenade for these cars, especially since they run a bit hotter than a water-pumper engine anyway. I'd stay outta the boost until you get that boost retard installed and set up right. One bad split-second ping session and you can lunch your engine. Good luck! Clark's I know sells repro boost retard units and I've seen a few NOS ones on Ebay as well.