New Guy from AZ

[CorvairEsq]

Hello folks!

I'm a fairly new 1964 Monza Coupe owner from Phoenix, AZ.

The Monza is currently idle in the garage awaiting a wheel bearing repair (after the entire clutch was JUST rebuilt!) Despite this current set-back, I hope to be back on the road real soon!

The engine runs great (right now), so the next step in the resto (after the front end issue) will probably be paint, before I tackle the interior.

I'm looking for a set of stock 13" EM, 4-lug steel rims if anyone has any (especially in AZ or So Cal).

This is a great online community of dedicated enthusiasts, and I am excited to join the ranks!

[Skrain]

WELCOME!! Always glad to see another EM lover!
Have you tried California Corvairs for the 13" wheels? They have NOS and used wheels, at a fairly reasonable price. I got one from them as a spare for my Spyder.

[CorvairEsq]

WELCOME!! Always glad to see another EM lover!
Have you tried California Corvairs for the 13" wheels? They have NOS and used wheels, at a fairly reasonable price. I got one from them as a spare for my Spyder.

Skrain,

Yep, I saw that he had some. I might ride out to Chino next month and pick them up myself if I can't find any here locally (or in Tucson).

[bbodie52]

Welcome to the Corvair Forum!

I would like to invite you to expand on your initial post and tell us more about yourself and your Corvair, and your goals for your Corvair. A brief description of your personal assessment of your mechanical skills, your technical background and mechanical abilities, Corvair-related knowledge, etc. is always helpful to improve communication over the Internet. Helping us to know more about you and your Corvair will help us to write comments to you that are tailored to your needs and experience. Pictures are great too, because pictures of your Corvair will help us to visualize where you are with your Corvair and its condition at the present time.

If you are not aware of it, there is some pretty-good support for Corvair owners in your area. The CORSA (Corvair Society of America) club chapter is nearby, as is some local parts and mechanic support. Here is some info that might be useful...

I would suggest joining and getting involved with the local CORSA (Corvair Society of America) club chapter in your area. They also can be helpful with experience, guidance and advice and are familiar with local sources of support in the Phoenix area. Here is some contact information...

CORSA Chapter Locator - Cactus Corvair Club
Chapter ID: 850
Organization Name: Cactus Corvair Club

Street Address (Primary): Cactus Corvair Club, P.O. BOX 1162, APACHE JUNCTION AZ 85117-4047
President: Miner Fleming
Vice President: Larry Starr
Secretary: Mary Seaman
Treasurer: Chuck Roderique
BOARD MEMBERS:
Bob Rencenberger
Diane Rencenberger
John Seaman, 480-242-1211, rampside63@hotmail.com
Newsletter Editor: Mary Seaman
Newsletter Name: Fanbelt Flyer
Website: http://www.cactuscorvairclub.com
Email (Primary): inafix@live.com

We are the oldest continually active Corvair club in existence. Upon receiving a letter from Lou Grubb, general manager at Rudolph Chevrolet (now Lou Grubb Chevrolet), requesting all Corvair owners to form a club that would be sponsored by Chevrolet, the wheels were put into motion. At a lavish dinner meeting on October 2, 1963, 48 enthusiastic members approved a constitution chartering them as the "Cactus Corvair Club," and officers were installed with all the pomp and circumstance. For a number of years it was an uphill struggle as the other sports-car clubs in our Valley of the Sun were not quite sure this rear-engined gadget was a sports car, but as the club acquired a little polish and attempted greater and better events, we also acquired an excellent reputation as a sports-car club. As the appreciation and respect for the Corvair have grown over the years, car shows have become a big part of our yearly activities. Many shopping malls and parade organizers expect us to be regular participants in their annual displays and parades. In March of 1979, Cactus Corvair Club sponsored and presented the first annual All Chevy Day. This is the day for all Chevy enthusiasts to throw aside model preferences and just picnic, chat, and enjoy each other's cars and company. Attendance has doubled every year and now draws hundreds of old and new Chevys of all descriptions, making it one of the most popular annual car shows in the state of Arizona. Due to the closing of Lou Grubb Chevrolet / Power Chevrolet, the Cactus Corvair Club has moved to Thorobred Chevrolet in Chandler.

Meetings are held on the first Wednesday of each month (except for July and August)
Location is at Thorobred Chevrolet 2121 N. Arizona Ave - Chandler AZ 85225
Meetings start at 7PM. Driving a Corvair is encouraged but not required.

Here is another possibility for support assistance...

Arizona Corvair Corral
http://www.corvaircorral.com/index.html

Contact Information

Please be sure to call if you need help.
Arizona Corvair Corral
1043 W. Roundup St
Apache Junction, AZ 85120

Home 623-698-9313
Mobile phone 480-242-1211

Email John rampside63@hotmail.com

Follow this link for some Corvair-related websites that may prove to be useful to you. The last Internet link on the list points to a useful article regarding tires and wheels for Corvairs. You might find it to be helpful...

viewtopic.php?f=225&t=6007

[CorvairEsq]

Brad,

Thank you so much for the helpful links! I'm a member of CORSA, but I will make sure to reach out to the Cactus Corvair Club here in town! Thanks again!

I'm a local attorney in the Phoenix area, single dad to 2 wonderful kids (1 adult, 1 teen), 2 dogs (beagle and chocolate lab), and my newest love, a '64 110hp 4-speed Monza Coupe, fitted for a/c but with the compressor/condenser missing (but I rather like the old-school, dual air filter set up).

My mechanical skills are pretty much limited to getting my hands dirty with minor maintenance and up-keep work, but I am always willing to slide underneath the car when my mechanic is working on it, to try and learn as much as I can.

I restored a 1978 Fiat 124 Spider convertible in the past, so I know how to do a resto the wrong way, as well as the thrill of victory (when the Spider ran) and the agony of defeat (when it didn't). I also had a 1968 Peugeot 404 Berline sedan (non-runner & 100% project) that I unfortunately had to give up on for garage space (for the Monza) and donate to PurpleHeart.

I'll post pix as the Monza resto comes along, and thanks again for all of the helpful local info you provided!

[flat6_musik]

Welcome to the forum, CorvairEsq! Always glad to see another aficionado on board. I would think you should have absolutely zero problem sourcing those EM 13-inch steelies, and for probably nearly free, in your area. Seems like there's always some automotive salvage yard or local hoarder (now I hate that word...lol) who's got 2 to 3 vairs on hand.

Yup, gotta take care of those wheel bearings......if they let loose, you'll have an interesting ride and story to tell. Cool that you're "hands-on".......

[MBlaster1]

Welcome. I have the rims i would give you but i am in Fl.

[azdave]

Welcome to the group!

Does this look like your car by chance? Sure looks like it from your sig pic. If so, I know a bit about it.

As for the local club we have a picnic coming up on the 5th out at Lost Dutchman State Park and the next day on the 6th we'll park our Corvairs along with the airplanes at the Chandler Airport Open House. Event details are on the club website.

http://www.cactuscorvairclub.com/

[CorvairEsq]

Dave,

YEP! That is definitely her!

How long ago were the photos taken? That looks like a relatively new paint job (it's faded now), and mine has a dent behind the driver's side door (that was there when I bought it). I also replaced the driver's side mirror with an original NOS one.

I bought it from a young kid (20ish) whose dad originally bought the car for him. In talking to the dad (later), I think he might have bought it from John Seaman at http://www.corvaircorral.com.

Any scoop on the car would be very much appreciated!

[azdave]

I bought it off of Craig's List in Phoenix in maybe Feb of 2012. I got it from a young couple in Mesa with one small child and another on the way. Other than soft brakes and oil leaks it drove pretty well. I fixed a bunch of things that the past owner had rigged since they had no money to fix an old car.

I fixed the brakes, installed proper lug nuts and wheel centering rings, new carb kits, points, wires, plugs etc. I also installed seat extenders so that the seats went further back for my long legs.

About 3 months after I bought it the AZ DMV sent me a letter saying they had made an error on the title and that the car was listed as salvage! I could not legally drive it on the street anymore. A long battle with them resulted in DMV admitting they screwed up but too bad for me because they weren't responsible for errors.

In the end, I had to pay for a Level 3 Inspection at the State Police garage and was able to get a restored-salvage title for it. They said the car was intentionally re-titled out of state and then brought back to Arizona to "wash" the title. They said the car was totaled 10-12 years ago but apparently not from collision damage. Maybe it was a theft recovery? I never saw any evidence of crash repairs and neither did the State Police but they sure looked hard for it while up on the lift. I went back to driving it after all of that mess.

I tried to contact the people I bought it from and neighbors told me the guy was in prison. Gee...I wonder why.

Here is a photo from May of 2012 at my house when the club was over for a cookout. You can just see the engine compartment opened up on the right of the photo.


That picnic was the day John Seaman decided to buy it as he needed a Corvair to drive and he gave me cash plus a 65 4-speed sedan with A/C in trade. Per John he blew up the engine about a month later. After that but I don't know if he fixed the engine or swapped in a used one from his fleet. I know he then sold it to someone else ( I believe a father/son deal like you mentioned).

The photo of it on the trailer was me taking it out to John's place in late May of 2012. I drove just fine but because I had to tow home the sedan anyway it saved me from needing a second driver.

The other photo is parked in my driveway at my other house in Mesa. I moved to Gilbert right after that pic was taken. That is the way it looked when I brought it home. Note the oil pan underneath due to the oil leaks. Pan gasket was all it needed to fix that. The paint was looking worn then too.

That's all I can think of for now. Hope you enjoy it!

[bbodie52]

It would appear that this "young lady" had a rough childhood, but grew up to be a pearl of great price -- something that is very rare and is considered very important.

Fortunately she was adopted and raised by diligent and loving "parents" and has now found a good home.

[CorvairEsq]

I bought it off of Craig's List in Phoenix in maybe Feb of 2012. I got it from a young couple in Mesa with one small child and another on the way. Other than soft brakes and oil leaks it drove pretty well. I fixed a bunch of things that the past owner had rigged since they had no money to fix an old car.

I fixed the brakes, installed proper lug nuts and wheel centering rings, new carb kits, points, wires, plugs etc. I also installed seat extenders so that the seats went further back for my long legs.

About 3 months after I bought it the AZ DMV sent me a letter saying they had made an error on the title and that the car was listed as salvage! I could not legally drive it on the street anymore. A long battle with them resulted in DMV admitting they screwed up but too bad for me because they weren't responsible for errors.

In the end, I had to pay for a Level 3 Inspection at the State Police garage and was able to get a restored-salvage title for it. They said the car was intentionally re-titled out of state and then brought back to Arizona to "wash" the title. They said the car was totaled 10-12 years ago but apparently not from collision damage. Maybe it was a theft recovery? I never saw any evidence of crash repairs and neither did the State Police but they sure looked hard for it while up on the lift. I went back to driving it after all of that mess.

I tried to contact the people I bought it from and neighbors told me the guy was in prison. Gee...I wonder why.

Here is a photo from May of 2012 at my house when the club was over for a cookout. You can just see the engine compartment opened up on the right of the photo.


That picnic was the day John Seaman decided to buy it as he needed a Corvair to drive and he gave me cash plus a 65 4-speed sedan with A/C in trade. Per John he blew up the engine about a month later. After that but I don't know if he fixed the engine or swapped in a used one from his fleet. I know he then sold it to someone else ( I believe a father/son deal like you mentioned).

The photo of it on the trailer was me taking it out to John's place in late May of 2012. I drove just fine but because I had to tow home the sedan anyway it saved me from needing a second driver.

The other photo is parked in my driveway at my other house in Mesa. I moved to Gilbert right after that pic was taken. That is the way it looked when I brought it home. Note the oil pan underneath due to the oil leaks. Pan gasket was all it needed to fix that. The paint was looking worn then too.

That's all I can think of for now. Hope you enjoy it!

Wow! Thanks for the scoop, Dave!

I think John must've repaired the engine, as I believe the numbers match up. I'm supposed to ride out to John's place on Sunday to pick up a set of stock rims, so I'll be sure to ask him.

That title issue was absolutely WILD! Luckily for me, I had no issues at MVD, but I did wonder about the "salvage" title. A buddy of mine who's an insurance adjuster checked the car out for me and couldn't find any body damage either (I bet your suspicions are correct and it was "totalled" as stolen).

Thanks again for the info!

[azdave]

I found a few more photos for you. They are not the best as I was using a smartphone.These were probably from around March or April of 2012.

[classicchevyowner7]

Welcome! Glad to have another EM owner! Good luck with the rims!

[curvesman]

Welcome from a new guy himself!

[flat6_musik]

Wow, CorvairEsq! Now you've surely got some interesting stories to tell that go along with this newly acquired EM! And Dave......I'm sorry to hear about that whole nightmarish scenario you went through. That's the type of thing I always fear when I buy a car and there are mysterious "bill of sale only" paperwork.