One thing I love about the collector car world is that, despite the seemingly ever increasing prices of many cars, there are still quite a few great cars that are available at more affordable prices. One of my favorites is the Chevrolet Corvair.
The Corvair was designed to be the Chevy competition with the smaller and more economic cars that were starting to make their way in the early 1960 to the US from Europe. It was at the time one of the most expensive development projects ever undertaken by GM, and the car that came from this work was something GM had never built: a sporty looking rear engine car powered by an air-cooled boxer 6-cylinder engine. Sales when launched were quite strong, but a book called Unsafe at Any Speed by Ralph Nader (yes, that Ralph Nader) said that the car was dangerous and the rear engine was a bad design. This was really not true, but the book and stories of cars spinning caused buyers to think that the Corvair was a bad car. If you have any doubt, consider that the Corvair was a very successful racecar when new which is something a bad design could not accomplish.
Since then, the Corvair has had a continued following of enthusiast owners, a strong parts network and one of the most fun car clubs in the country. These enthusiasts love the cars and do everything they can to spread the word about the Corvair.
The Pick of the Day is my very favorite version of the Corvair, a 1964 Corvair Monza Spyder Coupe. The Spyder designation often means convertible but for the Corvair it means that the car is turbocharged, with the engine producing 150hp instead of the stock Monza 110 hp.
The La Verne, California seller describes this Corvair Spyder as having been professionally stored for 40 years and then in 2017, the car emerged and received a complete and professional service on all mechanical parts including new paint, shocks, carpets, tires, spark plugs, fuel filter exhaust and more. All exterior trim was replaced with NOS parts. Chevy only built 6,480 Corvair Monza Spyders in 1964, which makes it one of the rarest Corvair models. The car includes its original spare tire and looks to be ready to use and enjoy immediately.
For the asking price of only $21,900 this Corvair Monza Spyder represents a lot of car for the money.
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.
I. LIKE. THE 64CORVAIR MONZA SPYDER INTERESTED
You have to click on the links in the story to get to the for-sale ad.
My dad was a mail man in a rural town in MI. He loved the Covairs, and we had three of them. It had a large trunk up front for the mail, he could reach accross to put the mail in the mail box, handled well in the snow, and when stuck in a snowbank, a farmer just pulled him out with his tractor. I learned to drive on a Corvair. We loved those cars!
My buddy had this car, this model, this color. Quick off the line. If I had room for it, I’d buy it. Great car for local driving.
My first car was a 1962 Corvair Monza. Though it had a lot of issues (stripped rear axles, etc.) I loved that car. It was so fun to drive and I thought it handled very well.