Possibly "The Ultimate Corvair" ?

I’d agree.

I’d rather see the stock engine tuned to produce something like 200hp. More than that in such a small car just seems out of balance. Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should...
You guys are missing the bigger picture....the 2nd gen Corvair is NOT exactly a "small" car....it`s just about the same size as a BMW 3-Series.... and, converting one to mid-engine status is not about just adding more power, it`s about totally transforming that existing shell to deliver near-supercar performance....it`s a whole different approach than just a "mild hop-up"....
That being said, there`s absolutely nothing wrong with a stock-engined 2nd-gen car, they are a blast to drive, and get down the road very well. Autocross fans loved `em, the "oversteer on demand" made them terrors on those tight tracks.
Adding to their desirability is the fact that they`re still affordable for a halfway decent example.
 
I definitely watched the video.

Obviously I've never driven a V8 Corvair back to back against one powered by a 600 HP turbo 1.3 L that weighs 300 or 400 lbs less, but rarely does adding 300 lbs increase performance or handling.

:dunno:
 
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they killed the corvair and created the Vega. in California I have not seen a Vega in 30 years.

In ~15 years @ SoCal I saw a couple vegas, one stock Cosworth, the other a V8 swap job. OTOH I prolly saw 100+ Corvairs of various vintages. Heck I even recall seeing a couple of Pintos, one quite often as it belonged to a neighbour in Hermosa Beach, CA.
 
I definitely watched the video.

Obviously I've never driven a V8 Corvair back to back against one powered by a 600 HP turbo 1.3 L that weighs 300 or 400 lbs less, but rarely does adding 300 lbs increase performance or handling.

:dunno:
You`re missing (or overlooking) a couple of important facts here. First, the V8 conversion is only about 100 lbs. heavier than the flat-6, and second, relocating the engine puts it ahead of the transaxle, rather than behind it, which makes all the difference in the world....it`s like hammering a giant spike down through the center of the roof, into the ground, the car now pivots around this central axis point. The majority of the car`s mass is now located right in the middle of the 4 wheels, an ideal configuration.
 
I totally, 100% understand the logistics of the project and the reasons for them. I was just relaying another person's project.

I'm in no way trying to heckle the project in your OP. If I had a restomod Corvair, I'd rather have that one than the Mazda engine project.

Relax. It's all going to be OK.

:beerchug:
 
I totally, 100% understand the logistics of the project and the reasons for them. I was just relaying another person's project.

I'm in no way trying to heckle the project in your OP. If I had a restomod Corvair, I'd rather have that one than the Mazda engine project.

Relax. It's all going to be OK.

:beerchug:
No sweat....like I said, I like stock ones, modded ones, s`all good man (Saul Goodman :)
 
One of my customers has a 1969? Corvair with a turbo and automatic all original parked in his garage .
 
One of my customers has a 1969? Corvair with a turbo and automatic all original parked in his garage .

If this car actually exists, it did not come from the factory like that, the turbo/auto combination was never offered. In second-gen configuration,Turbos were made for 2 years only, (1965 & `66) in the Corsa-level trim (the sportiest Corvair offered), with a 4-speed manual trans.
 
If this car actually exists, it did not come from the factory like that, the turbo/auto combination was never offered. In second-gen configuration,Turbos were made for 2 years only, (1965 & `66) in the Corsa-level trim (the sportiest Corvair offered), with a 4-speed manual trans.
I must not have looked at it close enough . It is the later body design and I am almost positive about the turbo .
 
We put the stereo in this incredible corvair corsa
Jaguar v 12 power and some of the most impressive engineering I have ever seen
https://www.corvaircorsa.com/V-12-01.html
Seems like a huge waste of a perfectly good Jaguar engine to me. If he wanted a V-12 Jag then buy one, it's definitely the better looking car, by a loooooooooooong shot lol.

2089_b869b57f0e22_low_res.jpg
10645040-1967-chevrolet-corvair-monza-std.jpg

Yes I realize the 67 Jag wasn't a V-12, but this shows 67 Jag vs 67 Corvair, the monza version even. The Jag makes the Covair look like just what it was, pedestrian.
 
That Jag vs corvair thing? The XK-E looks were anything but subtle.
But agreed, there were many better drivetrain combos than dumping a V12 into a 'vair.

If memory serves,(and its pretty spotty on some things these days) Woody's Corvair had the GM (Buick?) aluminum V-8 basically in the back seat under a dark carpet-covered enclosure - so it wasn't really visible outside the car - all that signified anything were the tires and the twin tailpipe ... I can recall him raving about the handling with that configuration ...
and hunting down unsuspecting porsches late at night in the 70s ...

Back in those days I was a no-budget semi-student, I had 3 Corvairs at one point -
(I think they were all $500 specials at the time ...)
a 90Hp, a 110hp, and a yellow 140hp convertible - all were rough ...
I'd move the tag around to the one that would start that morning ...!
 
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The Jag makes the Covair look like just what it was, pedestrian.

And yet another case of "Not seeing the forest for the trees"....
The Corvair was an entry-level economy car, never marketed to go up against the likes of an EJag....that`s what the Corvette was for....
 
And yet another case of "Not seeing the forest for the trees"....
The Corvair was an entry-level economy car, never marketed to go up against the likes of an EJag....that`s what the Corvette was for....

A case of not seeing the forest for the trees exactly, and why I question the sanity of doing such.

And the Corvette was no competition either, unless talking in a straight line, and the Jag still had the higher top end with only a six cylinder lol. If you can find similar comments about the Corvette of the day then just maybe it can be mentioned in the same breath.

On its release in March 1961[6] Enzo Ferrari called it "the most beautiful car ever made"

Enzo was not known for his tact or praise for his competition, actually quite the opposite.
 
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And the Corvette was no competition either, unless talking in a straight line, and the Jag still had the higher top end with only a six cylinder lol. If you can find similar comments about the Corvette of the day then just maybe it can be mentioned in the same breath.

And you are either misinformed, or delusional, my friend. In SCCA/FIA racing during the 1960s, Corvette was considered "The One To Beat" (!), successfully taking on the likes of Ferrari, Aston Martin, and Porsche. Actually, it`s Jaguar who "was never mentioned in the same breath"....
 
And you are either misinformed, or delusional, my friend. In SCCA/FIA racing during the 1960s, Corvette was considered "The One To Beat" (!), successfully taking on the likes of Ferrari, Aston Martin, and Porsche. Actually, it`s Jaguar who "was never mentioned in the same breath"....
We were talking street cars, but if you want to talk racing the engine only won Lemans five times, I guess that doesn't count lol. The Vette back then was running drum breaks, give yourself a break.

The way to trick out a Vette back in the day was to throw a Jag rear end into it, funny eh.

Watch some vintage car racing like at Goodwood's Festival of Speed, the Vettes aren't even in contention. It's the Jaguar lightweights cleaning up against the likes of Ferrari GTO SWB, AC Cobras, Aston Martins, Shelby Mustangs, and yes Vettes. The Jags often taking the top several spots while the rest fight over the scraps, quite entertaining actually.
 
Think this might be why they were never mentioned in the 60's in racing? They had already proven their point winning Lemans, again, an unprecedented 5 times beginning with the C-type. Where was the Corvette? Hmmmm? Oh that's right, it was still a slow turd that couldn't get out of its own way lol.

Jaguar D-Types won the Le Mans 24-hour race in 1955, 1956 and 1957. After Jaguar temporarily retired from racing as a factory team, the company offered the remaining unfinished D-Types as XKSS versions whose extra road-going equipment made them eligible for production sports car races in America. In 1957 25 of these cars were in various stages of completion when a factory fire destroyed nine of them.

Jaguar SS 100 fastest production car in the world when released.
Jaguar XK120 fastest production car in the world when released.
Jaguar XK 140 fastest production car in the world when released
Jaguar XK150 fastest production car in the world when released

See a pattern here lol.

All street cars, does Chevrolet have even one production street car in its history that can make this claim?
 
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All street cars, does Chevrolet have even one production street car in its history that can make this claim?

Chevrolet - and most other US made cars - were more interested in how fast they would go in a short distance - usually 1/4 mile. They didn't care if a car could go 160MPH if it took 5 minutes and half a county to get there. And leak 2 quarts of oil doing it.:D
 
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Chevrolet - and most other US made cars - were more interested in how fast they would go in a short distance - usually 1/4 mile. They didn't care if a car could go 160MPH if it took 5 minutes and half a county to get there. And leak 2 quarts of oil doing it.:D
Not to mention that without a doubt the magic smoke WILL come out of the electrical system on a Jag or any other British car with Lucas wiring. :p I wouldn't trade a nice post 1955 C-1 Vette for 5 XKE Jags unless four of them were Chevy powered. ;)
 
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