volume 40 - number 3 march 2013 - monza motion llc · volume 40 - number 3 . ... club of america...

Bay State Corvairs VairForce 1 March 2013

V a I r F O r c eV a I r F O r c e

March 2013

Chapter 017

Volume 40 - Number 3


On the Front Cover: Spyder at the Antique Auto

Club of America Museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania

taken by Ray and Kathy Bombardier in October, 2012.

On the Back Cover: The Monza GT Concept Car

at the AACA Museum, part of the ‘100 Years of

Chevrolet’ display.

President: Ray Bombardier

6 Kraft Road

Milford, MA 01757

(508) 473-7026

[email protected]

Vice-President Membership Chair: Chuck Leonard

4 Tyson Road

S. Easton, MA 02375

(508) 238-0455

[email protected]

BAY STATE CORVAIR OFFICERS

Treasurer/Merchandise Coordinator:

Peter Roca

51 Everett Street

N. Attleboro, MA 02760

(508) 316-1661

[email protected]

Secretary/Editor: David McMillan

33 Woodhaven Blvd.

N. Providence, RI 02911

(401) 231-0784

[email protected]

Tech Advisor: Jim Bengiovanni

6 Allen Road

Milford, MA 01757

508-473-4989

[email protected]

Tech Advisor: Lionel Bernard

27 MacArthur Drive

Millbury, MA 01527

508-754-2097

[email protected]

NECC Representative: Bob Sedani

Brockton, MA

(508) 584-7792

[email protected]

CORSA Representative: Karl Haakonsen

Roslindale, MA

(617) 469-2692

[email protected]

CORSA Representative: Jason Cesana, President CORSA

CORSA Eastern Director

Manville, RI (401) 692-0852

[email protected]

MAAC Representative: Tom Russ

Milford, MA

(508) 478-6678

[email protected]

Event Coordinator:

Sharon Leonard

S. Easton, MA

(508) 238-0455

[email protected]

Event Coordinator:

Elaine Sedani

Brockton, MA

(508) 584-7792 [email protected]

Refreshment Coordinator:

Cathy McCafferty

N. Attleboro, MA

(202) 957-4326 [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]















I was going to start my March

VFTF off by pointing out that win-

ter is about over but, for the 3rd

weekend in a row, snow is flying

here at 6 Kraft Road; enough al-

ready! I was planning a little get

together here on the 23rd but like a

fool, I listened to Channel 7’s

weatherman who on Thursday at 6

PM was still predicting our area to get hit with 10”to 16” of

snow, so I made

a decision then

for safety sake

to cancel our

little party for

another time.

Did it snow?

Yes. 10”-16”?

Hardly. Another

case of Channel

7, (the Alarm-

ist / Sensationalist Boston TV Channel), getting it wrong.

It’s just that in the winter if you don’t ski, skate or snowmo-

bile you have so few options to have fun. Oh well, the deci-

sion was made for another time. I felt bad for Ron Manwar-

ing’s CT CORSA group who had

already postponed their Holiday

Brunch from the day we had the

Blizzard of ’13, to the 24th and again

snow was forecast. I had planned to

attend their Brunch as I’m a member

of CT CORSA too, but it’s out on

the far side of Danbury, not that far

from the New York border and even

though the snow depths didn’t meas-

ure up to the prediction, it was still

an awfully long drive on slick roads.

I called him and backed out the

Thursday or Friday before.

Ron has a nice group of members

down there and I encourage any of

our members who live in CT or

western MA to think about holding a

dual membership, as they may have

Corvair events that might be held

closer to your homes. Kathy and I belong to 3 CORSA

Chapters: Bay State Corvair Club, CT CORSA and Central

New Hampshire Corvair Association. The newsletters we

get from these clubs keep us up to speed in the big picture

as to what’s going on with the Corvair hobby here in New

England. I realize Colonial Corvairs has basically dis-

banded but their small ‘core group’ of member / friends

have decided to keep it together as more of a ‘social club’.

A number of their members who want to remain active with

Corvair events hold memberships with BSCC and CNHCA.

All of our New England Clubs welcome anyone with a

genuine interest in the Corvair whether they currently own

one or not. Let’s not forget 2 more New England Clubs,

Bill Cotrofeld’s group of Vermont Independent Corvair En-

thusiasts, (or VICE), and Ronnie Tinkham’s group up in

Maine, DIRIGO Corvairs. Dirigo Corvairs is a small but

dedicated group who worked very hard over a long period

of time to become a CORSA Chapter. It would be nice if

either Bill Cotrofeld from VICE or Jeff Aronson, the Editor

of DIRIGO Corvairs sent Dave an article telling us their

club’s story. I know most of our members would find either

story a very interesting read.

Not all CORSA Chapters are as large as ours as we’re

spread out over 8 states. This of course can be an advantage

and a disadvantage, depending on your point of view.

When your club is small you can make quick decisions and

changes with a few key phone calls but we’re big enough to

have to send an e-mail. Many of our members that do have

e-mail chose not to be on the ‘E-mail Blast” thru

[email protected] (for whatever reason) so they have to

be e-mailed separately. Then there are some members that

do not have e-mail and they have to be contacted by phone.

Over the years some phone numbers change; many now are

going cell only. E-mail addresses change and if these

changes aren’t noted on your annual

renewal / update form, our Sec/Ed is

unaware as well as the Event Com-

mittee. Letting Dave McMillan

know of any address/phone/e-mail

changes makes his job much easier.

Do you see now where I’m going

with this? Like I said before, with a

small club a few key phone calls or

e-mails and you’re done. Remem-

ber, it’s much easier to turn a small

boat than a ‘cruise ship.’ They’ll

both turn, but the big one takes a lot

more time and effort. Don’t take

this wrong, as I love the fact that our

club will soon eclipse 100 members

for I believe our sixth year running.

We have a great team on the Board

and a dedicated core group of mem-

bers all focused on the success and

continued growth of our club as we enter our 40th year as a

CORSA Chapter early in 2014. Watch for more news about

this milestone anniversary in months ahead.

(VFTF—Continued on Next Page)

A View From the Front By Ray Bombardier, BSCC President

DIRIGO

VICE

CNHCA

Bay State

Corvair Club

CT CORSA



VFTF (Continued From Page 3)

Over the last week or so, we mailed you all out some

BSCC Raffle Tickets along with a stamped return ad-

dressed envelope to send the ticket stubs and cash or

checks back to our Club’s Treasurer, Peter Roca. Please

try to sell them all if at all possible. You can send the stubs

and cash/checks back at any time but please note there is a

deadline to get them

back. Along with

the stubs and pay-

ments, if you also

have any unsold

tickets please add

them to your enve-

lopes and return eve-

rything to Peter in

the envelope we sup-

plied to you by the deadline. As previously mentioned the

Grand Prize and 2 ca$h prizes will be drawn at our club’s

2013 Annual Spring Brunch at Raffael’s in Walpole on the

first Sunday in May, the 5th. As you know, you need not

be present to win but remember to please print the informa-

tion clearly on the ticket stubs as we do have to be able to

read them. These ticket sales will go a long way to help us

meet our needed seed money to put on the Clark’s Fall

Classic in September. The Board is already busy working

out details to insure the success of our Clark’s Show -

2013. You know we don’t ask much of our club members.

Obviously distance and work schedules keep many un-

available to help out physically. This BSCC Raffle is a

way for those members to step up and help us out a great

deal. For a little more $$ than a gallon of gas you can pur-

chase a ticket and have 3 shots at great prizes and you’ll be

supporting the club helping us to put on another (hopefully)

record breaking event this coming September. Of course

if you can attend, that would be even better, but please take

those BSCC tickets with you to work or over to your

neighbor’s house and try to sell them all. Don’t be shy, if

you’ve sold them all and would like a few more just con-

tact Peter Roca, (his contact info is on page 2 of all your

VairForce newsletters), and Thank You in advance for your

help through this 1st Bay State Corvair Club Raffle. Be safe out there during winter’s last gasp and I’ll talk to you

next month. Ray ‘B’

From the Editor’s Laptop. . . Hi Folks! I can not believe that March is here already!

Don’t blink! You might miss the car cruise season! Before

we know it we’ll be washing the Vairs and readying them

for the shows! We’ve got a great slate of events that we are

fitting into the schedule although some dates need to be

firmed up. Keep an eye on the calendar each month in the

VairForce and an ear to the BSC e-mail list or e-mail blast

from me. Only problem for some of you is that you won’t

be getting your copy of the VairForce or getting a timely e-

mail blast from me. Your name will be off the lists.

Club membership renewals are still tickling in. Our cur-

rent 2013 member count is up to 89 members with about 25

folks from 2012 that have yet to send their dues. I find it

interesting how there are a small group of people that re-

new their dues before the year ends without any

prompting or reminder from me. The majority of the

population renews after I send out the December/

January reminder notice, and then during the first few

months of each year I go through the ritual of sending

multiple reminders to the “holdout” members in the

club. While I can understand a lot of folks are busy

with the day to day stuff in their lives, I feel like I am

being a pest or even a bill collector, “Hey, youse guys

don’t want me to send my cousin ‘Lefty’ to collect the

club’s dues from ya! Do ya?”

I like to think I cut people a lot of leeway even though

my “job” becomes more onerous trying to chase down and

keep track of who’s “in” and who is “on the outs”.

Our Chapter By-Laws state:

In order to maintain the Club and to offer its members

services, dues must be collected from members. Cur-

rently, the renewal of dues is $20 annually for all mem-

bers. Club dues are due and payable no later than Janu-

ary 31st, with membership running through Dec. 31st.

New members joining during the October through De-

cember time frame will be prorated membership through

the following year.

Failure to pay annual renewal of club dues on time

will result in loss of member-ship and interruption of

issuance of the VairForce, unless payment arrange-

ments are made in advance with the club’s treasurer.

If I were following the letter of the By-Laws, there’d be

more “outs” than “ins” for the membership at the beginning

of the year and a lot more people would be missing their

first few months of newsletters.

We have also had some of the raffle tickets that were

sent out “returned to sender” because of incorrect mail ad-

dresses. When I send out the renewal form with the re-

minders, PLEASE send me any changes that have occurred

in the past year.

I guess the message I am trying to

convey is to please get your dues in, and

please keep me up to date with any con-

tact info changes so I can ensure the

newsletters, notices and anything else

club related are delivered to you in an

expeditious manner.

Vairy truly yours,

Dave


Club Night at Doyle’s Restaurant Followed by dessert at the Connors’

By Ray Bombardier

Where were you at 6:30pm Saturday evening, January

26th? If you can’t remember you probably weren’t with all

the ‘cool (make that cold) kids at Doyle’s Restaurant in

South Easton, MA for our annual ‘night out with the gang’.

It’s nothing really special; in fact, it was first started up as a

way to get the club members together during the club’s ‘off

show season’. It proved to be a popular way to break up

the winter blahs and get out for a fun evening with other

club members socially and just ‘chew the fat’ for a few

hours. Of course the weather was always an unknown fac-

tor and this outing proved COLD; 15 degrees outside. Un-

derstandably, this is why the attendance was down a little,

although those that braved the bone chilling evening all had

a terrific evening. Good food and a couple of drinks fol-

lowed by our annual invitation back to Jerry & Marcia Con-

nors’ home for dessert and coffee really capped off the eve-

ning. Marcia was still vacationing in Florida. Jerry had

come home a little early because his Mom who will soon

turn 103, (God Bless her!!), fell and broke her hip and was

in the hospital to have that hip surgically repaired. Jerry

came home to be with her.

By the time we drove the grueling quarter mile to Jerry’s

condo, he had already flipped the switch and had a gor-

geous fire going in the (gas) fireplace for us to warm up by.

As usual, the club came through and supplied desserts of all

kinds to share. Elaine made sure we had a disposable table

cloth and paper products ready to make ‘bachelor’ Jerry’s

clean-up a breeze. All paper products and trash got

wrapped up in the tablecloth and all Jerry had was a bunch

of coffee/tea cups to run thru his dishwasher. This year,

everyone that went to Doyle’s came back to Jerry’s for a

couple of hours and for me, this is always the best part of

these outings where you can just sit and relax over a hot

cup of coffee, enjoy a ‘goodie’ and chat with so many great

friends. We always have some great laughs and the best

times when we get together like this and we can’t thank the

Connors’ enough for generously opening their home to our

group year after year. Marcia, you’ve trained Jerry well to

be the perfect host and from what I see, the perfect son.

You must be very proud of him!

For those of you who chickened out and stayed home all

warm and cozy, I envy you, but once we got to Doyle’s and

especially after we left Jerry’s I had a real warm feeling in-

side. It truly is a wonderful way to spend a cold New Eng-

land winter evening. I hope even more of you think about

coming next year.

Here’s a familiar sight. Dave raising a glass to

toast those members that made this event.

Gathering around the table at

Jerry and Marcia Connors’ home.


One of the most abused pieces of trim on the late model

tends to be the front lock bar. Us late model guys all know

the 65 bar is different than the 65-69’s and is a hard item to

find in good condition. The 66-69 ‘s show up readily on e-

bay and often NOS units can be found, albeit at a high costs.

Since the 65 units are a one year only part, the chances of

locating an NOS unit are slim at best, in addition most of the

65 ones I have seen have extensive pitting and need to be re-

chromed. Those with a 66 and up are in luck because for

some reason these bars have held up better over the years.

An easy way to perform a cheap restoration for yours is

to remove the bar from the car and polish it with 0000 steel

wool. This process will remove much of the tarnish from it

and leave the surface smooth Be very careful when you re-

move the bar as these studs are very fragile and can easily

snap off. I recall seeing an NOS unit with multiple studs

missing, so the trick is not to over-tighten the speed nuts on

the inside. If a stud does break, they can be repaired but it

would be costly. Also, make sure you take care if you re-

move the lock and the assembly. Do

not misplace the bar that extends from

the lock to the trunk latch. This is a

great time to lubricate that as well.

The blue can be repainted as well to

make the piece stand out more. Mine

was in good shape so I decided to

leave the paint alone, but I have also cleaned an extra one

and had success in painting it with duplicolor spray. I sim-

ply sprayed the blue paint on using a close color, allowed it

to dry and then used a rag with lacquer thinner and wiped

the surface. This left the blue paint in the recessed areas

and made for a nice fresh looking finish. This is an easy

project that can make a nice improvement to the front of

your Vair.

Late Model Front lock bar cleaning and restoration By Steve Silvia


Thanks to Ray Bombardier for supplying us with this article from the Patriot Ledger, February, 1974.

The Patriot Ledger is based in Quincy Massachusetts and has been in existence since 1837.

This article is further proof of Bay State Corvairs’ humble beginning.


ANNOUNCEMENTS

Got anything to say? Send any special announcements, photos and articles to the editor at [email protected] or a call at 401-243-3884.

February Meeting! The February Meeting will be held on Wednesday, January 30th.

Refreshments will be provided by John “Oreo” Wingle

BSCC 2013 Raffle! So you should have received your raffle tick-ets! As we said before, we're looking to beef

up the club's treasury so we can continue to give back to our membership by providing a high-quality monthly newsletter, as well as gifts and prizes, as we have in the past. 1st prize is a Kindle Fire HD 8.9" with Dolby audio, Wi-fi and 32 GB of memory, a

$384 value! We will also award a 2nd prize of $100 and a third prize of $50. Raffle tickets are selling for $5 each. If you have-n’t received any, contact Peter Roca (contact info on Page 2)!

Drawing Sunday, May 5th at the Spring Brunch!

The Clark's Fall Classic - HOTEL UPDATE! As you know, we’ve reserved a block of 50 Rooms and they’re

on hold for us at the So. Deerfield, MA ‘Red Roof Inn’ for the

nights of Sept 13 and 14, 2013 at a firm discounted rate of

$74.99 per night; still $1.00 less than we paid in 2006. For

$4.00 more you can get a deluxe room. Ray was in touch with

our gal Jen in S. Deerfield and found that as of Sunday, 2/24

only 14 of the 50 reserved rooms have been booked. Please, if you in-

tend be a part of this year’s Clark’s Fall Classic book your rooms

early. Don’t worry about early booking because if something should

turn up and you find you can’t attend, you have up until Sept. 1st to

call and cancel with NO cash penalty. Call 1-800-874-9000 and book.

Be sure to mention Corvair Car Show to get the club's discounted rate.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008GFRBBW/ref=fs_jw


Grab the Stuff By Dave Silvia

Many of us have stripped Corvairs for parts or have re-

moved parts from a Corvair in the junkyard. When I have

encountered a Corvair in the junkyard I have often just

looked the car over briefly, removed the part that I needed,

paid for it, and left. Only later did I think about those hard-

to-get parts that might have been on the car but I forgot to

look for. Sure we all know to grab the mag wheel hub-

caps, wood steering wheels, and Spyder dash boards but

there are plenty of parts that are not reproduced and are

very difficult to come by or just really expensive to replace.

Some of these parts are rather mundane but if you find you

need one, you will quickly realize that you should have

grabbed it when you saw it. Some people might consider it

hoarding but I have paid dearly for parts that I know I liter-

ally threw away years ago. So, I decided to put a list of

hard of some rather mundane parts that you should grab

when you see them.

Rear Heater Outlet –

the plastic door under

the rear seat on Corvairs.

These are often broken

or in bad shape. They

are not reproduced, so if

you see a good one, re-

move it.

1965-69 Front Trunk Lock Molding – These

are not reproduced and NOS are in the $500

range, if you are able to get your hands on one

with a lock and key assembly it is even better.

1965-66 Corsa interior emblems – These are

hard to come by, grab them even if the door pan-

els are junk. The same for the one on the glove

box.

!966-69 Front Spoiler – yeah these are repro-

duced but they are not the same material as the

originals and not as nice.

1960 Gas

Heater Purge

Switch – These are

essential for getting

your gas heater

working and in

many cases it is all

that is wrong with a

non-functional one.

It sits under a little cover right on top of the gas heater.

1968-69 Dash Pad and Parts – It is very difficult to find

a good padded radio surround, be sure to grab the special

ash tray too.

1962-64 Spyder Dash Knob Pod – I have seen Spyder

dashes gone out of cars and the little pod containing the

wiper knob and lighter assembly left behind. Spyder dash

boards are quite easy to find – but they are not of much use

without the little pod. On convertibles with the power top

option these also contain the top switch – those are even

rarer.

1961-69 En-

gine Thermostats

– if they are

good (closed)

grab them these

are very expensive reproduced.

1965-69 Remote

Outside Mirror –

Grab any compo-

nents, even if they

are broken. The in-

side control and the

bezel are very valu-

able. I have seen the

bezel alone sell for

more than $50 on

eBay with very heavy bidding. Apparently, Chevy used the

same mirror on

Chevelles and

Camaros so there

is a demand for

these. They even

make re-

pair parts

for them.

1966 Wedding Band Taillights – These were only

used on early 66 cars and feature a small center trim

about 1/8” wide vs. the common large trim taillights

about 3/8”. Even used ones command good money.

Convertible Under Dash Dome Lights – grab

these. They are a handy addition on any Corvair and

are quite easy to install.

1965-69 Cove Trim – even if the bright metal is

damaged, grab the supports they are expensive.

Radio Block Off Plates – racers love these things and

some people used them as bezels for installing aftermarket

radios.

Radios – It is very hard to find a good working radio.

I am sure I missed a lot of things but don’t be fooled

into believing that every

part in the aftermarket

catalog is available –

some are not.

I encourage everyone to

hoard.


Did You

Know. . .

It is against the law to drive your vehicle with the snow

piled up on it. Snow flying off a vehicle can be dangerous if it

should land on a windshield temporarily blocking your view.

Chuck Cromwell

Thanks to Ken and Anita Anderson of Maine for

sending us this from the February 18,2013

edition of the Automotive News


One of 4 Made

Like the 1957 Ford Ranchero before it, this El Cormeno

was created from a stock station wagon. There were only 4

vehicles treated to this make-over reportedly done 40+ years

ago by a California custom shop. The design and workman-

ship are really quite remarkable, resulting in a vehicle that

has the same characteristics as the Ranchero and

the El Camino—except it is a rear-engine configuration just

like all Corvairs.

A Great “10-footer”

Paint and Chrome This El Cormeno was repainted in red, but the repaint was

of mediocre quality. At that time any areas with rust were

repaired with body filler and today there are a few areas of

bubbling that show through the paint. The frame appears to

be in good condition but the repair to the floor pans was not

professionally done. The car can be driven as-is and would

be welcomed at cruise-ins and local shows, but at some

point a car of this rarity should be stripped and repainted

and have new floor pans properly installed.

The chrome is generally in good condition and is certainly

superior to the car’s exterior finish. The wire wheel hub-

caps are in good condition and add a great finishing touch

to a car that is already a stand-out

Interior The stock Corvair seats have been replaced with later-year

high back units which are in good condition with the excep-

tion of a tear (see pictures) on the driver’s seat back bol-

ster. The door panels have been recovered and the head-

liner which has been replaced is in very nice condi-

tion. Again, the interior would be fine until the car is re-

painted and then the seats should be redone at the same

time.

Mechanically Sound and Quick!

This red El Cormeno has a 1965 110hp Corvair motor that

starts immediately and is a strong performer, owing in part

to its headers and Glasspaks. And, unlike most Corvair en-

gines, this one barely drips at all. The car has a two-speed

Powerglide automatic which is a pleasure to drive, shifting

properly while enabling it to cruise along or quickly scam-

per down the road.

And, it is Ready to Go This isn’t a car that you need to fix before you can enjoy

it. Most everything already works. The speedometer has a

new cable and works as it should. The fuel gauge has been

replaced as has the sending unit, and now the gauge

works. The lights and turn signals work, as does the horn

and wipers. The heater/defroster, however, will need some

attention. And the car has a working Blaupunkt AM/FM

stereo as well as four Goodyear radial tires that look as

new.

A Car to Enjoy if you can stand the Attention!

This shiny red El Cormeno, as one would expect with only

4 having been made, is a sure crowd-attractor. Whether at

a cruise-in, a car show or stopped at a light, everyone wants

to know more about this little beauty. While they may be

familiar with the larger El Camino, few if any of its admir-

ers have ever seen an El Cormeno. If you are looking for a

unique vehicle that is mechanically stock Chevrolet Corvair,

you need look no further—and you won’t spend a for-

tune either buying or maintaining it. Plus, you’ll get more

looks and questions than if you were driving a red Ferrari.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL US AT: 540-370-4474

Price is $12,900

1961 Cormeno - Only 4 made For Sale


CLUB COOKBOOK UPDATE Well, after a rather long hiatus on my part

partially due to the fact that I sold my home,

bought a condo,

sold Miss Kitty, an

office move, a new

employer and now

another office move

from Cambridge to

Boston, I am once

again resurrecting

our Club Cookbook

Project. So far we

have 157 recipes

and I would like to

thank everyone who has contributed a recipe

or two or three or…

However, I would love to be able to get to

the 200 recipe mark so if you haven’t contrib-

uted a recipe yet or are new to the club, I

would love to receive your favorite family

recipes for inclusion in the Club cookbook.

Any recipes will be most welcome, including

diabetic recipes and gluten free recipes.

So please, let me hear from you, even if

you’ve already contributed—the more

the merrier!

Please send your recipes to me via e

-mail as follows:

[email protected]

or

[email protected]

Or you can mail your recipes to me at:

Cathy McCafferty

68 North Washington Street, Unit #401

North Attleboro, MA 02760.

Thanks so much—I look forward to receiving

your recipes! Cathy McCafferty




The Corvair Engine

Its strengths & Weaknesses By Robert Brown

(Borrowed from the CNHCA February Corvair Connection)

Do you know six reasons why a properly maintained

Corvair engine can outlast most engines on the market, in-

cluding its air-cooled competitors Volkswagen and Por-

sche? It's all about engineering and here they are:

1. The Corvair engine has a very

short piston stroke

which greatly lightens the load on

pistons, rods, crankshaft and

bearings .

2. Its opposed-cylinder design prac-

tically eliminates

loads on the crankshaft main bear-

ings.

3. It is air-cooled so its cooling sys-

tem cannot deteriorate from corro-

sion or failed hoses, pumps or ther-

mostats like water-cooled systems.

4. For a non-overhead cam design,

its valve geometry is

almost perfect resulting in a more

efficient cylinder head.

5. The ball and stud rocker arm de-

sign, a 1955

innovation, was copied by many

other engine manufacturers.

6. The engine design is simple and

simplicity leads to longevity.

When Richard Finch, renowned

Fitch Sprint race driver, published

this list in his 1986 edition of "How

to Keep Your Corvair Alive", he

bluntly stated "a Corvair engine will

last longer than a Chevrolet V8 be-

cause the V8 (small block) engine

uses cast iron valve guides that are

an integral part of the cylinder head

whereas the pressed-in Corvair valve guides are separate

and are made from a higher quality material."

While all of this was true at the time, no one could pre-

dict the engineering advances that would occur in the dec-

ades to follow. Driven by government mandates to limit

harmful emissions, engines were redesigned to burn

unleaded gas in the late 1970*s. Fuel injection and com-

puter-controlled ignition systems progressively led to less

and less D.I.Y. maintenance and fewer technicians profi-

cient in the art of tuning conventional ignition systems or

carburetors. This proved to be a difficult transition period

for Corvair engines and all other engines that required peri-

odic tune-ups. And sadly, many Corvair engines were lost

prematurely due to the destructive affects of pre-ignition

and/or detonation.

But these weren't the only causes of engine loss. Without

the protective coating to valve seats provided by leaded

fuel, the result was burned valves, valve seats, misfiring

and loss of compression. Those of us with Corvair engines

were fortunate here since the Corvair engine was factory

equipped with hardened valve seats, something we could

add to Mr. Finchs' list as Reason #7

So, with

the re-

moval of

lead from gasoline, we reduced airborne

emissions and saved the ozone layer.

And, with the removal of the MTBE

additive (remember that fiasco?) we

prevented further contamination of

groundwater. Then what? Enter Etha-

nol, a corn derivative that is commonly

referred to as E5, E10 or E15 which is

blended into gasoline at a ratio of 5, 10

or 15 percent respectively. Ethanol

represents a recent and serious form of

internal contamination for older vehi-

cles and any engine with a vented fuel

system, including our lawnmowers or

other small engines. In our Corvair, for

example, the Ethanol challenge is actu-

ally twofold. First, there is the tendency

for Ethanol to absorb moisture from the

atmosphere and. secondly, fuel that is

allowed to be stored for a period of time

is likely to experience "phased separa-

tion", a process whereby certain Etha-

nol components will separate from

gasoline and settle to the bottom of its

container a-long with the aforemen-

tioned water. If the process is allowed to

continue, all of the fuel will eventually

become stale and gummy; not a good

thing, especially if drawn into a carburetor where float

bowls corrode and small jets or orifices become clogged.

But, there are products on the market now that will prevent

this and even restore fuel to a combustible state through the

use of enzymes. STA BIL has recently reformulated their

product and STAR TRON (shown here in the photo) are

both excellent for stabilizing fuel that overwinters. Once

you're in the habit of using a stabilizer, and don't forget

your small engines and gas cans, your fuel problems will be

a thing of the past and this should help your Corvair engine

enjoy the "longevity" Mr. Finch boasted of. Happy motor-

ing everyone!!!

Star Tron is “excellent for stabilizing fuel that overwinters.”


Classifieds

To place an ad contact the editor at [email protected]

Cell# (508) 942-0161

P.O. Box 452 Phone (508) 588-8456 Avon, MA 02322 Cell (508)942-0161

Thursday, Friday, Saturday 10-5

Corvair

Repair

Specialist

Cars

1965 Monza convertible for sale. 110 automatic. Air, but not working.

White with white top, light blue interior. 88K miles. Needs tires.

Looking for $10K OBO. Contact Paul O’Shaugnessy 508-942-0161 or glo-

[email protected]

Parts/Tools Three Trailer Trucks full of Corvair Parts. Tel# 401-378-3337. Fred York.

Miscellaneous Parts—180 hp chrome turbo air cleaner ($100 firm), intake for turbo

($100 firm), 140 hp chrome air cleaner ($100 firm), 1963 Corvair 110 hp, body very

solid, needs 2B restored, Fred Flintstone floors. ($700 firm),

Automatic transmission ($50 firm), 1960-64 windshield ($50 firm), 9 AM radios ($20

each), 4 carburetors ($60 for set), many, many more.

Contact Wooddee Woodworth, Delmar, NY 518-427-7653.

E-mail: [email protected]

Car Lift—12 Volt rechargeable system. Great for oil changes,

under car work. $700 OBO. Call Paul O’Shaughnessy 508-942-

0161

Wheels & Whitewall tires, four EM, 13” four hole steel

wheels, with tires mounted. P165-80-R13, with 1/2” wide

white walls. Used, but lots of good tread left. $100 OBO

Bumpers—early only, front and rear, used but no dings and

good driver chrome $20

Wheel Covers—Four, NOS , 1962, #500 full wheel covers

and inserts. Very nice. $40

Chevrolet wire wheel covers w/solid hub (not spinner type) -

four used, 13”, very nice condition. Same as was on my

Monza wagon $300 OBO

Also some miscellaneous early trim like belt line trim, gas

door guards, headlight bezels, all used but in very nice condi-

tion.

Call Ron Muise, Sandwich, MA 508-888-3927 or e-mail

[email protected]


1

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Abby Schwab

2

3

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Jim O’Hare

4

5

6

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Anita Anderson

7 8

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Mark Bashara

9

10

11

12

13

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Ed Raposa

14

15

16

17

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Cameron Guillou Norma Richardson

18 19

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Jason Cesana

20

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Donna Nedderman

21

22

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Steve Hanington

23

HAPPY BIRTH-DAY! Brenda Baxter

24

25

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Rick Mac-Donald

26

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Ruth Ann Nickel

27 Monthly

Meeting

at the

Tavern! 7PM

28

29

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Elaine Crom-well

30

31

March 2013


The Bay State Corvair Club is the original Massachusetts chapter of CORSA (#017 of the Corvair Society of America), established in 1974. Club meetings are typically held the last Wednesday night of each month (except December)

at 7PM at the Tavern from Tower Square, 119 Washington St., Plainville, MA. Dues are $20.00 per year. Renewal of Membership occurs in January.

New members joining in October-December will be prorated the next year’s membership.

Check out the club website at www.baystatecorvairs.org

Bay State Corvair Club Calendar of Events Wednesday, February 27th…….Monthly Meeting at the Tavern, Route 1, Plainville, MA 7PM

Wednesday, March 27th………..Monthly Meeting at the Tavern, Route 1, Plainville, MA 7PM

Thursday, April 18th…………..6th Season! First Cruise Night at Bass Pro Shop, Foxboro, MA—run by MA Cruisers

Sunday, April 28th…………….Snow’s Restaurant Cruise I, Rte. 44 Glocester, RI, Cruisin Bruce DJ’ing

Sunday, May 5th………………Annual Spring Brunch at Raffael’s Banquet Facility in Walpole, MA

May TBD…………………….On the Road to the Cape! Cruise Rte 6A, Heritage Plantation, Lunch @ British Beer Co.

Saturday, May 18th……………CNHCA’s Spring Dustoff, Hopkinton Fairgrounds, Contoocook, NH

Saturday, June 1st…………….Phantom Farm Cruise I, Rte 114, Cumberland RI, Cruisin Bruce DJing

June TBD……………………On the Road to Western Mass! Tentative cruise to Mount Greylock, other details to come!

Sunday, June 30th……………..All Chevy Show by RICOA, Diamond Hill State Park, Rte.114, Cumberland, RI

Sunday, July 14th……………...42nd Annual Bay State Antique Auto Club Show at Endicott Mansion, Dedham, MA

July 16-20, 2013………………..On the Road to the 2013 CORSA International Convention, Kalamazoo, Michigan

Saturday, September 14th…….On the Road to the Fall Classic at Clark’s Corvair Parts (Raindate September 15th)

Sunday, September 29th……….Fort Adams in the Fall, Newport, RI

Monza GT Concept Car at the Antique Auto

Club of America Museum in Hershey, PA

http://www.corvair.org/chapters/chapter017

http://www.corvair.org

http://www.baystatecorvairs.org/

volume 40 - number 3 march 2013 - monza motion llc · volume 40 - number 3 . ... club of america...

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