2007 Orphan Car Show: The Americans
Click on the Corvair for a high-res gallery
The 11th annual Orphan Car Show took place in riverside Park in Ypsilanti, MI this weekend with Checker being the featured marque this year. The Orphan Car Show is dedicated to brands and nameplates that are either no longer being produced or not available in the United States anymore. Several of the defunct brands were produced in the Ypsilanti area in the years before and after World War II, including some that were built in the former B-24 bomber factory in Willow Run.
One of the best known of these was the legendary and notorious Corvair built at Willow Run during the 1960s. Prior to the 1965 publication of Ralph Nader's Unsafe At Any Speed, the rear-engined Corvair was a popular model. The air-cooled flat-6 hanging off the rear axle was unique among American cars, as was the nasty swing axle suspension. Corvairs came in a variety of body styles including sedans, coupes, vans and even a pickup, most of which were represented in the park.
Continue reading about some of the other orphans after the jump.
Gallery: 2007 Orphan Car Show: Corvair
Gallery: 2007 Orphan Car Show: Checker
In addition to the Corvairs there were plenty of other cars including several dozen Checkers. Checkers were built from 1922 until 1982 and sold primarily as taxis. They weren't fancy but they were extremely durable and had plenty of room in the back for passengers and their luggage. The company finally stopped building their cars when they lacked the money to develop a modern vehicle to meet new crash and emissions requirements.
Other American brands on display ranged from the famous to the completely unknown. There were Studebakers and Hupmobiles, Packards and an Ann Arbor, DeSotos and a Monarch Lucerne. One of the oldest examples was a 1903 Michigan Model A, while some of the most recent were 1980s AMC models. While crossovers are all the rage today, one of the first was the AMC Eagle. Check out the galleries of a sampling of what was on display in the park before the rain arrived.
Get a WordPress.com Blog
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
John R 1:25PM (6/04/2007)
I always thought the Corvair was good looking car. Too bad it was discountinued. I did not know it was rear-engined though!
It might have been nice if GM improved the safety of the car instead of getting rid of it. I imagine if the Corvair were around today North American buyers might have had a domestic to take on the 911 on it's own terms, if GM would have went in that direction with the model.
Reply
Sid Morrison 1:41PM (6/04/2007)
1. The criticized swing axles were only used on the first 4 production years (1960-1963). 1964 used a modified swing axle system that employed a transverse leaf spring that pretty well made the handling more moron-proof. 1965-69 completely dispensed with the swing axles and went to the Corvette design rear suspension. Nader himself admitted that the 64-69 Corvairs handled "pretty well".
2. Even the swing axle cars were found to have an accident rate no higher that similar small cars of the day (Falcon, Rambler, Dart, etc.) -- NHTSA report and Congressional investigation vindicated the design in 1971.
3. I'm pretty sure certain Jeeps of that era (and earlier) employed a similar swing axle. Last time I checked, those were American as well.
4. The swing axle rear suspension may have been (almost) unique among American cars, but a zillion European designs used it included VW, Porsche, and a lot more. Many European designs combined it with the rear engine, as well. The writer seems to penalize the Corvair for being unique among American cars. "They had better toe the line and produce more of the same big heavy ill-handling crap like everyone else! "
Reply
Richard Warren 2:02PM (6/04/2007)
"Click on the Corvair for a high-res gallery of the rear engined death traps!"
"The air-cooled flat-6 hanging off the rear axle was unique among American cars, as was the nasty swing axle suspension."
Love writers who don't have a clue. The government gave a bill of health to the car after production was completed.
1964 saw the addition of a transverse leaf that basically solved the "tuck under" problem. Guess the writer does not know (as number 2 pointed out) the number of other makes and models that have used this type suspension. How about early Pontiac Tempests that had a flex drive shaft and independent suspension during this period that has "interesting" handling.
Reply
mr.ed 4:38PM (6/04/2007)
Only the very first few '60's had a swing axle that tucked under, because the shock stroke was too long. Shortening the stroke cured this. The handling problems came from filling the tires improperly, in a ratio of 3# front to 5# rear, ideally 18:30, completely backwards from anything else. The pressure difference was required because the weight balance rear:front dictated it. Handling was awful/dangerous if the ratio wasn't followed.
At any rate, this car was too expensive to build. Introduction of the more conventional Nova in '61 killed the Corvair. GM built as many in 10 years at did X-cars in their first year, 1.7 million. They just wouldn't admit their error until the '69 model year, probably the lowest quality 'vairs assembled.
Reply
Barney 9:57PM (6/04/2007)
I worked for a funeral home who used a Checker limousine. They all had Chev running gear and were unique because the fenders bolted on and off. Cabs had extra fenders in their shops, painted and ready to go. There are a lot orphans still running. I know of a Nash Rambler in perfect condition and a Metropolitan restored to original specs. The guy uses it as a daily driver in the summer. Nader mad his debut with his rant against the Corvair. It needed a sway bar and GM held back the $9 item until being exposed. The Corvair ran out of time and the Chevy II/Nova replaced it as a more exceptable car. I know of clubs who use to through in Turbos and these pancake six's became hot rods.
Reply
Mark Corbin 1:08PM (6/10/2007)
Got news for John R. The Corvair was proven to be one of the safest cars of that era. Crash tests showed it to be equal in a frontal collision to a full-sized Pontiac Catalina. It's because of its "energy absorbing" front end, with no engine to hinder collision absorbtion. It also has a statistically lower incident of fire in an accident, due to the gas tank being protected by the front crossmember. And it could pull a higher G-force than a Corvette on the skidpad. Also worth mentioning is the fact that the Corvair won the SCCA National championships in its class in 1967. The car is not only very safe, but very road-worthy.
Unfortunately, GM chose to go with a "rebodied" Chevy II and created the Camaro as the Corvair's successor, like Ford did by rebodying the Falcon to create the Mustang. It's the Mustang that killed the Corvair, and not Ralphie. How can you compete with a huge V-8 when all you can have is a small 6?
Reply