Matt's channel is absolutely addictive. So are Fab Rats, Trail-Mater, Robby Layton, and others. All the channels are family friendly, you'll never hear a swear word on anyone's channel. It's worth checking out. Being a Corvair guy, I started watching when he started to build the 61 Corvair station wagon, but I've watched every single episode. ... View more

The 1939 Packard was the first production car to offer Air Conditioning. They built 300 cars with A/C. Cadillac built 300 A/C cars in 1940. After WW2, A/C didn't return until 1953 or 54 when Pontiac introduced the first in-dash unit. Earlier cars had the evaporator in the trunk. 1955 Nash had "Weather-Eye", the first combined heater-A/C. 1961 Corvair had the first factory installed A/C in the Compact car range.   ... View more

I agree. I have been reading C/D since 1962, and the last few years have been realllllly sad. I can't wait for my sub to run out! (Ezra Dyer and the letters are the only things worth reading) ... View more

Kyle, you really need to sell me your Corvair! Or, I'd take the Model A instead. You obviously have way too many projects, and I'm more than willing to help you out. Sorry, cant barter, unless you want some arcane Corvair parts. I'm sure if you were interested, you could get a reply to me thru Hagerty. ... View more

Nick, THANK YOU for the C/D link! I'm sure I read it 22 years ago, but I read it again and I can barely see my screen thru the tears of laughter! Haven't laughed this hard in a long time. Thank you again. ... View more

Even better, Mom and Dad were the ones who went and test drove it before I even saw the car! ... View more

Don't forget designing the modern hi-compression engine- 49 Olds and Cadillac. And his assistant, Tom Midgely, who invented R12 refrigerant and lead in gasoline. (Granted, both those discoveries weren't environmentally friendly, but who knew back then)? ... View more

I gave you a like for mentioning James Burke. You could love him just for his hair style. "Connections" was an utterly amazing show! You can still find episodes on YouTube. ... View more

Way back in 64, my Dad's co-worker ordered a new 64 Lemans with 326 4bbl, 4 speed. When he got the car, he took my dad and I for a ride. This car was FAST!!!! I was only about 11, but I knew enough to know that it was way faster than a 326 should be. Sadly, I (nor the owner) ever found out why, but the consensus was that a 389 had been installed at the factory. Did such things occur back then? (Note: he did NOT order the GTO option). ... View more

Cool story! Cool car! I see where the bumper doesn't fit perfectly, but I still think it looks great! Knowing AMC's quality control in those days, it could have looked like that when new. I'm glad it all worked out! ... View more

Way back in the 70's there was a guy who autocrossed his Saab Sonnett. His license plates said: SOB SNOT. This was back in Chicago area. ... View more

So sorry to hear of your beautiful daughter's untimely death. I'll admit to having a couple of tears after reading your cool story. Those vanity plates must mean a LOT to you. Nuts, someone must be cutting up onions around here... 😭 ... View more

They do! It's just that their limiters are more permanent when engaged. (Rods out of the block, bent valves or pushrods) ... View more

My first car was a 62 Corvair. Paid $40 with most of the engine in the frunk. I was 15. Drove it around a bit, beat the living s**t out of it, and still fixed everything I broke. Finally, the R/R axle broke and the wheel took off. Got it home, the only time an actual tow truck ever towed me, Mom made me sell it and get a nice "safe" car. Soon a 68 Mustang GT w/ 390/4sp was in my drive. It didnt break, but boy did I collect a LOT of speeding tickets. Then I got a 65 Corsa Turbo. I liked that much better than the Mustang, so much so that I sold the Mustang. These two cars defined my life. Since 1970 I've had 5.5 Mustangs, (the .5 was a MkVII Lincoln LSC), and at least 40 Corvairs. In fact, there's a 61 Rampside, and 15 Mustang Ecoboost in my garage now. I just fell in love with these two totally different types of cars. Oh, and so many spare Corvair parts that I need a storage shed just for that stuff. I'm looking for a nice 66 Monza or Corsa, but their prices went insane in the last two years. Again, at 68 yrs old, I'll probably sell the Mustang to be able to afford the Corvair. ... View more

The BEST automotive ad for the SuperYawn was in 2005. New Ford GT racing around a track at about 9/10. See it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G85Qs7e2Cbo .Gives me goose bumps every time. ... View more

I got married in 10/92. We drove away in a limo. BUT I drove there in a 76 Eldorado, and my wife drove my 65 Corvair Greenbrier. She drove the Greenbrier because she could lay her wedding dress out flat in the back! Celebrating 30 years in October!  ... View more

Did Oldsmobile use those rubber bolts (3:50 in the video) on their early Diesel 350's? I think I had some of those for connecting rod cap bolts on some of my cars. ... View more

One year I used an old 283 Chevy block. Front AND rear engine! ... View more

What? None of your "Road Warriors", AKA gofers, crashed the car on the way to the car wash? ... View more

I could very well be mistaken, but I think I read about that tech when it came out. If I remember correctly, the major problem was the plasma was VERY hot, and literally burned holes in pistons. Remember, the piston is at or near TDC when the ignition fires, and plasma is extremely hot. Maybe ceramic coated piston tops? I think that was the issue back then. ... View more

The sliding door did not appear until 1968, when they redesigned the whole van. (I think it still was the first). ... View more

Fun Fact: Those Lincolns used a hydraulic wiper motor, fed from the power steering pump, which was itself located ON the crankshaft, and bolted to the timing cover, behind the harmonic balancer. Mid 60's T-Birds used the same setup. ... View more

From 1975 thru 1982, I drove pre-rusty Corvairs thru snowy Chicago area.  They usually were 66-69 models. I made the heater work, but the rust holes in the cowl area meant driving with a blanket most of the time. My best was a 69 Monza with HUGE H-78-15 snow tires on the back, Powerglide and Posi. I could drag race most any 4wd from a stop light and at least keep up. Oh, and it still had most of the floorboards, so very little cold air came in. Also went ice racing in it. November of 83 I moved to Phoenix AZ, now I drive my nice Corvair in the winter!!! (Many friends who stayed in that god forsaken place took to driving Eagles) Wise, but they rusted faster than Corvairs! Some still exist to this day (what's left of them...) ... View more

Don't forget the paper towels and rags to defog the windshield! ... View more

Side story about airbags. Back in 93, Ford first put driver side airbags in 93 Mustangs. I was working as a trim tech at a Ford dealer. Our body shop brought over a crashed 93 that they had fixed. They wanted to know why the airbag didn't go off in the front end crash. I explained the monitor would flash a code if something were amiss- this car passed all tests. Typically, sensors were set for about 27 mph. My answer was: Well it tested ok, so there's only one way to find out if they work correctly. They did not take me up on that offer... (I offered to drive into the side of a building at 30 to see what would happen) ... View more

In 1973, I was co-working at a Texaco station with a guy who had just bought a new 73 Impala. While looking it over, I noticed it had an Oldsmobile dashboard. GM had developed the airbags for the Olds dash, and used it in whatever car they were putting airbags in. (Maybe not Cadillac). It was the first airbag car I had seen, and the last until I worked at a Ford dealer in the 90's. Side note: I did see a 90-something Tempo with airbags (they normally had those neck decapitator motorized belts back then. Also saw an AWD tempo, and it had a rear diff that looked like something out of a lawn tractor- it was very weird. ... View more

You mean more than just a paper towel and duct/electrical/Scotch tape? ... View more

I did exactly the same thing! Weird thing was that it took about 30 seconds for the band (a Twist-o-flex) to heat up enough for me to feel it. I'm thinking it was because of the resistance of all those little individual links. My wrist finally healed up, too. ... View more

I had to have the same conversation with my wife back in 1992. Since I was her mechanic (that's how we met), she knew the perils and she agreed with no ring when working on cars. ... View more

I liked the 65-9 140 hp Corvair aircleaners, too. ... View more

I've heard that story too. I believe that the "Master" was Ettore Bugatti, who insisted that his engines were as precision as they were beautiful. Not sure the story is true, but it sounds plausible. ... View more

I'm impressed that several commenters on here know about the Adams Farwell. It's a fascinating car. You can see & hear one running on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0XbqHUAI-0 32hotrod, you sound like you know your stuff, as do you too, FM. ... View more

I went to a couple of 1 day classes in the mid- 90's, driving formula Fords at PIR and Mustangs at (then) Firebird Raceway. I don't know if it was Bob driving the Ford Econoline 15 passenger van, but HOLY HELL, that van went around that track at terrifying speeds, with 15 people aboard! When we stopped, I immediately got out and looked under the van for the aftermarket sway bars and HD springs that were sure to be there and found STOCK everything! That ride alone made my day. (I was riding in the middle seat, so no side to side bouncing). The formula fords were pretty cool, too. ... View more

Back in 1997, Nissan was literally Giving their hardbody pickups away. I mean, $75/ month (lease) for a regular cab, and $95/month for the extended cab. Wife & I had a 94 Ranger that we loved, but it was a bit expensive for us at that time. So, we traded her Ranger, I parked my 88 LSC MKVI, and leased 2 for two years. OMG, I could NOT wait for the time to be up! To be fair, neither truck had any major issues, got ok mileage, hauled junk in the bed, never failed to start, etc. (Both had 5 speeds, too). But they were the most BORING trucks to drive! Not very powerful (4 cyl), lousy shifter, cheap hard plastic interior parts, just that typical tinniness found in **bleep** vehicles at that time. The Ranger was luxurious, compared to the Nissans. My Lincoln LSC was like a sports car. Interestingly, Nissan had leased soooo many of these things out, that when 2 years was up, the market was flooded with them. Could have bought one cheap! My answer was Buh Bye to those two, and any other Nissans to this day. ... View more

After reading all these commenters posts, I see that many have Corvairs. If you aren't yet a member of the Corvair Society of America (CORSA), you should consider joining. Also, there lots of local chapter clubs all over the country. There is a wealth of knowledge out there, and some of the best people you'll ever meet! ... View more

Ralphies book was one chapter, not one page. He was wrong about the Corvair, but not totally wrong. Sadly, Nader was knowledgeable about law, but not autos. As he became more famous, he seemed to know something on all kinds of subjects, but not a lot about anything. He did succeed, however, in starting the push for all kinds of safety items that do save lives today. Personally, i dont like the guy. ... View more

The two comments above this made me laugh way too hard. Love it!!!! ... View more

GUNPOWDER??????? OMG!!! ... View more

Same here! However, Corvairs can and do blow head gaskets, but it's usually 60-64 engines with the narrower head gaskets, or if a head stud pulls out of the block. ... View more

I will add a second tale. Not frustrating, but probably insanely dangerous. 1980.  I was flat-towing my 66 mid engine V8 Corvair (with a regular Corvair) from a Corvair convention in Atlanta back to Chicago. Somewhere around Gary Indiana at about midnight, I noticed tons of smoke coming from the left rear wheel of the V8. Pull on the shoulder of  I-94. Left rear wheel is about 45 deg negative camber, and the tire was rubbing on the coil spring. Hmm. The Heim joint on the lateral strut rod (holds camber in place) had let go. Nothing I could do to fix it without parts. So, disconnect and stash the towbar, put a note on the windshield and drive 1.5 hours home (by O'Hare). Find spare strut. Back to the V8 1.5 hours later. it's now 3am. Pull my tow car behind the V8, using the headlights for light. Jack up the V8 (I had the floor jack with me) and start crawling under to fix it. took about .5 hr to do it. What was so dangerous? Well, I was on the shoulder of an incredibly busy Interstate, just PAST the crest of a hill, at 3am. No jackstands either. It occurred to me that nobody would see me until they had crested the hill, and had one of the zillions of trucks roaring past been even slightly off to the right, I would have been dead. Reconnected everything, wheel was still about 5 deg neg camber, but rolled, got home about 5am, and THEN thought of all the "what if" possibilities as I tried to get some sleep. I still get shivers thinking about it. ... View more

My most frustrating one. I had a 66 Type34 Karmann-Ghia. It was an Arizona car, so no rust, but no rubber w/strips, either. The gasket around the windshield was totally shot. I acquired a new w/shield gasket (not easy to do in pre internet days) and attempted to install it myself. After a few days of almost-but-not-quite getting it into place, I got so frustrated that I did something I've never done before or since: I kicked a hole in the wall of my garage. (The pegboard, not the outer.) I duct taped the w/shield in place and drove it to the glass shop. They got it in, but just barely. They said the glass was too wide for the car! It JUST came out of this car! Anyway it was fine until I sold it 9 years later. ... View more

They only weigh like more than the whole rest of the engine! I've done two- one when I was 15, and another when I was 17. Maybe that's why my back is shot. (I'm 68 now) ... View more

An Arizona state policeman (Jody Scheckterle) was hit in his CV cop car in western AZ on I10. He was rear ended by a cab going at least 100mph. Yes, the car caught fire, but the doors were jammed closed, so he suffered major burns because he couldnt get out quickly. He did live, but required multiple skin grafts. I think if you hit any older car in the rear at 100, something BAD is gonna happen. ... View more

The Audi was just as overblown as the Pinto, and the Toyotas of the 2000s. Remember car drivers NEVER make errors, so the "Unintended Acceleration" issues were, in the public eyes, Audi's and Toyota's fault, when in fact drivers were pressing the gas instead of the brake, or floor mats were wedged under the gas pedal. The mat problem was real, it happened to my Escort ZX2 several times. Each time, I calmly pulled the mat back and it was fixed. Zip tying the mats fixed it for good. How about blaming the real culprit- idiot drivers who panic over everything. ... View more

I don't recall looking closely at dual exhaust Pintos, but they were the basis for the Mustang II. Mustangs with V6 or V8 had dual exhaust all the way back to behind the axle, where the left pipe curved over to the right side, and then into a 2 in- 2out muffler, with two short downswept tail pipes. So that heat shield probably went between the tank and the left side pipe as it crossed over in front of the tank. Useless side note: 75 Mustangs with 302 were the only 1975 cars (excluding Mazdas, which used thermal reactors) with no cat converters on them. 76 and newer did, and also had a single exhaust tailpipe. ... View more

Autobahn, by Kraftwerke, is insanely good on a long road trip, at night. somewhere on the interstate, in a state like Oklahoma or Nebraska. Song is 22 minutes long, so plan on a long lonely stretch of road.  Its Techno music, may not be ones cup of tea. ... View more

Used to hear that on Dr Demento's show in the 70s. Good stuff. Don't forget "Beep Beep", by the Playmates. ... View more

Isn't that so much cooler than a 2000's version of it would be?   "She's real fine my One point Nine". ... View more

I'm stupid, maybe, but I never liked that song, only because I really doubt an FI Vette could beat a 413 Dodge. And I'm a Ford guy.  (I picture a 62 413 Dart and a 62 Vette). Those old Mopars were Fast. ... View more

I had a mid-engine Corvair for 17 yrs. Healthy 350 SBC, 4speed/ Full size Powerglide (which fixed many,many broken trans parts issues). That car handled like no other car I've driven. Even on bias ply 7x 13" tires< it was fantastic. Crown Mfg advertised "Can-Am performance in a Corvair". And they were right! ... View more