The November 2019 newsletter - Text Version
Updated 28-Oct-2019 ==== Copyright (c) 2019 Corvairs of New Mexico
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November 2019 / VOLUME 45 / NUMBER 11 / ISSUE 530
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First Place, Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, 2005 & 2012
Third Place, Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, 2010
EDITOR Jim Pittman
NEXT MEETING Regular Meeting: Saturday November 2nd, 10:00 AM
Highland Senior Center, 131 Monroe NE Albuquerque NM 87108
THIS MONTH
President's Message ................................ Dave Allin
November Dues Due Dates .................. Membership Committee
October Regular Meeting Minutes ...................... Kay Sutt
October Board Meeting Cancelled ..................... The Board
Fiasco (Oops, I mean, Fiesta) of Wheels ........... Larry Blair
Preparing Bill Reider's Corsa for shipping ......... Tarmo Sutt
Bill Darcy's Belen Car Show ....................... Vickie Hall
Birthdays & Anniversaries ................ Membership Committee
Steering Wheel for 1969 Monza ...................... Dave Allin
Thunk Thunk (March 1982 article) .............. Richard Twilley
Photo from a 1981 Aspencade ....................... Jim Pittman
Treasury Report ................................. Steve Gongora
Late Model Convertible Weights .... GROUP CORVAIR - Jim Simpson
Fuel Economy, 180-HP Turbo vs. 140-HP Four-carb ... Jim Pittman
Calendar of Coming Events .................. Board of Directors
November Issues, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35 Years Ago ... Club Historian
COVER LeRoy Rogers, Leroy Alderete at the October meeting
Below: At an I-25 Rest Area on the way to Santa Fe
OFFICERS and VOLUNTEERS
President Dave Allin 505-410-9668 dnjallin comcast.net
Vice President David Huntoon 505-281-9616 corvair66 aol.com
Co-secretary Linda Soukup 763-226-0707 studeboytony gmail.com
Co-secretary Kay Sutt 505-471-1153 tarmo juno.com
Treasurer Steve Gongora 505-220-7401 stevegongora msn.com
Car Council Dave Allin 505-410-9668 dnjallin comcast.net
Membership David Huntoon 505-281-9616 corvair66 aol.com
Merchandise Vickie Hall 505-865-5574 patandvickiehall q.com
Sunshine Heula Pittman 505-275-2195 heula q.com
Newsletter Jim Pittman 505-275-2195 jimp unm.edu
Old Route 66 David Huntoon 505-281-9616 corvair66 aol.com
Past President Ray Trujillo 505-814-8373 rtrujilloabq505 gmail.com
Past President Pat Hall 505-620-5574 patandvickiehall q.com
Past Vice-Pres Tarmo Sutt 505-690-2046 tarmo juno.com
MEETINGS: First Saturday of each Month at 10:00 AM
Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE, Albuquerque, NM 87108
INTERNET CORSA's home page www.corvair.org/
CNM's newsletters www.unm.edu/~jimp/
New Mexico Council of Car Clubs www.nmcarcouncil.com/
DUES DUE DATES OCTOBER 2019
DUE LAST MONTH ===================== INACTIVE DATE
2019.10 Jenny & Phil Finch 25-NOV-2019
2019.10 Alan Gold 25-NOV-2019
2019.10 Sylvia & Ray Trujillo 25-NOV-2019
DUE THIS MONTH ===================== INACTIVE DATE
2019.11 Linda & Dick Cochran 25-DEC-2019
2019.11 Rita & Steve Gongora 25-DEC-2019
DUE NEXT MONTH ===================== INACTIVE DATE
2019.12 David Huntoon 25-JAN-2020
DUE JANUARY 2020 =================== INACTIVE DATE
2020.01 Elizabeth & Mark Domzalski 25-FEB-2020
2020.01 Cheryl & Ed Halpin 25-FEB-2020
INACTIVE =========================== INACTIVE DATE
2019.01 Carolyn & Dan Palmer 25-FEB-2019
2019.02 Mike Butler 25-MAR-2019
2019.03 Brenda Wilvert 25-APR-2019
2019.06 Brenda Stickler 25-JUL-2019
2019.09 Valerie Nye & Joel Yelich 25-OCT-2019
Send your Dues to:
CNM Treasurer -- Steve Gongora
House of Covers
115 Richmond NE,
Albuquerque, NM 87106
Past due memberships become inactive after a one-month grace period.
The Club will mail in your National Dues if you send us the renewal
form from your Communique.
As of 26-Oct-2019 we have 43 active family memberships.
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PRESIDENT'S LETTER
Dave Allin
The car show season is drawing to a close for the year, but there are still a
lot things going on in the car world, and for Corvairs of New Mexico. Our
Christmas party is coming up in December, and it promises to be as entertaining
as last year, if not more so. We'll be at the Copper Canyon Restaurant again,
and I'm sure our Sunshine and Merchandise committees will be working hard again
to make it a great time.
Although it's still months away, we have a lot to do to prepare for the 2020
Tri-State. We need to collect items for the registration bags and for raffle
prizes and the silent auction. Kay Sutt has come up with a great idea for our
award trophies, which will be pillows with photos of Corvairs on them, along
with the award title. They will be produced by the cyanotype process which
results in a rich blue color. She has showed us some examples at meetings and
they were unusual and impressive. I am working on getting personalized pens that
commemorate the event, and constructing models for the raffles and silent
auction. Larry Blair is working on arranging for a nationally-known guest
speaker for the banquet. We want this to be the best Tri-State event in years.
I watched the Mecum Las Vegas auction this month, and they sold two FC Corvairs.
One was a fully restored 1964 Van in turquoise and white with a gold interior. I
didn't write down the sale price, but I think it was around 18 grand. The other
was a customized Rampside that had been converted to electric power. It sold in
the same range as the Van, I believe. The commentators mentioned that the
Corvair FCs were gaining in popularity and value.
There was an interesting article on the Hagerty daily emails I get by a guy who
ran into problems when he tried to mount a cool steering wheel he had bought
onto his 1965 Monza. He had failed to consider how important the dish dimension
is, for his new wheel was not dished at all, making it too far to reach
comfortably and interfered with the turn signal. I, too, had problems mounting
my custom steering wheel, but at least mine had the right dish and diameter. My
problems involved getting it mounted so that it was in line with the front
wheels, and getting the horn to work. It took six tries before I got it right.
-- Dave Allin
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General Meeting Minutes of 10/08/2019
Kay Sutt
The meeting was called to order by President Dave Allin at 10:10 A.M. at the
Highland Senior Center, located at 131 Monroe Street, NE, with thirteen
continuing members, three new members and two guests in attendance.
Guests: Jim and Lupe Arellanes, David Huntoon's neighbors visited and joined the
club, Leroy Alderete also joined, and Wes Patterson and Chris Garcia visited.
Thank you Chris for donating the Uni-Syn carburetor balancing tool. Tarmo will
keep it for use by club members, as needed.
VP's Report: David reported our final Old Route 66 trash cleanup for 2019 was
scheduled for Monday, October 7. He said attendance at the September 9th cleanup
was low, but they picked up a lot of trash. This Monday David hopes to make the
CNM section of Old Route 66 neat and clean for Balloon Fiesta.
Treasurer's Report: Steve Gongora reported there was a balance of $6,725.04 in
the account as of the beginning of the meeting, but with new memberships,
continuing member dues and Care & Feeding purchases, the club is back in the
black for the year!
Newsletter Report: Jim Pittman reported the deadline for the next newsletter is
9 P.M. on Friday, 10/25/2019. He said the November newsletter should go out on
time with no change in the deadline and publication schedules, but the December
newsletter will require some publication accommodation because of the holidays.
Merchandise Report: Vickie reported the new Care & Feeding books are available,
and all members should really purchase a newly revised copy (they cost $5 per
copy, except for new members). The two new members at the meeting were given
their copies of the book. She said she and Heula are working on the Tri-State
registration bags and she passed out a list of items needed for those bags to
the members present. Vickie reported the committee has used all the money
appropriated by the club for this year, and another $100 was appropriated with
approval by the membership present.
Secretaries' Reports: The minutes of the last meeting as published in the
newsletter were read and approved by the members present.
Old Business:
The Holiday Party date has been changed since the last meeting. It is now
scheduled to be held on Saturday December 14, 1 P.M. to 3 P.M. at Copper Canyon
Cafe at 5455 Gibson Blvd., SE. The original date was already filled. Vickie
reminded everyone of the gift giving to charity The Storehouse again this year.
They accept clothing, household items, food, money... virtually anything except
furniture.
Jim proposed that at the holiday party we would all sing Pete Frailey's "Song of
the Old Corvair" which was published in the last newsletter, and Dave Allin
offered "Corvair Baby" by Paul Revere and the Raiders, so we will have
entertainment at this year's party! Jim said you should be able to hear the song
on YouTube if you google [ "pete frailey" corvair song ] from your web browser.
Terry Price apologized that the post card was not in your mailbox before the
meeting, but the company that prints the notices had a broken cutter, so it was
late being mailed. Please look at the card anyway, because there is much more
than just the meeting date on that card.
The election of officers was short and sweet. The slate of officers offered in
the last newsletter (Dave Allin for President, David Huntoon for VP, Steve
Gongora for Treasurer and Kay Sutt and Linda Soukup for Secretary) was approved
by acclamation, with no nominations from the floor or volunteers for the offices
offered up.
Larry Blair is going to Bill & Lee Reider's house after the meeting to finish
working on the idling of their car, which has been sold and is headed for
England. He asked for assistance from members present who could spare the time.
New Business:
Guest Chris Garcia shared the tale of his and his wife's Corvair ownership.
Terry Price is going to attend the Balloon Fiesta car show and Larry Blair
indicated he is also interested.
Lube Lubert was unable to attend the meeting, so there was no 50/50 drawing this
month.
The Tri-State Meet was the primary source of the new/old business, and the
subject of an after-meeting committee meeting. Larry Blair asked whether dash
plaques would be presented to attendees, and Terry Price indicated he had a
source which could be checked. He said prices could be expected to be
approximately $2 each.
The membership liked the idea of trying to schedule Harrison Schmidt, a local
New Mexican and the last astronaut to walk on the moon, to be the speaker at the
banquet; Larry Blair volunteered to try to see if that is a possibility -- he
knows a man who knows a man....
The Tri-State host hotel, The Marriott Pyramid North, 505-821-3333, is now
accepting bookings for the meet, and local people are urged to register for the
rooms, at a cost of $99 per night, plus taxes, etc. We guaranteed 50 rooms, and
if we reach 60 rooms we will have availability of an additional room for our use
during the meet.
An informal dinner at El Pinto Restaurant on Thursday night before the Tri-State
was proposed. The intent is to get those who are in town early together to start
the fun. It was agreed an outside seating would be preferable, and it was
estimated 25-50 people might attend.
New member Lupe Arellanes' daughter has a screen printing, embroidery and design
business, and she is going to get her daughter to present a proposal to prepare
the T-shirts/logos for the meet.
Terry Price needs the addresses for the Rocky Mountain and Pikes Peak clubs to
get mailing lists to send post cards to their membership inviting them to attend
the meet.
Dave Allin will work to notify the NMCCC of the car show, and it was suggested
SeeABQ also be notified of the car show to enhance attendance at the show, which
will be held in the parking lot of the host hotel.
Terry Price has copies of the registration and voting forms from the last
Tri-State, and he will bring those to forward to the person working on the
website and to jumpstart the registration process.
A prototype of the car show awards was prepared by Kay Sutt and shown at the
meeting. Those present at the meeting thought they would work well, and both
Anne Wiker and Lupe Arellanes have volunteered to help make them.
The general meeting was adjourned at 11:20, and the subsequent committee meeting
adjourned about noon.
Several members followed Larry to Bill and Lee Reider's house to work on Bill's
Corvair. Attending were Larry, Tarmo, LeRoy and David Huntoon. (NOTE: I'm not
sure if the attendees names are accurate.) After a couple of hours of work the
car was performing better, but the idle was still not perfect. All the guys
agreed it was the best possible operation without doing a bigger teardown, which
isn't possible since the car is due to ship to England quite soon.
Attending: Leroy Alderete, David Allin, Jim Arellanes, Guadalupe Arellanes,
Larry Blair, Steve Gongora, Pat Hall, Vickie Hall, David Huntoon, Gordon
Johnson, Steve Johnson, Bob Kitts, Jim Pittman, Terry Price, LeRoy Rogers, Kay
Sutt, Tarmo Sutt, Anne Wiker, and Visitors: Chris Garcia, Wes Patterson.
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Board Meeting Minutes of 10/16/2019
Jim: Due to increasing paper costs, the cost to print the newsletter will be
increasing. The estimate is about double the old price. This will revive the old
question of how to minimize printing expenses. Do we ask more members to
download the on-line newsletter, no paper copy? Several members can't (or don't
want to) read newsletters on-line. A value of mailing the paper newsletter is to
remind people of the coming meeting and coming events. Our Constitution requires
a monthly newsletter. I want to continue mailing as long as we can. After the
November issue is published I will provide a cost-accounting of the newsletter
to the board.
Dave: The only pressing matter for a Board meeting is the cost of the
newsletter, and that probably needs to be discussed at the main meeting. So
let's skip the board meeting this month.
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FIASCO [Oops, I mean FIESTA] OF WHEELS
Larry Blair
That's not really a fair title. Will explain.
We were told to be at the RailRunner parking lot by 8 AM on Sunday morning,
anticipating that after the mass ascension of the balloons, all the beautiful
classics would convoy onto the balloon field about 9 AM to be admired by the
Balloon Fiesta crowd.
Not having participated before, Terry Price and I arrived about 7:15, to find
the RailRunner parking lot full, and cars and trucks lining up along El Pueblo.
No problem, except we were all facing the wrong way.
Nine AM came and went, as did 10 AM, as rumors abounded that vehicles would be
searched, and sniffed by dogs, and drivers and pax would have to dismount and go
thru a metal detector.
As we waited, the early balloons floated south. Then they stopped drifting, and
hundreds of balloons stayed vertically over the field, at every altitude. It
seemed there just was no breeze, so they went up, then came back down on the
launch field. Because the launch field was now full of balloons and their chase
crews, we couldn't get on. At least, that's my assessment of the delay. It did
cause varying degrees of discomfort for those who had had too much morning
coffee, as there were no "comfort stations" at the RR parking lot. We also took
the opportunity to get our vehicles turned around for a quicker and safer
departure.
Finally, the word came to GO. Terry and I fell in behind some beautiful
Corvettes, but a guy with a heavily modified Mustang got in front of me. Between
the hot cam, straight pipes, and his spastic foot, I had to endure his
ear-splitting exhaust until we got parked.
North on 2nd Street, east on Roy Avenue, then south to the balloon field we
went. As we started and stopped, I was enveloped in a strong sweet smell that
seemed familiar. Then I noticed puddles on the road. I searched the vehicles
ahead of me and spotted the leaker -- a blue porta-pottie pumping truck! From
then on, I avoided the blue-tinged puddles, and the attendant aroma.
As we topped the rise, it was a glorious site to see the whole launch field
before us, and for some, the welcome sight of a row of porta-potties.
Terry and I lined up with the other 100 or so vehicles, opened our hoods and
rear deck lids, and crowds immediately gathered. It was fun to watch people come
down the line looking at engines, then see the surprise as they look in the
front of a Corvair. Most then gravitated to the engine compartment, with
questions and comments.
I am always surprised at how many "Used to own a Corvair" claims. Many say "Wish
I still had it." There are always a few experts. One explained to me that my gas
heater was an auxiliary engine. Another swore that the carburetors were
"updraft." Another swore it had to be four cylinders because there were four
carburetors. And a guy from Minnesota claimed that Corvairs didn't work in the
north because snow plugged up the air louvers.
At any rate, it seemed to me that our two Corvairs attracted more attention than
any other vehicles, except perhaps a 1952 Jeep with a 50-caliber machine gun.
Terry's 1966 is absolutely beautiful, especially the dark turquoise offset with
the white top and interior. With my dark green 1964 Terry and I displayed both
early and late body styles.
I had hoped to get a famous breakfast burrito, but by the time we got parked and
had reconnoitered the area it was noon. Terry and I settled for green chile
cheeseburgers, marveled at all the cars and balloons and headed for home about 1
PM.
All in all, a very nice show, hampered by the vagaries of the wind and delays
beyond the control of the organizers. Mike Madlener of the Rio Rancho Car Club
did his best to herd all the cats, organizing everyone into convoy groups, in
spite of a lack of communication from the Balloon Fiesta chiefs.
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On Saturday October 24th after our meeting several members met at Bill & Lee
Reider's house to get the 1965 Corsa ready to ship to England. After some minor
adjustments it started and ran well. Just to be sure, it was thought to be a
good idea to drive it around the block. Tarmo said it "accelerated strong" and
the new owner should have no problem "tweeting" the carburetors to get the car
running to perfection. Lee and Bill were glad for the help. Larry Blair, David
Huntoon, LeRoy Rogers and Tarmo Sutt were there. Lee tells me the car has not
been shipped yet because of multiple problems transferring funds from England to
Albuquerque. But, she believes the problems have been overcome and the car will
ship in a few days. Lee thanks our members for their help, and especially Larry
Blair who has helped with email communication with the new owner, David Neale of
Burbage near Hinkley, Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom.
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October 13th, 2019 -- Jim, Later today I will send you some pictures of Bill
Darcy's car show in Belen which was yesterday. We showed up for awhile before
going down South and Lube was there also. The white Corvair is Bill's car. He's
getting it ready for a new paint job. It was blue. I think he's going to paint
it British racing green. -- Vickie Hall
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Happy Birthday Wishes to November CNM'ers:
Janice Allin
Darlene Darcy
Anne Johnson
Jim Pittman
Anne Wiker
There are no November Anniversaries.
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STEERING WHEEL
DAVE ALLIN
I, too, had problems mounting my custom steering wheel, but at least mine had
the right dish and diameter. My problems involved getting it mounted so that it
was in line with the front wheels, and getting the horn to work. It took six
tries before I got it right. Here's a picture of my steering wheel, but it's not
newly installed -- I did that right after I bought the car last year.
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In March 1982 we published a tech article by member Dick Twilley.
He was an accomplished mechanic and could usually be counted on
to accurately diagnose a variety of mechanical ills in our Corvairs.
This story was somewhat atypical. And by the way, Mary Twilley was
our Treasurer in 1981 and 1982. -- Ed
THUNK - THUNK
RICHARD TWILLEY
About three months ago, I noticed a slight tick-tick sound coming from somewhere
around the left rear wheel or suspension on my 1963 Monza Coupe. Being somewhat
complacent (High Brow for lazy] by nature, I declined to investigate the problem
at that time. Besides, I could only hear it with the window down and what with
winter coming on, and my having a natural aversion to physical discomfort, along
with perfectly functional turn signals, I figured what the heck, I can afford to
ignore it for quite awhile yet.
Well, Murphy's Law being what it is, naturally it didn't get better, it got
worse. I was driving down the street last week, and I discovered that my
tick-tick had become a thunk-thunk. Immediately my thoughts ran all the way from
"Oh Hell" to "Maybe Nader was right." So I took the car home and into the
garage.
Figuring myself of average intelligence and in the past having completely
mastered the delicate intricacies of the common door knob, I knew I could find
and cure this simple problem. I secretly suspected my wife had put a rock, or
something like that in my wheel cover ("hub cap" if you have a nostalgic
hangup). My wife would do that sort of thing, it's her way of getting back at
the world for being so short.
After putting the car up on stands, I removed the wheel cover and discovered
that I either misjudged her (unlikely) or I didn't give her ample opportunity,
as it was empty. I proceeded to check the following: lug nuts, wheel, brake
drum, all brake parts and wheel bearings. No problems found. I then proceeded to
the U-joint. Due to my extensive mechanical expertise and well known manual
dexterity, the floor was quickly covered with little tiny needle bearings.
Having once again proven the basic concepts of Murphy's Law, I proceeded to
install a new U-Joint. I then checked the differential yoke splines,
transmission and linkage, mounts, coil springs, shock absorber, A-frame and
bushings, exhaust pipe proximity, and intensity of the dome light. Subsequent
tests (performed with a hammer on anything within reach) produced nothing more
than well defined symptoms of paranoia.
I then reassembled all parts back to their approximate normal location, except
the wheel cover, which I wanted to recheck because, while I was under the car
performing all those wonderfully intricate failure analysis investigations, I
had noticed my wife lurking about.
I then started the engine, put transmission in low gear and "eureka" there was
NO Thunk-Thunk, not even a mild unassuming tick-tick. Wild with elation and
self-congratulations, I removed car from stands, installed wheel cover (after
looking at it again} and backed the car out of the garage. I then proceeded down
the street, and you guessed it! Thunk Thunk Thunk. Naturally, this was
disappointing. Actually, it was more like a jab in the eye with a sharp stick.
To make a long story short, the next morning at sunrise as I was preparing my
car for exorcism (believing this to be my only viable alternative), I found the
problem. During the cleansing ritual (required by most competent exorcists for
burning at the stake) I noticed while washing the wheel cover that the cute
little plastic Monza emblem in the center was loose and when rubbed up and down
would go "Thunk" - "Thunk".
Now as I sit here, deeply involved in my new hobby "Creative tooth decay" and
contemplating new projects, like how to convert a wheelchair into a dune buggy,
an occasional dark thought crosses my mind; "Lord, Suppose It Had Been Something
Serious."
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TECH TOPICS -- JIM SIMPSON
LATE-MODEL CONVERTIBLE "COCKTAIL SHAKER"
Anyone who has taken a close look at a late-model convertible will likely have
noticed large cylinders mounted in the four corners of the car; two up in front
at the very forward corners of the trunk and two more back in the engine
compartment in the rear-most corners. Most Corvair enthusiasts know that they
have something to do with reducing vibrations in the LM convertible. But what's
inside them and how do they work?
Well, while we were at the Corvair Ranch, we got a chance to take a look at the
inner workings of one of these "cocktail shakers." (Chevrolet calls them
"Dampeners" -- not in the sense of making thing wet, but in the sense of
dampening vibrations.) Jeff Stonecipher had received the remains of a burned out
LM convertible. It had been in a garage fire and was totally destroyed. The
dampeners had been well cooked in the fire, but were sufficiently intact so that
he could cut one open and see what is inside. And here it is:
Not a lot to see, is there? Just a hunk of cast iron supported at both the top
and bottom by springs. Normally the case would be filled with oil, but it was
boiled out and burned in the fire.
The problem these dampeners were designed to solve was the flexure of the LM
convertible body. After they removed the coupe roof as the first step in making
the LM convertible, they added reinforcements inside the rocker panels. These
may have given enough strength to the body, but the result was essentially two
masses of metal (the front end with its suspension and gas tank and the rear end
with the suspension and drive train) connected by the floor and rocker panels --
a near-flat piece of metal. That flat piece of metal acts like a spring! Try
this: Take a ruler and hold one end tightly to a table. "Twang" the free end and
watch it vibrate. That's what happens to a LM convertible when it goes over a
bump or railroad track. (The roof structures on the coupes make the body much
more rigid!) The dampeners are intended to reduce that vibration -- "dampen" it
out! The way they work is that hunk of iron acts as a counterweight supported by
the springs. When the front of the car goes up (hitting a bump) and the dampener
canister goes up with it, the inertia of the iron inside tends to keep it in
place, compressing the lower spring. As the front of the car goes down again,
the inertia of the iron tends to keep it in place, this time compressing the
upper spring. If that was all that was to it, there wouldn't be much effect on
the car. But the canister is also full of oil -- reportedly ATF! When that iron
mass moves through the oil, it has to displace it. That requires energy and that
energy comes from the up and down vibration of the car. And that energy is
converted to heat. So ultimately the flexure of the LM convertible body is
converted to heat in the four dampeners! (It might be interesting to attach a
temperature sensor to one and then run the car down a bumpy road. I wonder how
much heat would be generated.)
Some people remove the dampeners to reduce the weight of the car; after all they
do weigh something like 26 lbs each. While this might give slightly better
performance (every pound counts in racing!), this also accelerates the flexure
and ultimate fatigue failure of the welds in the body. Not a great idea. (The
early Camaro and Firebird convertible also used them for the same reason.
Reportedly the idea came from the '58-59 Ford Thunderbird convertibles.)
Reprinted from Group Corvair Comments, March 2018, Page 5
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For thirty-six years I kept track of miles and gallons for every tankful
that went into my 1966 Corsa. These data provide insight into the fuel
economy of a 180-HP turbo vs. a 140-HP four-carb engine. The data are
just as valid now as then. Here's a repeat of my 2008 article.
TURBOCHARGED 180-HP VS. FOUR-CARB 140-HP
GAS MILEAGE COMPARISON -- JIM PITTMAN
Back in 1968 when I was dissatisfied with the performance of my two-year-old
1966 Corsa coupe with turbocharged engine, Richard Finch advised me to get rid
of the 180-HP turbo engine and get a 140-HP engine instead. He said I'd no
longer have the turbo's annoying quirks, I would have more usable power and I'd
get better gas mileage as well. We ended up "blueprinting" a brand-new
replacement 140 engine and it turned out to be a highly successful engine
rebuild. It indeed provided a major improvement in power, smoothness and
reliability, but I never actually compared the fuel economy of the new engine to
the old one. It just felt as if the gas mileage was significantly better.
Since I habitually record the mileage and number of gallons for each and every
fill-up in my cars, I have a little red book that I could use to help answer the
question, Which had the better fuel economy for me, the 180 or the 140?
It was a matter of finding the little red book, picking the range of fill-ups
for each engine, and entering the data into a spreadsheet.
I decided to start the 180-HP spreadsheet with the first fill-up when the car
was new, then record every one until I thought I had a representative range of
driving conditions. Then I'd go to the date that the 140-HP engine was installed
and record an equal number of fill-ups for that engine. I guessed that driving
conditions would be similar -- in each case I took the car across the country,
then settled down to daily driving, going to work or school or to rallies or
autocrosses or just driving around.
To my surprise, fuel economy for the two engines seemed to be quite similar.
But take a look at the graphs and judge for yourself. The top graphs are for
tankful-by-tankful MPG calculations, while the bottom graphs represent the
cumulative MPG, updated at each new tankfull. The 180-HP engine ended up with a
17.5 MPG average while the 140-HP engine ended up with an 18.2 MPG average. I am
assuming (I can no longer remember) that I drove the car fairly aggressively
with each engine and that I had little regard for fuel costs. I was, after all,
oriented toward making the car perform like a well-handling "sports sedan" if
not an actual sports car, and gas mileage was a matter of technical interest,
not economic necessity.
There's an anomoly in these data as far as the 180-HP engine is concerned. At
the left third or so of the graph there are three months of data when the MPG
readings are really low. This represents the winter of 1966-67 when I was in
Fairbanks, Alaska and I'd often drive to work when the temperature was down in
the minus 30 degree range. The way to drive to work was to employ electric oil
and battery heaters overnight, then start the engine and idle for 10 to 15
minutes before leaving for work. Not a good test of the fuel economy of any
engine. Suppose I take out nineteen of these "winter driving" fillups and take
out nineteen similar consecutive fillups for the 140 engine. Guess what, the 180
turbo comes to 18.0 MPG while that for the 140 comes out to 18.4 MPG.
In conclusion, my 100,000 or so miles in a 1966 Corsa coupe during the late
1960s/early 1970s gave me an overall fuel economy of just over 18 MPG, about
half of this with a 180 turbo and about half with a 140 four-carb engine. There
was little difference between the two engines. I certainly did not save enough
on gasoline to pay for the cost of the engine swap. On the other hand, the
smoothness, flexibility and reliability of the blueprinted 140 was a great
improvement over driving the same car with a 180 turbo.
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TREASURY REPORT FOR 09-30-2019 to 10-26-2019
DATE CHECK# AMOUNT PAYEE DESCRIPTION BALANCE = $6,760.04 $6,760.04
========== ==== ========== =========== ========================================= =========
2019.10.05 2357 -$ 50.05 J.Pittman Newsletter Printing OCT 2019 -$ 26.62 $6,733.42
2019.10.05 -$ J.Pittman Newsletter Postage 33 x $0.71 -$ 23.43 $6,709.99
2019.10.09 $ 50.00 Dues J.Arellanes 26 m CNM $ 50.00 $6,759.99
2019.10.09 $ 50.00 Dues P.Hall 26 m CNM $ 50.00 $6,809.99
2019.10.xx $ 50.00 Dues Geoff Johnson 26 m CNM $ 50.00 $6,859.99
2019.10.xx $ 50.00 Dues L.Blair 26 m CNM $ 50.00 $6,909.99
========== ==== ========== =========== ========================================= =========
2019.11.01 NOV NEWSLETTER ========================================== $6,909.99 $6,909.99
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| November 2019 | December 2019 | January 2020 |
| Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa |
| 1 2 | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 | 1 2 3 4 |
| 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 | 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 | 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 |
| 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 | 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 | 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 |
| 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 | 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 | 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 |
| 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 | 29 30 31 | 26 27 28 29 30 31 |
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SAT 02 NOV 10:00 AM Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
SUN 03 NOV 2:00 AM - Set your clocks back an hour because the government stole
an hour out of your life back in March and we all have to
tolerate a one-hour jet lag experience to get it back.
WED 20 NOV 5:00 PM Board Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
WED 27 NOV [ NO CAR COUNCIL MEETING THIS MONTH ]
THU 28 NOV ....... THANKSGIVING
FRI 29 NOV 9:00 PM Deadline for items for December 2019 newsletter
============================================================================
SAT 07 DEC 10:00 AM Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
SAT 14 DEC 1:00 PM --- CNM CHRISTMAS PARTY -- COPPER CANYON RESTAURANT
At the corner of Gibson & Valencia SE, across from the hospital.
WED 18 DEC 5:00 PM Board Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
WED 25 DEC NO CAR COUNCIL MEETING THIS MONTH *** Merry Christmas! ***
WED 27 DEC 9:00 PM Deadline for items for January 2020 newsletter
============================================================================
SAT 04 JAN 10:00 AM Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
WED 15 JAN 5:00 PM Board Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
FRI 24 JAN 9:00 PM Deadline for items for February 2020 newsletter
WED 29 JAN 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
============================================================================
SAT 01 FEB 10:00 AM Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
WED 19 FEB 5:00 PM Board Meeting: Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
WED 26 FEB 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
FRI 28 FEB 9:00 PM Deadline for items for March 2020 newsletter
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See the New Mexico Council of Car Clubs Web Site for more "NMCCC" activities
======================== http://www.nmcarcouncil.com/ ======================
SUGGESTION: A visit to the Telephone Museum on Fourth Street
SUGGESTION: A visit to the new WEATHER LAB at the Balloon Museum
SUGGESTION: A visit to the Soaring Museum in Moriarty
SUGGESTION: Activities with other clubs such as VMCCA.
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SEVEN YEARS AGO [ NOVEMBER 2019 VOL 45 Nr 11 ISSUE 530 ]
Jim Pittman
2012 V.33 Nr 11 #446
COVER: Corvairs drive toward Madrid as part of Larry Yoffee's Balloon Fiesta
celebration. We spent a pleasant afternoon in Madrid and Santa Fe. Colorado
Corvair owners came down as well. Thanks to Larry for this event! Robert Gold,
reporting on the Car Council, warned that the Council's transition to "501C3"
status might be fraught with unintended consequences. Robert also reported on
driving onto the Balloon Fiesta field with other classic cars. A sad note: we
remembered Joel Nash, a long time CNM member who recently died.
2005 V.31 Nr 11 #362
COVER: An Ultra Van joined us at the State Fair. In "The Joy of Lex" by Gyles
Brandreth puns proliferated. Members planned a trip to the Fan Belt Toss in
California. Wendell reported $2879. LeRoy & Emma Rogers went to Montrose,
Colorado to work on next year's Tri-State. Heula Pittman told us about the
mission of the Sunshine Committee. Ray Trujillo told us about his life story
leading up to getting a Corvair. Robert Gold reported the warm activities and
cold statistics on this year's State Fair car show. Kevin Sullivan told about
the great time we had at the Balloon Fiesta. Richard Finch told about a trip
around the country in an Ultra Van: Oshkosh, Wisconsin and Shelburn Falls,
Massachusetts. The trip racked up 7,890 miles. Sylvan Zuercher told us the
entire history of the Tri-State Events to date. Ollie Scheflow told us about the
last Old Route 66 clean-up of the year. Tech articles told how to adjust your
differential and how to align your suspension.
1998 V.24 Nr 11 #278
COVER: Mark Morgan's Corvair Conoco fuel truck. Billiken's Spyder was
retrofitted with air bags. Our treasurer reported $7047. We heard more about the
Wheels Museum. Would it grow and prosper? Bobby Unser was on the board.
Officers elected were Dennis Pleau, Paul Campbell, Chuck Vertrees and Wendell
Walker. We had 12 Corvairs at the State Fair car show. Robert Gold reported that
all had a great time. The best early car was the Gongora Lakewood, the best late
was the Anderson 500 coupe, and the best FC was the Domzalski Rampside. Tech
tips: Benny Abeyta told us to install a Fiero seat in a Corvair. LeRoy said new
windshields from Libby-Owens-Ford would cost $269 for earlies, $351 for lates
and $68 shipping. Order several for a discount. Libby-Owens-Ford was a source of
glass for many collector cars. A series of Questions and Answers to Corvair
related lore and a detailed article on batteries were reprinted from Virtual
Vairs. Finally, Ilva Walker wrote about our Aspencade tour through the Jemez and
up along the Rio Grande to Embudo Station where we had a great lunch. The fall
foliage was beautiful.
1991 V.17 Nr 11 #194
COVER: a Corvair maze; did anyone successfully navigate from one side to the
other? At our meeting we had two guests with cars for sale. We had $578 in the
bank. We heard about Corvairs for sale all over the state. We discussed trying
to sell Bill Reider's "Care & Feeding of Your Corvair" book as a Club project.
Our newly elected officers were Steve Gongora, Dennis Pleau, Chuck Vertrees and
Wendell Walker. We had a tentative list of activities for 1992. A tech article
by Bob Henrich of Columbia Basin Corvairs told us how to repair a bad '61-'65
backup switch. Short tech tips included: adjusting the thermostat linkage,
preventing objectionable fumes in your heater, replacing heater hoses with the
right part, replacement door hinge bushings, a way to remove the pilot bushing,
and pros and cons of the spring type battery cable. We also had a "Shoe" cartoon
with a 1963 Corvair in a junk yard.
1984 V.10 Nr 11 #110
COVER: the ascent of man from shambling proto-human cave dweller to suave,
sophisticated Corvair driver... oh, wait, this may have been okay to publish way
back in 1984, but these days it would never do to hint at a Darwinian view of
life. These days we'd have to do a cover depicting "Intelligent Design" instead.
We believe Corvairs are definitely the result of Intelligent Design!
The October election was hotly contested and we picked for our officers Francis
Boydston, Clayborne Souza, Bill Hector and LeRoy Rogers. Sylvan reported on our
rally to Alamogordo. Bill Reider told us of a Corvair so neglected that the oil
pan was covered with half an inch of rubbery gunk. The cause? Apparently the
customer didn't change the oil very often, but added STP religiously. Bill
advised us to change our oil and not to waste money on STP or other additives.
Several short tech tips included: a substitute for the interlock in a '61-'64
four-speed, keeping your Corvair running smoothly with the help of electrical
contact cleaner, keeping cool by removing casting flash, installing a '64
differential in a '68 Corvair, preventing burned alternator brushes due to
regulator failure, repairing the spark plug wire holders on your top shrouds,
and removing early transmission mounts.
1977 V.03 There was no newsletter for November 1977.
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Enchanted Corvairs Newsletter is published monthly by Corvairs of New Mexico,
chartered Chapter #871 of CORSA, the Corvair Society of America. Copyright by
the Authors and by Corvairs of New Mexico. Articles may be reprinted in any
CORSA publication as a service to CORSA members, provided credit to the Author
and this Newsletter is clearly stated. All opinions are those of the Author or
Editor and are not necessarily endorsed by Corvairs of New Mexico or CORSA.
Material for publication should reach the Editor by the 15th of the month. Send
material via e-mail ( jimp @ unm.edu ) or submit a readable manuscript. I prefer
ASCII TEXT, but MS Word or RTF are fine. Photographs are welcome. The newsletter
is composed using Apple computers. Software includes Mac OS-X, AppleWorks,
Photoshop CS, GraphicConverter, BBEdit and InDesign CS. If you care, ask for
more details. When I'm 64, I'll get by with a little help from my friends.
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