Corvair Intro 1960

The Corvair was the pet project of Chevrolet's General Manager, Ed Cole. He wanted a small car that was sport and fun to drive. Something that would outclass the VW in every way.

One thing he liked about the VW and the Porsche was the swing axle. Something Ferdinand Porsche had first introduced in the 1930s in the Formula race cars he designed and built for Auto Union. They proved so difficult to drive that he had to find motorcycle riders and not professional racecar drivers to handle these advanced cars. Bernd Rosemeyer and eventually Tazio Nuvolari could master the slippery fishtails but it would take years for Porsche to master the engineering to tame this type of suspension.

Cole ignored history and the advice of GMs chief engineer, Charles Chayne who demanded that the suspension be modified. Chayne was told to get on board or look for another job. Bunkie Knudsen also tried to intervene as did John DeLorean. DeLorean was so worried about the cars that he decided that Pontiac would build the slightly larger, front engined Tempest instead of a Corvair clone.

Test films conducted at the GM Proving Ground showed the car spinning out and rolling over but Cole convinced upper management to let him press on.

This film was shown to the dealers to get them pumped up to sell Corvairs. Eerily it shows the cars spinning out and rolling over but touts this as a demonstration of their safety.

Because the cars did spin out and people were maimed, suffered brain injuries and died GM eventually had to fix the Corvairs. While they stonewalled, fought and won almost every court case that was brought they did lose in the court of public opinion.

They were undone when it was revealed they'd hired a private detective to dig up information about the Corvair's chief critic, Ralph Nader. It launched Nader's career and propelled the sales of his book "Unsafe at Any Speed." It also led to the establishment of the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA). The current safety scandal at GM over faulty ignition switch makes some wonder if anything had changed.

06:22:47:00 VS different color 1960 Chevrolet Corvairs driving through scenic landscape, each Corvair with 1960 license plates.

06:23:58:05 Great low-angle tracking shot of 1960 Chevrolet Corvair with Connecticut licence plates driving on race track; banner for Lime Rock Raceway in Lime Rock, Connecticut in background. Great POV shot inside car on racetrack, disembodied hands turning wheel on sharp turns; LS Corvair drives toward camera and makes 180 degree skid and drives off back in the direction from which it came. High-angle car drive figure eights; car passes beneath "Handling" banner, POV shot in car weaving between red and white poles. VS Corvair driving through every imaginable terrain: car on high way, CU car tires on bumpy road; driving through mud; over hill and through brush in country side; through pool of swampy mud; through brush; up a shallow stream.

06:27:01:13 CU disembodied man's foot in black dress shoe presses brake pedal

06:27:25:04 Corvair crash test, passenger-less car drives down road, light flashes in car, car rear ends another vehicle; VS car collision in crash test. VS crash test with Corvair towed then released and made to rollover on side of road.

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