Unsafe At Any Speed

It turns out that there is no objective evidence that the Corvair is "unsafe at any speed". And Audis didn't really suddenly accelerate and smash small children against the wall.

A little media attention and some public hysteria will go a long way ... see you in the year 2000.

The front of Corvairs tend to bounce because people put too much air in the front tires. The recommended pressures are 26 psi in front and 32 in back, as the engine is in the back, and the front (trunk) area is largely empty. Some owners put bags of sand in the trunk (in front) to stabilize the car; others just make sure the tire pressures were correct. "Service stations" (which used to clean windshields, check oil, and check tire pressure -- remember that?) were a regular problem: They'd get the pressure wrong, even if you told them what to do.

Corvairs handle differently from "regular" cars, because of the heavier rear end, and inexperienced drivers may have had trouble with that. Also the earlier Corvairs (pre-1965) had suspension problems, resulting in a redesign in the later versions. And of course mid-60's cars were a lot less safe in general than cars today. But they weren't unusually unsafe for their time.

They make great dune buggies! Being air cooled (yes, no water!) and driven with a single belt, they are very reliable.

A Corvair enthusiast site: http://www.corvairforum.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=13&sid=70452ba2b99bedcd451dc0158ad31cdb