Offbeat pickup a valuable collectible
By the late 1950s, imported cars were taking about 10 per cent of the North American market, enough to prompt GM, Ford and Chrysler to start preparing a counterattack. Their responses were the 1960 “compact” cars, the Ford Falcon, Chevrolet Corvair and Chrysler (soon to be Plymouth) Valiant.
Chevrolet was so captivated by the top-selling German Volkswagen that the Corvair was strongly influenced by the Beetle. The Corvair had a horizontally opposed (flat) air-cooled alloy engine behind the rear axle, although with six cylinders, not the VW’s four. Both had fourwheel independent suspension, the Corvair’s using coil springs and VW’s by torsion bars.
Since the Corvair car so slavishly copied the VW’s configuration, it was not surprising that when Chevrolet decided to build a Corvair for the light commercial vehicle market, one that VW had virtually to itself, it would follow the VW formula. The Corvair 95 (for its 95 inch [2,413 mm] wheelbase) passenger and utility vans looked much like the VW Bus and Transporter.
When it added the Corvair pickup, Chevrolet again followed VW, but with a few variations.
The Corvair 95 pickup was introduced in 1961 with the same rear-engine layout as the Corvair car and other Corvair commercials. As in the VW and new Falcon-based Ford Econoline pickups, the seat position over the front axle gave maximum visibility and a long cargo bed.
The Corvair’s four headlamps, one-piece curved windshield and sculpted beltline styling line made the Corvair pickup a more handsome hauler than the VW.
Its 2.4-litre, 80-horsepower engine (the 1.2-litre VW had only 36) drove through a standard three-speed manual transmission, with a four-speed manual or two-speed “Powerglide” optional. The only VW transmission was a four-speed manual. The Corvair’s payload was a surprisingly high 862 kilograms.
Where the Corvair pickup deviated from the VW and Econoline was in its cargo-carrying arrangement. The Corvair’s load bed was different by being on two levels: low behind the cab, then stepped up to clear the engine. Pickup owners prefer a flat load area and found the two-level floor bothersome. This was alleviated by an optional wood and metal “Level Floor” bridge, although it was inconvenient to use.
The front-engine Econoline had a normal pickup box with a tailgate, whereas the VW’s long, flat bed was higher than in normal pickups to clear the engine.
To facilitate loading, the VW’s tailgate and sides of the box swung down against the body giving a clear, unimpeded load area. An enclosed cargo compartment underneath the box was accessed by a side hatch.
The Corvair pickup came in two versions: Loadside and Rampside. Both had rear tailgates, but the Rampside had an additional dropgate on the right side of the box hinged at the lower floor level.
This dropgate swung down and rested on the ground, forming a ramp to accommodate rolling in heavy objects such as garden tractors or snow blowers. A protective rubber pad prevented scuffing where the ramp rested on the ground.
The Corvair pickup was introduced as a 1961 model, with the Rampside model more popular. Of the total 20,630 1961 pickups sold, 17,786 were Rampsides.
The pickup was little changed for 1962 other than the availability of a limited-slip “Positraction” differential. Sales declined to 4,102, of which only 369 were the Loadsides, prompting Chevrolet to discontinue it.
The Corvair Rampside pickup continued for two more years with few changes. When sales slipped to only 2,046 for 1963 and a mere 851 for 1964, it was no longer financially viable to continue production.
There are probably several reasons for the Corvair pickup’s early demise. It was unorthodox in a pickup world that tended to be conservative. Also, there was the two-level load floor and the inconvenient platform.
Last, but certainly not least, was the fact that it was priced above traditional pickups. It does, however, make an attractive, interesting and very useful collectible today.