<VV> Sometimes the simplest jobs...

Bill Elliott Corvair at fnader.com
Mon Jul 25 11:25:36 EDT 2005


To amuse those of you (like me) who are NOT at PIR or the Convention...

About 5 years ago, I pulled (and sold) a perfectly good Walker Dynomax SuperTurbo dual system from 
my Corsa because I was planning on installing my hot turbo motor (still not done) and had a set of 
vintage glasspack duals hanging in my shop.  The duals proved to be way nasty (worse sound than an 
open pipe) so I decided to play with a set of hot rod "Smitty" mufflers that I picked up at a swap meet. I 
picked up a set of Clark's u-pipes and installed the mufflers... loud and rorty, but a nice tone.

In shipping my cars here from Chicao 2 years ago, the only damage that any car took was one of these 
duals catching on the carrier and cracking the exhaust manifold. So one side got a new Clarks manifold.

Pulling the car out of storage this spring, I discovered that BOTH mufflers had rusted and split along the 
seam, so the sound level was almost unbearable. 

Plan A. So I decided to install a set of used Clarks extractors that I had purchased last year. Whole job 
should take maybe two hours.  I pulled them out, wirebrushed them, resprayed with high temp paint... 
and as I was getting ready to install I realized they were for a 110, not a 140! All that work for nothing. So 
I contacted an acquaintance that had offered me another set of extractors when I bought these. Great 
news! He still had them! Bad news... he realized that they, too, were for a 110.... I'm now into the 2 hour 
job for about 3 hours...

Plan B.  So after digging through my pile of stuff, I decide to use a set of headers and glasspacks that I 
picked up at a local Corvair show last year. Again, I wire brush and repaint, pull a manifold, and begin 
installing. NOW I remember why I quit running headers all those years ago. After about an hour of 
fiddling with trying to get them to line up and seal properly, I pulled out the tech manual to reread the 
article on getting headers to seal. Great write-up, but no way am I going to spend that sort of time to 
build retainers to pull the headers up snug. Project abandoned... like new set of headers and mufflers 
with fresh paint for sale. I'm now about 6 hours into my 2 hour job.

Plan C. Okay... Clarks U-pipes look solid, lets cut off the Smitty's mufflers and install a set of 
Superturbos. I have one new one in my parts stash (didn't fit right on the Lotus Europa I bought it for)... 
can I but a matching one? Score...the first good news in this battle is that the FLAPS had one on the 
shelf... Now to get the old mufflers off. While the U-pipes still looked perfect, the adapters I used to 
mount the 2" mufflers had become one with the mufflers. I should have simply stopped and ordered new 
U-pipes, but no... I'm going to get this finished TODAY. After about 2 hours of working with a grinder, 
cutoff wheel, and cold chisel, I have successfully removed the old mufflers.  About 9 hours in so far.

I decide to take a shortcut and leave the U-pipes on the manifolds since they weren't leaking and 
everything looked pretty crusty despite the fact I had used stainless studs. So as I hang the first muffler I 
realize the U-pipe is at the wrong angle. Okay, no problem...like most Corvair guys I keep packings 
available. As I begin removing the u-pipe, a stud snaps... first stainless stud I've broken. Though this is a 
setback, I actually have a replacement stud in my stash, so I start extracting it. Despite heat and Kroil, 
the stud snaps off even with the manifold. As I being the horrible task of drilling it out, I notice that the 
entire manifold is cracked... mush have taken a hit like the other side did on unloading.  So all work stops 
as the only spare manifold I have is for a 110. About 14 hours into this 2 hour project, I stop to place a 
Clarks order. New manifold, extra packings, some new studs, bolts, and lock retainers (two of the studs 
had pulled out of the head on removal of the manifolds... I had chased the threads, removed the nuts 
and chased these threads as well, but since I was placing an order anyway, I figured using new 
hardware was a good idea.)

Plan D. While waiting for the order to arrive, I went back to the parts stash to retrieve the 2 2" stainless 
Dynomax tailpipes I forgot that I had. I usually just use some cheap chrome tailpipes (since the mufflers 
are so close the back of the car) but I decide to mount the mufflers more forward and use these cool-
looking tailpipes.

Order arrives. This should go quickly. Right.  

Upon mounting the first muffler at the right place to use the tailpipes, I suddenly recall why they have to 
be set back... at the necessary angle to maximize ground clearance, they interfere with the tire. So back 
to the flaps to buy more exhaust tubing to move the mufflers further back.

Now of course, the tailpipes won't work. Easy, I'll cut then down a bit.  Cutting stainless is NOT like 
cutting mild steel.... Oh, look at that, they are tapered... now won't come close to fitting the 2" muffler; 
they are easily larger than 2.25".  They work great with the one split muffler bushing I have in my stash... 
back the FLAPS for another...no joy, they no longer sell these. So I end up cutting slots to be able to 
draw the tailpipes up. Muffler clamps I bought for the no longer fit, back to the FLAPS for larger ones. 
About 16 hours in...

Finally... everything is coming together. Ops... those hangers I used for the Smitty's mufflers are in the 
wrong place and the hardware is way rusty anyway... back to the FLAPs for new hangers. Now I have to 
remove the rear grill. It was also damaged in the unloading, so it takes a bit to get it off. I decide to 
straighten and touch up the paint while I'm here. 

New hangers work well, but I bought the ones that fit under the existing exhaust clamp... making the 
slightly undersized clamp just too small. Back to the FLAPS.

Finally, everything is put together and working. But now the engine won't idle. What in the world could I 
have done to bother the engine?  Well, while waiting for parts, I did remove the stock air cleaner, install a 
set of those neat looking K&N copies from Larry's Corvair, and clean the top cover. Still nothing looks 
amiss... then I discover the vacuum hose (hooked up to the PVC orifice) is split along the bottom, likely 
stressed from when I was moving and cleaning stuff... that repaired the car ran perfectly...

I'm about 18 hours into this "2 hour job"...making those expensive Clarks extractors look like a really 
great deal in comparison. Poor planning and bad decisions on my part (combined with the damage 
wrought from using the car as a winter driver and ice racer my last winter in the Midwest... really hard to 
overstate how much damage this did to the car despite careful and routine washing, etc) turned this 
simple task into a project that made me reluctant to even go into the garage and walk past...

We drove out to supper last night in it and overheard a waitress telling another one about that "great 
looking great sounding" old car that had just pulled up. That made the whole ordeal worthwhile.

I just hope my next few jobs go a bit easier....

Bill Elliott





More information about the VirtualVairs mailing list