<VV> Quality

[Mark Corbin]

For those who are too young to remember the Corvair being built, and for
those who ARE old enough ("if you remember the '70's, you weren't there")
to forget, you should consider this. At the time the Corvair was being
designed and built, products from Japan were know as "jap junk" and for
good reason. The first car Toyota imported was the Toyopet, and the first
Honda was the model 600, both illustrious examples which merely reinforced
the "jap junk" reputation. By comparison, Detroit held the laurels for
"quality", such as it was. No one made better cars, at least for the
"average" income consumer.

But by the early '70's the Japaneese, having suffered "lose of face" with
the "jap junk" reputation, had worked their butts off improving the quality
of ALL their products from Japan. And with the "we hate America" Consumer
Reports rag bragging about their products, the consumers' mindset not only
changed, but became set in concrete. It's still there, despite the evidence
that now places some of Detroit's products back on top, and besting
everything Japaneese (or any other country for that matter).

So you just have to look at things from the perspective of the times.

BTW, one of THE major weaknesses of the early model Corvair was the lack of
wheel well liners. Every car that has lacked them (early Corvair, Maverick,
early Vega, etc.) has had a horrible reputation for having the fenders rot
off, and understandably so. Which is one of the areas in which the late
model Corvair is far superior to the early design. Just like another post
mentioned the "eyebrows" on the EM. Proof positive.

-Mark 


> [Original Message]
> From: Ron <ronh at owt.com>
> Subject: Re: <VV> Quality
>
> That's the famous U.S. automotive quality that mate Toyota and Nissan so 
> big.
> RonH
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Smitty Smith" <vairologist at verizon.net>
> Subject: <VV> Quality
>
> > Smitty Says:  Although I feel that the later Early models were fitted 
> > about as well as they were intended to be there is one area that was 
> > neglected often in all Early years and has contributed to the demise of 
> > many Earlies.  The seal in the bottom of the air plenum under the grill 
> > across the base of the windshield.  When you get a leak there, you get 
> > trunk rust, front bulkhead rust and water under the carpets.  I have
seen 
> > plenty of those seams very poorly applied and in some cases the sealer
was 
> > deliberately misapplied.  Kind of like the worker was saying, I show
you, 
> > chicken s**t foreman.  You can't push me around.  The sealer was laid
in a 
> > zigzag pattern fore and aft all the way across the plenum doing nothing 
> > more than providing little pockets to hold water that got in until it 
> > could seep through the spot weld seam.  I wouldn't even mention this
but I 
> > have cut out yards of rusty metal and welded in new stuff in that area,
so 
> > I am well familiar with it.