<VV> Wagon Exhaust Cutout

[EVERETT WILSON]

The back-flow into the heater from a straight-out-the-back pipe on an early is something I have observed personally.  I had a 64 Spyder as one of my first Vairs back in the late 70s and the PO had just put a straight out chrome cover from the FLAPS on the end of the muffler.  I didnt know it was supposed to point down at the time.  Every time I would have the heat on and be driving around, on the decel, fumes.  Then, one day I saved up enough to buy a repro chrome extension from Clarks.  It looked much nicer, but more importantly, no more fumes in the heat!!   I dont think it would be as likely on a late, since the intake vents are much higher up, but in my Greenbrier, I can tell when there is a tailwind when I am sitting at a stoplight.  It pushes the fumes forward and into the side intake.  Otherwise, I never get them.
 
Everett Wilson
North Richland Hills TX
Needed some heat last week, not today!  
--- On Thu, 11/19/09, Vairtec at optonline.net <Vairtec at optonline.net> wrote:


From: Vairtec at optonline.net <Vairtec at optonline.net>
Subject: Re: <VV> Wagon Exhaust Cutout
To: virtualvairs at corvair.org
Date: Thursday, November 19, 2009, 7:49 PM


At 06:20 PM 11/19/2009, Smitty Smith wrote:

>Smitty Says;  I may be wrong on this but I would bet not.  All 
>wagons had a cutout where half of it was into the grill and half 
>into the bodywork.  Same as 1960 cars.


Smitty's understanding is correct -- all 1961-62 Corvair wagons had 
the rear exhaust cutout, like the 1960 cars.  But do you know why?

Answer:  The exhaust outlet was moved from straight-out-the-back in 
1960 to out-the-side in 1961 because of the addition of the 
direct-air heater.  A straight-out-the-back exhaust might allow 
exhaust fumes to be aerodynamically drawn into the engine compartment 
and from there into the heater.  But the wagons, having the engine 
air inlets on the sides of the vehicles, needed to have the 
straight-out-the-back exhaust.

What about turbos, you say?  Yes, the turbo exhaust exits the rear of 
the car but it is considerably closer to the side of the car than the 
1960 exhaust, and has a tip aimed downward and outward.  This was 
enough to keep the fumes out of the engine compartment while 
satisfying the marketing need for a nice fat visible exhaust pipe on 
these top-of-the-line models.

Smitty's wagon, having an exhaust located on the side like any other 
1964 model, would seem to offer the potential to permit fumes to 
enter his car's heater.  But that might lead to brain damage, and we 
have no evidence of that in his case... do we?  [ grin! ]

--Bob (likely brain-damaged himself from 49 years of Corvair direct-air heat.)