<VV> early suspension changes question

[Sethracer at aol.com]

In a message dated 9/18/2011 7:51:30 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,  
corvairgrymm at gmail.com writes:

Thanks  Doug and others, this pretty much wraps up the topic, I am now
adequately  informed.  I hadn't made it that far into my very recently
aquired  copy of "Corvair Decade"... I'm reading it cover to cover, and
making sure  every word sinks in.

Ray R
 
Ray - A few other notes. GM had designed the Corvair for use with a front  
anti-roll bar. It was deleted at initial production, to the detriment of the 
 handling of the early cars.(and the dismay of the engineers.) The HD  
suspension option added it back in, with other various spring changes and shock  
absorber calibrations. All 62-63 had a small front bar, the 64 a stiffer 
one and  the 65-69 an even stiffer one. Without any limit straps, the full 
extension of  the rear shock is what limits the droop of the suspension. This 
is true on all  Corvairs, less important on lates. That is just one more 
reason that proper  shock absorber on the rear is important, especially on an 
early where camber  change is massive. If a shock just bolts on, that is not 
sufficient. It must  have the proper extended length. Personally, I feel that 
is the big LIE in  Nader's book. The drawing of an early in a "Jacked" 
state shows the axle  drooping at an angle that it could not reach with an OEM 
shock installed.  Great for effect, not very truthful. The other problem with 
Corvair  handling is that GM, in an attempt to make the steering as easy as 
a full-size  Chevy (most of which had power steering installed) used a very 
slow ratio on the  Corvair steering. Easy to turn, and certainly adequate 
for "sedate" driving -  which is what most Impala owners did after all. But 
the balance of the early  Corvair, specifically without a front bar, could - 
once in a while - require  quicker response. And the Corvair steering was 
described as "like winding an  alarm clock" for those of us old enough to 
remember what that means! 
 
Seth Emerson