This 1965 Chevrolet Corvair Monza convertible comes from the model's redesign year and carries the optional 140-horsepower engine backed by a manual transmission, a combination the majority of Monza buyers passed over. It is finished in Madeira Maroon over a black interior with a black top. The Fisher body tag identifies it as a Willow Run-built Monza convertible, body number 18,675 in that plant's Monza convertible sequence, with a body build date in the second week of May 1965. Chevrolet built 26,466 Monza convertibles for the model year out of 235,528 Corvairs total. The car retains its original Protect-O-Plate showing the delivering dealer and a May 28, 1965 delivery date, and the engine, transmission, and axle codes stamped on that plate all fall within the same three weeks as the body build.
Power comes from the rear-mounted 164 cubic inch air-cooled Turbo-Air flat six in its top naturally aspirated form. RPO L63 brought four Rochester carburetors, with the outer pair acting as secondaries, along with better-flowing cylinder heads, and it was the strongest engine Chevrolet offered outside the Corsa's turbocharged 180. Factory RPO records show L63 installed on 18,273 500s and Monzas for 1965, roughly 7.8 percent of the year's production. Behind it is a manual gearbox turning 3.55 gears, and the manual itself puts this car in the minority given that the two-speed Powerglide accounted for 53 percent of 1965 Corvairs.
The 1965 redesign is the reason these cars are sought out today. Chevrolet replaced the earlier swing-axle rear end with a fully independent four-link design taken in concept from the Corvette Sting Ray, substituting coil springs for the Corvette's transverse leaf, and paired it with revised front geometry and quicker steering. Brakes on this example have been converted from the factory four-wheel drum arrangement to front discs with rear drums. The power convertible top operates as intended. Inside are bucket seats, the redesigned 1965 instrument panel, and an aftermarket radio. The odometer reads 5,069 and mileage is exempt.
There is a certain irony to a second-generation Corvair. Ralph Nader's Unsafe at Any Speed reached bookstores on November 30, 1965, and the handling criticisms at its center applied to the 1960 through 1963 swing-axle cars, which Chevrolet had already engineered out of existence by the time the book was published. What survives is a rear-engine, air-cooled American convertible with European-influenced styling, four-wheel independent suspension, four carburetors, and a stick, a formula no other domestic manufacturer built in volume. It runs well and presents in good condition, with documentation most cars of this age lost decades ago.
NFI Empire specializes in classic, exotic, modified, and luxury vehicles. We offer retail sales, consignment, financing, and full custom and body work through our on-site shop. Please call ahead to confirm the vehicle's current availability and viewing location. See the "videos" tab above this description box for a cold start and walk around.
