Now considered one of the worst cars in history the Chevrolet Corvair was a revolutionary vehicle whose impact is felt even today. Design was begun in 1956 on a new Chevrolet which would be smaller and lighter to counter the growing popularity of lightweight imported vehicles. The new car would have a flat six air cooled engine in the rear, with a new suspension system, and gas powered heater. In 1960 the first models hit the showroom floor.
The initial reception was positive, and the car was a moderate success for Chevrolet. It was named Motortrend's Car of the Year in 1960, while the Monza edition was called the poor man's Porsche. The updated version which was released in 1965 was heralded by David E. Davis of Car and Driver with the statement, "We have to go on record and say that the Corvair is - in our opinion - the most important new car of the entire crop of '65 models, and the most beautiful car to appear in this country since before World War II." Chevrolet had a success on it's hands, but there were problems brewing.
The first generation fo the car leaked oil, the gas powered heater sent some fumes into the cabin, and the suspension was a troublesome as a rear engine car had to be managed differently than a traditional car. Each of these issues were addressed through the life of the vehicle, but trouble began in 1965 when Ralph Nader release his investigative book, Unsafe at Any Speed. GM was involved with over 100 lawsuits relating to accidents involving the 1960-1963 (1st generation) Corvair which caught Nader's attention. His investigation found problems with the suspension system increasing the chance of a roll over and loss of control. During Congressional hearings he used a video created by the Ford Motor Company which intentionally rolled a Corvair. Nader called the Corvair, "the leading candidate for the un-safest-car title."
Sales of the car fell from 220,000 in 1965 to 14,800 in 1968 effectively ending the life of the Corvair which was discontinued in 1969. A follow up investigation by Texas A&M University in 1972 found that the Corvair had no greater potential for loss of control than it's contemporaries at the time. Car and Driver magazine criticized Nader for ignoring driver error in the operation of vehicle which was rear-engine, and must be driven differently. Analysis noted that similar rear-engine vehicles had similar designs to the Corvair and were no more or less likely to lose control. The rear-suspension system which was pegged as the cause of the problem was similar to the one that Porsche, Mercedes Benz and Volkswagen used at the time.
The immediate impact was the removal of the Corvair from the market, but the reverberations of the event can be felt today with the recent bankruptcies of two of the big three American automakers. GM had taken risks by implementing so many new technologies and styling changes with the Corvair, and the investigation proved one thing to them. Innovation is not worth the risk. In the decade that followed American car makers did not take the same kind of risks. Sales dropped, and they became even more risk adverse. Styling followed the trends of the time with only rare changes: boxy cars in the '80s, bubble cars in the '90s. Some rare exceptions to this behavior are the GM EV1 which was ended without achieving financial success and the Ford Taurus. As the new century began, American automakers were impacted increasingly by Foreign makers and declining sales which led to their financial collapse. With failure looming, innovation began to re-emerge with vehicles like the Chevrolet Volt. Today American automakers are embracing the new and different in hopes of recapturing the success they once held but lost because of a little car that was called Unsafe at Any Speed.
-Professor Walter
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