Corvair 6, will it fit?

[kachemakian]

Hi guys, I have an opportunity to pick up a backwards turning Corvair engine with 4 webers on it that I was told was supposed to pump out about 300 hp for a song. It was built by some race shop in California for a fellow that I knew, for racing the Fur Rondy races in Anchorage, Alaska. Has anyone bolted one of these up to a side shifter? How much longer is this engine than my 4 cylinder and would it clear the firewall? Do our engines turn the same direction as a VW rear mounted one? I was told that this motor was re-cammed to turn the same dirrection as a VW so that it could be run in a Ghia.

[76912E]

I can't help you on engine fit or rotation (I have a Type IV, 912E, which will take a Corvair engine), but I would think getting 300 HP out of a Corvair engine would be, to say the least, optimistic. The very best (Don) Yenko Stinger Stage IV engine put out 240 HP from 176 cu.in. (bumped up from the stock 164 cu.in--2.7L) and probably had 10.5:1 compression ratio. On a Corvair engine, the high compression would require very high octane or racing fuel. Even a stock 4 carb, 140 HP Corvair six was a bit peaky. The 110 HP was much better all around. Remember, all of the above HP figures are pre-'74, when all car companies "derated" the HP numbers, based on some new formula/test methods or requirements. 350 HP small block Corvettes soon became 290 HP without any engine changes.

Fran

[kachemakian]

When you say that your car "will take a Corvair engine" do you mean that it turns the same direction as your stock one?

[76912E]

Originally Posted by kachemakian

When you say that your car "will take a Corvair engine" do you mean that it turns the same direction as your stock one?

The engine needs a reverse rotation cam to work in a 911/2 series Porsche. It will physically fit.

Try these links:

Corvair Power for Your German Car — Hébergement Plone gratuit par Pilot Systems, spécialiste Open Source

Engine Adapters

And for some more on Corvair HP, read:

http://corvaircenter.com/phorum/read.php?1,245922,page=1

Fran

[Mark Henry]

Bet you could flip the diff and it would work on a 901.

[kachemakian]

I guess that I should start over. Does a Corvair engine turn the same direction as our 914 engines? The Corvair engine that I have available has been re-cammed to turn the opposite direction of what it did in the Corvair.

[Mark Henry]

Originally Posted by kachemakian

I guess that I should start over. Does a Corvair engine turn the same direction as our 914 engines? The Corvair engine that I have available has been re-cammed to turn the opposite direction of what it did in the Corvair.

Now your Corvair is turning the right direction...You need to know if it fits.
I know Dr.Evil over at 914world is putting a corvair engine in his bus right now and he's a 914 guy so he might know.

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

Yes, it fits.
Yes, you need the "reverse cam" to make it spin the correct way for our transmissions.
I do not remember if it bolts up to the trans or not.
This swap has been done before.

--DD

[76912E]

If you haven't been following this thread on HP/torque and 7:31 gears, I would think 300 HP (if real) would be pushing the limits of a 901/915 transaxle.

What HP/TRQ can a 7:31 handle?

Fran

[jess p]

Its torque that what kills a trans,not hp.

I have a 912 with a late 915 gear box,8:3:1 ring and pinion. The engine is
a built 350 SBC putting out near 400 hp and 400 torque. Trans is still holding
up. With a 7:3:1 you should be ok considering 300 hp and even 200 torque
although I doubt you would see that on a corvair unless you have a turbo.





70 914 2L
66 912 V8 SBC
81 911 SC
76 911S

And enough other projects to last me well into my nursing home years.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by Mark Henry

Now your Corvair is turning the right direction...You need to know if it fits.
I know Dr.Evil over at 914world is putting a corvair engine in his bus right now and he's a 914 guy so he might know.

Mike originally was going to put that in his 914, until I donated a rebuilt 911 motor to him...

PA isn't the same as San Diego. He doesn't have "the shack". He does still have my transmission tools...

[VitoV]

Hello,

I'm coming late to this thread, which I just stumbled across.

I'm putting a reverse-rotation Corvair engine in my '66 911. (The original 2.0 needs a little bit of attention, and I didn't want the car to be off the road while I was tinkering.) I'm still building the motor, but I can offer a couple of tidbits I have learned in getting this project together:

1) Stock Corvair rotation is the opposite of your Porsche's. You will need to ensure your Corvair engine has been built as a reverse-rotation motor. This means that it has, at a bare minimum, a reverse-rotation camshaft and distributor/oil pump drive gear. (Other reverse-rotation things, mainly belt guides and the like, are nice but not essential.)

2) The Corvair engine is no wider than a 911 six, but is definitely longer. The 'vair has an oil filter that hangs off the back of the engine near the fan belt pulley. This means it will not fit in a 911 engine bay, which might mean it won't fit in your 914 either. The solution is to cut the oil filter boss and run some lines to a remote oil filter-- not very difficult really. You'll also need to fab a rear engine mount, of course.

3) The engine will bolt to a VW or Porsche transaxle if it has both the proper adaptor in place of the Corvair bellhousing, and the unique Corvair-VW flywheel. You need both of these items, plus a self-supporting starter (which a 914 may already have) as you will no longer have a starter nose bushing in the engine case. Both bellhousing adaptors and Corvair-VW flywheels are available on eBay regularly.

4) Three hundred horsepower from a Corvair engine? Not on this planet.

Best,
VitoV