Daytona 2000 - Corvair Speedweek

I had first noticed the 1965 Corvair Corsa convertible featured on this page on the back cover of the May, 2000, edition of the Corvair Society of America monthly publication, CORSA Communique. The car is owned by Mark Tinley of Franklin, Massachusetts, and he fondly refers to it as "My Vair Lady."

Mark's near obsession with Corvairs began in 1967, when he was only 14, and his brother came home with a Tuxedo Black 1963 Monza 4-speed. The unusual nature of the car was not lost on Mark, and two years later when his brother moved up to a '66 Corsa turbo, Mark's intrigue turned to passion. He began dreaming of his own Corvair. Dreams do come true!

1965 Corsa Convertible in Evening Orchid

In 1973, Mark was in college and driving his own Madeira Maroon '65 Monza with a 4-speed (and a Thrush muffler so people would be able to hear him coming). He then jumped to a '66 model which, on an ice-slick night, picked a fight with a tree and put a temporary end to Mark's Corvair affair.

He drove other cars (including a Porsche 944) until 1997, when he began pining for another Corvair. He decided he'd find and buy either a 1965 or '66 Corsa convertible.

1965 Corvair Corsa interior

Placing an add in the CORSA Communique, Mark connected with the Evening Orchid gem you see here. The original owner's manual was still with the car, enabling him to trace the vintage car's roots to its first owner, a woman who at the time of the original purchase, was a schoolteacher in Fresno, California.

The well optioned 140 4-speed's charm seems as attractive to other photographers as it was to me, as you can tell from the upper right area of the large picture.