Recently, a topic popped up on the Corvair Center Forum from a new owner who purchased a 62 Monza and wanted it gone through to make sure it was, for lack of a better term, safe to drive.
Being near The City, they decided to take their Corvair into Zaki’s shop for a diagnosis and a tune up. The result?
“My wife got the call from Zaki telling her the car was ready. Full engine rebuild and carbs overhauled, differential rebuilt, brakes all around, rewired all lights. He recommended replacing rear axle bearings but we couldn’t seem to find them so that’ll have to wait. Car runs and sounds beautiful. We’re so happy. Thanks to Zaki. He really is a gem of a man, as well as a great mechanic. We’re so appreciative of him. My wife is out cruising as I type this, and she’s very excited to be entering her new ride into a car show in South San Francisco tomorrow. Thanks for all the feedback on this post. Looking forward to posting updates in the future!
Also, got a set of DMV clear 62 plates from a buddy of mine that really add a lovely touch.“
Those of you who attended the SFBA/Valley Picnic this year at Quarry Lakes may remember seeing green a 62 Monza convertible driven by a young couple. The owner of that Corvair, Jason, had recently picked it up and reached out on the Corvair Center Forum asking about local tire shops in the South Bay.
After some forum chatting, he decided to come up to the picnic and meet other owners, share his Corvair and look at ours. Being the fine upstanding citizens you all are, he drove away happy to make new Corvair friends.
Then tragedy struck. Jason reached out to ask for assistance about what he believed to be a wiped out differential. With limited resources on how to source a replacement and make the repair, or if that was even the problem, we advised to have him give Mel a call at Mel’s Vairmart in Santa Clara. Jason gave Mel a call and, sure enough, Mel had a replacement differential and told Jason to bring the car in.
“He gave me a call back and gave me an *extremely* fair price and return time frame, so it will go to him this week and I should be back on the road by this weekend.”
…and 4 DAYS later
“Yay! I got my car back. She’s definitely happier now than before ….that diff was definitely on it’s way out. I’ve got 3.27’s now instead of 3.55s which is probably better for my use case anyway. Definitely some extra pep, and extremely quiet (other than my exhaust). I had some low fuel economy concerns before it exploded, but the engine was all correct and I couldn’t find anything dragging on the brakes….wonder if the diff was the suspect just heating up and sucking down power. (I will check next fill up and see if it was)
Mel told me I messed up those gears baddddd…..he showed me. The teeth were shredded on the pinion. Other than that, I had him install a dipstick for me so I will not have this issue again. He cut me a very generous deal for a first time customer which was awesome. maybe an expensive mistake but getting to know him is worth far more than the pain of a few messed up gears.
Very happy to get my car back”
Two takeaways here.
The first is that the Corvair community is really like no other in the hobby. We are lucky to have three active clubs in Northern California (SFBA, Valley in the South Bay, and CCRC in Sacramento) that welcome in new owners like family. We are also lucky to have the Corvair Center Forum and CORSA to help out new owners and get them connected to local chapters and owners.
Secondly, we would like to take this opportunity to really thank our two local Corvair mechanics who have saved countless Corvairs from the wrecking yard. Zaki and Mel are legendary locally among Corvair nuts and we are truly fortunate to have them nearby when we need them! Or, if we just want to pop in and say hi and see what they are up to!
If you are reading this and want more info on both, here are their contacts:
Zaki Nadiri Corvair Unlimited 1275 Thomas Ave San Francisco (415) 822-5344
Mel Raven Mel’s Vairmart 1443 Laurelwood Rd Santa Clara (408)267-8164
SFBA CORSA 
Leave a comment