Perhaps the most documented seven-year Corvair restoration is now listed on Hemmings Auctions. Completing this 1966 Chevrolet Corvair Corsa Convertible was a labor of love for owner and seller Don Homuth. Now in nearly concours condition, the classic car features all era-correct parts, including its air-cooled flat-six engine and four-speed manual transmission.
It was early-1968 when Homuth set eyes on the Corvair for the first time. He purchased it a day before he had to return to Vietnam after a 30-day leave. It was love at first sight; “to my eye it was a vision of automotive perfection,” he wrote in a 2015 Hemmings article. Homuth’s honest and in-depth progress updates soon became a regular occurrence in the Hemmings Daily series until the restoration was completed in 2021.
Aside from missing his family upon his return to Vietnam, getting back home to drive the Corvair was all he dreamed about. After returning, he drove it for a year, then sold it to the woman who he eventually married to chase a 1966 Corvette Roadster. Once married, the Corvair re-entered his life and he sold the ‘Vette, but bought five other Corvairs, including the rare #042 Yenko Corvair Stinger. As time passed, life circumstances caused him to sell it and the other cars for good, or so he thought, sometime between 1977 and ‘78. Life went on, and in late-2014 Homuth began wondering what happened to his first Corvair love. Just three days after putting an ad on Craigslist, he received an email from the owner. After exchanging stories, an agreement was met. Homuth welcomed the Corvair home in August, 2015 and began the restoration soon after.
The plan was to restore the Corvair to concours condition, and a glance through the photo galleries found in the auction listing show just that.