Bill Mitchell's Two Passenger Corvair
While small car enthusiasts around the world were enjoying their new GM Corvairs, at the Design Center Vice President Bill Mitchell was hard at work developing a two passenger variant. Mitchell had been a committed sports car enthusiast and racer for many years, so it is not difficult to understand why a two passenger Corvair was a perfectly logical next step for him to propose for the Corvair brand.
The shortened wheelbase and resulting new proportions are easy to see in the side view image taken in the Design Auditorium in the fall of 1962. In addition to the competition roll-bar, Mitchell also had the designers add new rear quarter and rocker panel trim. The chrome-plated wire wheels were one of Mr. Mitchell’s signature design elements that he used on many of his concept vehicles.
In the front view which shows the top in the up-position, we can see that in addition to the classic racing stripes, Mitchell had a new bumper design developed. The perfectly straight reflections in the Corvair’s paint clearly shows that body and paint work came from Design’s excellent prototype shops.
The rear compartment photo shows that this one-off two passenger Corvair was a fully functional concept vehicle. Note the added cross-car brace that stiffens the body and provides support for the convertible top cover. We can also see part of the one-off door trim design and the chrome stripes holding down the rear compartment carpeting. The chrome stripes on the carpeting are another classic Bill Mitchell feature.
One can only speculate at this point as to why the two passenger Corvair was not approved for production. It would have made an exciting addition to the Corvair lineup. No doubt GM was already aware of the gathering storm clouds that were soon to overtake the Corvair.
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