Bob Sottos - Elizabeth, New Jersey - 1929-2018
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EARLY CORVAIR V8 CONVERSION
THE BOB SOTTOS STORY
1961-1963
August 12, 2022
This story was written with the assistance and determination of Dave Rogers a New Jersey
member of the V-8 Registry who insisted that he saw what he thought was the first V-8 Corvair
years ago. Dave remembers seeing a guy named Nick Sottos at a local car show in 2019 and
Dave also remembered that Nick had an older brother named Bob who built and raced a V-8
powered Corvair in the early 60’s. The car show was a busy and loud place; so Dave wasn’t able
to spend time talking with Nick about his brother’s Corvair. The Covid Pandemic came along
and the ‘Galloping Hill Cruisers’ car shows disappeared. It was June 2022 before the Cruise
Nights resumed and Dave was finally able to talk with Nick about Bob’s V-8 Vair. Dave also
obtained Nick’s phone number for additional follow up. Here’s the story that I’ve been able to
piece together about the Bob Sottos V-8 Corvair
The introduction of the 1960 Corvair was veiled in secrecy by GM as the competition attempted
to photograph and film this new and revolutionary car during development and testing. GM
went to great lengths to hide their latest introduction. So much so, that they even disguised it
in Holden (Australian Subsidiary) sheet metal during testing. Once unveiled in the fall of 1959, it
didn’t take the car enthusiasts of the era very long to find ways to make GM’s first unibody car
with a rear mounted aluminum air-cooled flat-6 engine go faster. The hot rod shops and
specialty parts manufacturers were quick to offer performance gear for what was supposed to
be an economy car. Even GM realized by midyear that they had something special and quickly
offered an upgraded sporty model in a 2 door coupe available with bucket seats before the first
model year was completed.
Add-on speed equipment for the Corvair was welcomed by this generation of baby boomers,
but the real enthusiasts of the day wanted more. That brings us to 1961 and a young fellow of
Greek ancestry living in Elizabeth, NJ named Bob Sottos. Bob wasn’t satisfied with just adding
parts to his 1960 red ‘700’ coupe. He was looking for more, but quickly decided that he was on
his own with his idea to replace that air-cooled flat-6 with a water-cooled 283 V-8 engine. The
work on his build was conducted in the local ESSO service station on the corner of Maple
Avenue & Summer Street where he worked. In a signed, but undated letter from Bob Sottos to
Russ Brandenburg, the Founder of the V-8 Registry, a full description of the engine and drive
train are detailed by Bob. The 283 cu. In. engine was equipped with a Chris Craft reverse
rotation gear and Camshaft package. Reverse rotation was required since the front of the
engine was facing the rear of the vehicle (same as the Corvair engine). The existing differential
and complete drive-train were utilized without any modification. A standard Corvair three (3)
speed manual transmission and a 3.89-1 ring and pinion were used. Additionally, a 10”
diaphragm clutch assembly with a short T/O release bearing was used. All clutch control linkage
& shifting controls were standard Corvair.
The critical interface between the V-8 engine and the Corvair differential was established using
a standard after-market engine adapter for mating early Ford transmissions to Chevy V-8
engines and was bolted to the Chevy block. A cast iron adapter plate was casted to Bob’s
specifications which allowed the mating of the Corvair differential with the after-market
adapter.
The front Corvair engine/transmission mounts were re-used w/o modification. A 1957 Corvette
front engine mount was used as the rear mount with minor compartment modification.
Engine cooling was accomplished by the installation of a custom made four core radiator in the
baggage compartment (front trunk). A 1958 Chevy passenger car grill was modified to cover the
front air intake. Inch and a half (1-1/2) copper piping was routed from the radiator to the
engine along the exterior bottom of the body. For city driving, a Jaguar XKE electric fan was
used to provide additional air-cooling for the radiator.
Except for the grill no body additional modifications were made. All suspension components
and tires were stock Corvair and the interior and exterior were fully standard Corvair. It was
impossible to detect the V-8 power-plant from inside the passenger area or viewing from
outside.
Performance and handling were excellent. After a short soaking-in period, the 283 V-8 was
replaced with a 1962 327 CI engine equipped with a ‘Racer Brown” roller camshaft and a two-
four-barrel combination. This drastically improved performance and quarter mile speeds of
between 120-127 mph with an ET of 11.5-12 seconds were achieved. Standard 13 inch street
tires were always used. Many First Place in Class and ‘Little Eliminator’ trophies were won with
this combination over a two year period. No mechanical failures were experienced.
Both Dave and Nick remember that Bob’s little red Corvair was hard to beat. Nick recalled one
outing at Atco Dragways in NJ where the “Little Red Car” surprised everyone by beating a ‘sure
winner’ in a major event. Racing at Island Dragway out Route 46 west of Hackettstown was also
a regular occurrence. According to Dave, Bob also made a habit of clipping a $20 bill to the
dashboard and challenging the passenger to grab it while he was under power. Supposedly he
never lost a $20 bill.
Sometime in 1963 Bob decided to sell his red racer. According to Nick, the new owner wasted
no time in wrecking Bob’s pride and joy while nearly killing himself. This collision brought this
story to an end, but this was only the beginning of the V-8 Corvair story. The next chapter also
took place in New Jersey when Art Silva took his creation to the next level by offering a
conversion kit.
John Lanning, President
The V-8 Registry
THE BOB SOTTOS STORY
1961-1963
August 12, 2022
This story was written with the assistance and determination of Dave Rogers a New Jersey
member of the V-8 Registry who insisted that he saw what he thought was the first V-8 Corvair
years ago. Dave remembers seeing a guy named Nick Sottos at a local car show in 2019 and
Dave also remembered that Nick had an older brother named Bob who built and raced a V-8
powered Corvair in the early 60’s. The car show was a busy and loud place; so Dave wasn’t able
to spend time talking with Nick about his brother’s Corvair. The Covid Pandemic came along
and the ‘Galloping Hill Cruisers’ car shows disappeared. It was June 2022 before the Cruise
Nights resumed and Dave was finally able to talk with Nick about Bob’s V-8 Vair. Dave also
obtained Nick’s phone number for additional follow up. Here’s the story that I’ve been able to
piece together about the Bob Sottos V-8 Corvair
The introduction of the 1960 Corvair was veiled in secrecy by GM as the competition attempted
to photograph and film this new and revolutionary car during development and testing. GM
went to great lengths to hide their latest introduction. So much so, that they even disguised it
in Holden (Australian Subsidiary) sheet metal during testing. Once unveiled in the fall of 1959, it
didn’t take the car enthusiasts of the era very long to find ways to make GM’s first unibody car
with a rear mounted aluminum air-cooled flat-6 engine go faster. The hot rod shops and
specialty parts manufacturers were quick to offer performance gear for what was supposed to
be an economy car. Even GM realized by midyear that they had something special and quickly
offered an upgraded sporty model in a 2 door coupe available with bucket seats before the first
model year was completed.
Add-on speed equipment for the Corvair was welcomed by this generation of baby boomers,
but the real enthusiasts of the day wanted more. That brings us to 1961 and a young fellow of
Greek ancestry living in Elizabeth, NJ named Bob Sottos. Bob wasn’t satisfied with just adding
parts to his 1960 red ‘700’ coupe. He was looking for more, but quickly decided that he was on
his own with his idea to replace that air-cooled flat-6 with a water-cooled 283 V-8 engine. The
work on his build was conducted in the local ESSO service station on the corner of Maple
Avenue & Summer Street where he worked. In a signed, but undated letter from Bob Sottos to
Russ Brandenburg, the Founder of the V-8 Registry, a full description of the engine and drive
train are detailed by Bob. The 283 cu. In. engine was equipped with a Chris Craft reverse
rotation gear and Camshaft package. Reverse rotation was required since the front of the
engine was facing the rear of the vehicle (same as the Corvair engine). The existing differential
and complete drive-train were utilized without any modification. A standard Corvair three (3)
speed manual transmission and a 3.89-1 ring and pinion were used. Additionally, a 10”
diaphragm clutch assembly with a short T/O release bearing was used. All clutch control linkage
& shifting controls were standard Corvair.
The critical interface between the V-8 engine and the Corvair differential was established using
a standard after-market engine adapter for mating early Ford transmissions to Chevy V-8
engines and was bolted to the Chevy block. A cast iron adapter plate was casted to Bob’s
specifications which allowed the mating of the Corvair differential with the after-market
adapter.
The front Corvair engine/transmission mounts were re-used w/o modification. A 1957 Corvette
front engine mount was used as the rear mount with minor compartment modification.
Engine cooling was accomplished by the installation of a custom made four core radiator in the
baggage compartment (front trunk). A 1958 Chevy passenger car grill was modified to cover the
front air intake. Inch and a half (1-1/2) copper piping was routed from the radiator to the
engine along the exterior bottom of the body. For city driving, a Jaguar XKE electric fan was
used to provide additional air-cooling for the radiator.
Except for the grill no body additional modifications were made. All suspension components
and tires were stock Corvair and the interior and exterior were fully standard Corvair. It was
impossible to detect the V-8 power-plant from inside the passenger area or viewing from
outside.
Performance and handling were excellent. After a short soaking-in period, the 283 V-8 was
replaced with a 1962 327 CI engine equipped with a ‘Racer Brown” roller camshaft and a two-
four-barrel combination. This drastically improved performance and quarter mile speeds of
between 120-127 mph with an ET of 11.5-12 seconds were achieved. Standard 13 inch street
tires were always used. Many First Place in Class and ‘Little Eliminator’ trophies were won with
this combination over a two year period. No mechanical failures were experienced.
Both Dave and Nick remember that Bob’s little red Corvair was hard to beat. Nick recalled one
outing at Atco Dragways in NJ where the “Little Red Car” surprised everyone by beating a ‘sure
winner’ in a major event. Racing at Island Dragway out Route 46 west of Hackettstown was also
a regular occurrence. According to Dave, Bob also made a habit of clipping a $20 bill to the
dashboard and challenging the passenger to grab it while he was under power. Supposedly he
never lost a $20 bill.
Sometime in 1963 Bob decided to sell his red racer. According to Nick, the new owner wasted
no time in wrecking Bob’s pride and joy while nearly killing himself. This collision brought this
story to an end, but this was only the beginning of the V-8 Corvair story. The next chapter also
took place in New Jersey when Art Silva took his creation to the next level by offering a
conversion kit.
John Lanning, President
The V-8 Registry
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A letter from Bob Sottos to Russ Brandenburg
