The history of the Corvair began in 1960 when GM decided to build a compact car that could compete with the Volkswagen Beetle. The Chevrolet Corvair Corsa was a unique car by American standards. It was powered by an air-cooled flat-6 engine mounted in the rear of the car and sported a design with details that looked more like a European sports car. Legendary race car driver John Fitch was particularly enthusiastic about the Corvair and began developing modifications to the vehicle in the early 1960s. These were known as the Sprint model. To achieve this customized version, a customer had three options: the car could be shipped to Fitch’s shop in Connecticut; the local Chevrolet dealer could order the necessary parts; or the owner could order them directly from Fitch and do the work themselves. There were two generations of Sprint models, 1962-1964 and 1965-1969. This second-generation Sprint had over 36 different options to personalize a Corvair, from changing the suspension to adding a fiberglass extension to the roof that gave the car a fastback look. Roughly 1,200 Fitch Sprints were sold over the course of a decade, including the cars manufactured in-house and mail-order kits. The Corvair was featured in Episode 13 of our podcast: A Museum on the Move. Listen here!