Pinky- Sue Earl's handmade Corvair Convertible

 A very special car made an appearance on our Facebook Page recently in the form of this very unique Corvair. At first glance it looks like a first generation Monza convertible, except that it's a 1960 and there weren't convertibles then, nor even Monzas until very late in the year.

Secondly, you will notice that it is pale pink, and not any shade but pearlescent pink with matching leather interior and top boot. Because this is no ordinary Corvair indeed.

These are factory photos of the legendary "Pinky", the one off 1960 Corvair convertible done by Blaine Jenkins of Chevrolet Interior Studio for Sue Earl, the wife of none other than GM Styling founder Harley Earl. And when Mrs. Earl wanted a special car, she got it- and in a grand manner. Blaine recalls submitting drawings, paint, and fabric samples for Mrs. Earl's approval.

The handmade top assembly is power with a rain sensor. Pinky is also equipped with power windows, power seats and even air conditioning. A Pink leather interior and pink carpeted trunk complete the look. Pinky was returned to Styling for periodic updates, and got a '62 nose panel and Corvair wire wheels along the way. A three speed Hydramatic experimental transmission and turbocharged engine were also fitted, as the Pinkster was a bit of a lead sled (did I mention that the windshield frame was cast bronze?)

After the Earls were done with the little car, a GM employee managed to buy it for his daughter who drove it through ten years of winters and killed it. Very sad, as Pinky deserved a more special fate. These are the only color pictures I have seen of Pink- if you have any please let me know.

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The Riviera Goes Topless- Almost

Many early Riviera enthusiasts have long wondered why no convertible version was ever offered to supplant the coupe. The prime competitor, Thunderbird, was offered as a convertible and so it would seem to make sense that Riviera be offered in one as well.

Now comes a series of photos that suggest that, not only was Buick thinking about such an idea, they were taking the idea very seriously. These photos were taken on the GM Styling patio in the summer of 1962 and show a Riviera convertible prototype that had been the subject of considerable planning.

Retired GM stylists recall the car clearly and note that it was not a fiberglass mock-up, but rather a body in white that arrived from Fisher to be converted by the craftsmen at the Styling buiding. In other words, this was a high level exercise.

The convertible top has been carefully styled to mimic the crisp look of the hardtop as closely as possible. Note the sharp upper rear corner- no descending bow as was so often the case on GM convertible tops- and note the sharp corners of the rear quarter windows. They look like they were taken directly from a coupe.

Look carefully at the top- it's the parallel arm top that was first created for the 1960 Cadillac Fleetwood four door convertible prototype. This will allow for a full width rear seat and side panels similar to the coupe.  The top will be utilized on the 1971 full-size GM convertibles. Also notice the top deck (a'la Corvette) which mates brilliantly with the rear seat back and provides a beautifully finished look with no separate top boot. Clearly they had paid attention to the T-Bird.

This rear 3/4 view shows how carefully the top had been styled to mimic the coupe version. It lacks the slight curve of the roof where it meets the rear deck, but otherwise mirrors the coupe lines beautifully.

Here is the convertible in profile with the top lowered. Those who saw the car say that without the crisp, formal roofline, it simply lacked the dramatic presence of the coupe and in all likelihood explains why it was not approved for production- a convertible should never be less exciting visually than the coupe from which it is derived.

So the convertible was not produced. An interesting footnote above however shows a Hatch roof as photographed on a 1963 Coupe, also on the styling patio. This photo suggests that even after the convertible was killed off, stylists were continuing to explore open air themes for the Riviera luxury coupe.