Question about a oil bath system on late model car 65-69 ! how do they work and will they work on a 140 motor ! and do they work great or not needed with the better oils of today!

Hi Eddie;

GM used the oil bath system on the corvairs that we sold in the south and in dusty climates like Arizonia and Texas and the like. They were an option on the cars as well as the foward control models. They were designed to collect dust and dirt as a pre-filter in dusty climates. There is no performance inhancement using such a system at all. Most feel as if it robs power from the engine. Some people like the look as well as a function of keeping there primary filters more cleaner. Most of them were taken out of the cars or fc. I guess it is more of preference for those who like them to keep there car or fc original. The system is designed to collect dirt at the bottom of the bowl which holds (oil,kerosene>?) about 1/4 of the way up from the bottom,then filtering out air through a screened metal housing then back into the primary airfilters mounted in between the two carbs. Turbos as well as 140's had them. But the setup was little bit different. They were attached directly to the primary air filter housing. Like I said most people took them out. No perfomance adhancement. I hope this answered your questions.

Eddie, I have the Oil Bath setup on my 66 140. I guess it does rob some power but it is original to the car so I've kept it on. It's surprizing at car shows that even some Corvair folks don't know what it is or that it was a option for the 140s too. - Jim

Here's an attempt to post a picture of an oil bath cleaner on a 140hp. Hope it works....

Here's a 1966 110hp with an oil bath air filtration unit and A.I.R.