Devins have taken all sorts of configurations over the years, mostly for racing, so it seems rather natural to build one in a street-machine fashion, as is the case with this Corvair-powered fuel-injected 1959 Devin C for sale on Hemmings.com, reportedly the last of 15 built and a car that spent a couple of stints in Bill Devin’s possession. These days it appears rather well finished and ready for some canyon roads. From the seller’s description:
This particular car was built and owned by Bill Devin, and was the fifteenth and last Devin C ever made by the manufacturer. It is not a kit-car, but rather one of the very few cars built by the man himself, and therefor is quite special. Bill Devin sold it to his friend, Tom Schrum, and Tom himself hammered the VIN# into the car. The car was later sold to a pair of gentlemen whose names cannot be traced, but fortunately the car was later resold to Bill Devin. Apparently Bill had a habit of corralling his cars back up now and again.
In April 2000, the current owner purchased the car, and began a large scale restoration on DC-15. Jeff Moore, the Automotive Archaeologist, had the car fixed up and prepared for the current owner on Bill Devin’s behalf, and handled the transaction. If you come across old photos of the car, you’ll find that the car used to be green with no roll-bar. When the current owner transferred the car into their name, the transfer paper showed the previous owner was actually Tom Schrum even though the advertisement on the internet said it was being sold by Bill Devin. This is a small technicality but might be of interest to someone wanting all the details.
The current owner picked the car up from Jeff Moore’s house in Springfield, Missouri, then traveled to San Diego before heading up the coast to Victoria, British Columbia, where it currently resides. A few bugs had to be worked out of the chassis, and since then DC-15 has walked a fine line between keeping the car as original as possible, yet up-to-date for safety and daily use. Modifications include: Converted drum to disc brakes all round, with Wilwood front calipers and rotors. Updated rear suspension with coil over shocks and springs. Upgraded limited slip differential. Fuel cell. 15×6.5 front and 15×7.5 rear SSR SP1 forged wheels with 205/50/15 front and 225/45/15 rear BF Goodrich Rival tires. Original wheels will be included with the purchase. Rebuilt performance 2.7 litre Corvair power plant. It’s not the original engine, but is a period correct Corvair engine balanced and blue-printed for better efficiency and power. It is utilizing Haltech Sport 1000 fuel injection, controlling TWM individual throttle bodies and individual coil packs on the ignition side. There are only 350 miles on the current engine.
DC-15 has also benefitted from a beautiful set of headers and custom exhaust system fabricated by renowned exhaust builder Kenny Butcher, and has a full aerodynamic under tray with integrated front chin spoiler to keep the front end firmly planted.
It is an absolute pleasure to drive. The response from the engine is simply unbelievable, with every stab of the throttle emitting a sound more akin to the starting grid at Le Mans than to a road legal sports car. The steering is light and direct, and the car offers incredible grip with the modern performance tires and wheels. The braking system is exceptional, with top hinged and bias adjustable Wilwood pedals to custom tailor the front and rear bias. Acceleration is brisk to say the least. As the car weighs 1450 pounds fully fuelled, the Corvair power plant producing 163 wheel horsepower and 173 pounds of torque at the rear wheels gets, the car has absolutely no loss of power from 1800rpm to the 5500rpm red line.
See more Devins for sale on Hemmings.com.
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