[4][5]: 12, 13 In 1950, Cole was asked to oversee production of the M41 Walker Bulldog tank at Cadillac's Cleveland facility.

Cole also logged over 300 hours piloting a Beechcraft Bonanza powered by a smaller Continental engine with the same basic layout.

Tuned versions of the engine appeared in some modified Corvairs sold under the customizer's name, such as the Fitch Sprint, the Yenko Stinger, and the Solar Cavalier.

Don Yenko claimed as much as 240–250 hp (179.0–186.4 kW) from his Stage IV and racing Stingers.

[5]: 44  The crankshaft, the earliest versions of which were forged alloy steel, had six throws but no counterweights, permitting a weight-saving of 25 lb (11.3 kg).

The engine developed a reputation for leaking oil past the seals of the pushrod tubes.

The fan is driven by a long V-belt from the back of the engine with an adjustable idler pulley.

A metal bellows thermostat modulated either a ring valve on early engines or a set of damper doors on later ones to regulate the flow of cooling air.

The engine received heavy-duty rod and main bearings, chromed upper piston rings, and nickel/chromium alloy exhaust valves.

[5]: 62  The multiple-carburetor intake system was replaced with a single side-draft Carter YH carburetor.

[5]: 62, 63, 64  To prevent the engine from running too lean a metering rod and jet were selected that supplied an over-rich mixture when at full throttle.

In January 1960 Frank Winchell, who had a hand in adapting the Powerglide transmission to the Corvair, was made head of Chevrolet Engineering's Research and Development group.

[30] Among the goals for the new engine were increased horsepower, and elimination of some of the problems encountered with the original design, such as head-gasket failures and oil leaks.

[31] Winchell first built an engine with displacement increased to 176 cu in (2.9 L), but this only made the existing head-gasket problems worse.

A team was assembled that was led by Al Kolbe, who was responsible for the design of the original Turbo-Air 6.

Problems with heat-distortion of the early alloy cylinder barrel/head units led to a subsequent redesign that included cooling fins angled at 45° to eliminate cutouts needed for access to the bolts holding the barrels to the crankcase, and the reintroduction of push-rod tubes.

The 10 cylinder version was called P-10 and was installed in a 1962 Chevrolet Impala converted to front-wheel drive.

Design project XP-790 was originally meant to be the basis for a front-wheel drive replacement for GM's E-body cars, and incorporate flat-10 engines based on the P-10.

Project XP-787 was split off from XP-790 to allow further development, while XP-790 was returned to the Research Studio, where it became the basis for the Firebird IV concept car.

[32] Chevrolet developed a prototype of the Turbo-Air 6 with a single overhead camshaft (SOHC) in each cylinder head.

In the Chevrolet Final Report on the engine written 22 February 1966, the need for improvements in cooling was highlighted.

General Motors began investigating the use of fuel injection on the Turbo-Air engine on 11 August 1962.

[35] A mechanical injection system made by the Marvel Schebler division of BorgWarner was installed on a pre-production 164 cu in (2.7 L) engine.

The extra cost of fuel injection could not be justified based on the power gains achieved.

[37] While not a Chevrolet project, at least one water-cooled Turbo-Air 6 was built by independent engine designer Lloyd Taylor.

Both General Motors and some major carrozzeria have used the engine in several Corvair-based concept and show cars.

Some companies modified stock Corvairs to create vehicles that offered improved performance or individualized appearance that were sold under the customizers' or parts suppliers' names.

Private hot rodders and a few small companies built one-off cars, some intended for series production that never materialized, that used the Turbo-Air 6 engine.

Some smaller manufacturers used the engine in limited-production cars, some with heavily modified Corvair chassis and some with fully custom frames.

Several options existed for adapting the Turbo-Air 6 engine to the transaxle in Volkswagen-based cars, or to fit a complete Corvair power-train into a modified VW chassis.