The rust on the back side where the vinyl top ended is only surface rust. It's around the back window that's somewhat semi eaten. And I did find a hole in the center of the roof seam which is three quarters of the way back and just above the back side windows. The rest of the car is super clean and straight.
It's nice how you can zoom in to these pics on here, as the smaller parts appear much clearer.

 

That is a super solid 98 you got there Jim! It won't take much to get that car polished up and looking good! The cragar starwires are a great looking wheel on that car!

-Bob

 

Elwood, Thanks f/ the complements on the car. In all honesty, it's a typical Texas car. My '62 Ford pick-up is the same way, but no rust at all. I had a '58 F100 custom cab that was the same way. I bought it f/ $130.00 w/o the engine and tranny. I had a '62 Impala that was completely solid and straight that still had the a/c sticker from the factory in the bottom corner of the back window. Growing up in New York until I finished high school and joined the Army, I knew nothing but rusted cars. When I finally came here to Texas in '81, stationed here at Ft. Hood from Baumholder, Germany, I felt like I was cheating somehow having such straight solid cars available all over the place. I thought, w/ a new drive trane, these cars here will go forever and look great too. Since then, I've had quite afew older rides that I either kept, fixed up and sold or parted out and never lost a dime, infact made out well all in all. Walking through the junk yards on Saturday mornings used to be one of my most fun outings, and most of the time by myself. My '62 p/u has the original 223ci engine, a solid lifter job w/ oiler tubes f/ the rockers. Scouting parts f/ that truck here and there, I have the "work edition," was an adventure alot of the time. I got to know who had all the old stuff (early '60s and back) around here and even today still see afew junk yard owners and workers who I became friendly w/ in the mid and late '80s due to my hunting down odds and ends. I have quite afew hand written life time warranty slips from Auto Zone f/ ie; front end parts, u-joints, etc. The starter f/ that engine has a mechanical bendix and the starter also fits the Hudson Hornet. It's somewhat rare, and when I rebuilt the engine in summer '90, It didn't need to be bored, the crank didn't need to be turned, and the cam and lifters didn't have a mark on them, looked like new. Yes, standard bore and bearings, and still runs perfectly. Believe it or not, when I pulled the engine apart, the biggest part of piston ring was about an inch long, they came out sounding like aluminum coins falling out of someone's pocket. LOL. I had to replace 2 of the 6 pistons and the cylinders didn't have a ding, dig, or scar. And the engine smoked like heck, but still went right off w/ the manual choke on the coldest day of the year. Anyway, sorry f/ getting carried away, but the older rides, the mechanical side of them, and the adventures they bring along w/ them is something that I really love.
So, I'll be taking out the windshield and rear window here soon to mend the rusted spots and then on to re-working the interior since the rust repair will keep it dry.
Your car looks to be quite solid also, and the paint looks like it was kept up well. Is the paint original? I have to say that if I had a car this size back when I was in my 20s, I'd have had it loaded with the guys, beer and some other head bending material and "in the wind." LOL. Things were alittle different just afew years back.

 

Hey Texas Jim Nice 98 I had a orange one. It had 300,000 on it when it died.( new york what you going to do.) Tin man

 

Oh yeah!

Thanks for the pics.

 

Yeah Jim, mine is super solid. My Dad bought it off the original owner's best friend in Kentucky, so it never saw any snow or salt, and ever since I've had it, I've never driven it in the winter. My friends laugh at me when I talk about keeping it stored during the winter, but the joke will be on them when I show up to the 10 year high school reunion with the big ol' boy all restored. The paint is original, and it has held up pretty well. It had pretty much faded out completely on the trunk lid and on the tops of the rear quarters, so when I stripped the vinyl top, I primered the roof and trunk. I still have to do the bodywork to finish it and get it repainted correctly, but for now it'll do just fine.

My friends do love my Olds though. They can never get over how well it rides, how big it is, and how fast it is!

-Bob

 

Cool 2D silver arrow. Successes during the restoration.

 

Looks good Jim. I am too afraid to take my vinyl roof off but I suspect its rusted kinda like yours. Its got a bunch of dimples showing through the vinyl. Thanks for posting the pics and good luck with your ride.

 

Mine was like that to on the back window,,,It wasnt to bad to repair it,,,,

 

I am terrified to even LOOK at my vinyl top I have 2 dime sized bumps on either side of the back window that just WINK at me every time I walk by