1971 442 Convertible
October 12th, 2015, 09:55 AM
#1
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Merrill, WI
Posts: 787
1971 442 Convertible
Car is no longer available
Equipment
455 V8 Turbo 400 Automatic
Power Steering Power Disc Brakes
Air Conditioning Power Top
Bench Seat Interior Dual Sport Mirrors with Left Hand Remote
AM/FM radio with rear seat speaker Under dash 8 track tape player
Tinted Glass Visor Vanity Mirror
Door Edge Guards Sport Steering Wheel
SSII Wheels VIN # 344671M208403
Car History
Lansing Built TR 980 = Black Bench Seat Interior
Paint Code 75 = Matador Red Top Code A = White convertible top
Build Code 06A = First week of June 1971 – a very late production ’71 car.
The following information is from the estate of the previous owner as well as my own research:
The car was purchased new at Robertson Oldsmobile in Gainesville, GA sometime in the late summer of ’71. The dealership still exists as a Cadillac/Mazda dealer. I have stopped by there to see if any records may exist from 1971 but they have all been destroyed and there are no employees remaining from that period. I was told that a Mr. McClure Sr. actually bought two 442 convertibles that day – this one for himself and another for his lady friend. There is no trace of the second car.
McClure Sr. appears to have driven the car sparingly until his passing (date unknown). At that time the car was passed on to his only son – McClure Jr. He also appears to have driven it rather sparingly. The car was last legally registered by McClure in GA in 2002. McClure Jr. passed away in 2014 and his estate was settled late that year. I bought the car at the McClure’s estate auction near Gainesville on Jan. 1 of this year. I knew that the car was there for sale but had absolutely no intention of buying it. However, the more I looked at it the more I realized I just couldn’t pass it up. At the time of my purchase, the car had been in inside storage since 2002
The odometer reads 44,959. I have absolutely no proof that it is actual but there is evidence to suggest that it may be.
Engine & Transmission
Numbers matching
There is no evidence that the engine has ever been out of the car or that any major repairs have been required. As noted earlier, the car was stored for many years. It ran when I bought it but not well. I drained the very old fuel out of it and had the carb professionally rebuilt. I also had to have the starter rebuilt. Many, but not all, of the clamps and fittings under the hood are unique and original to the car, again suggesting low mileage. The engine runs great and appears to have no significant issues. While I would never drive a car like this long distances, I would not hesitate to use it locally. The transmission works perfectly. It seems to shift a little more firmly than I recall but that could just be bad memory on my part
Known Issues
· There is an exhaust leak – I suspect it is between the exhaust manifold and the head pipe although I am not certain. It is a little loud on startup but quiets as temps build. This is an easy fix.
· Air Cleaner base – for reasons known only to them, the previous owner drilled two holes in the front of the air cleaner base. They are clearly visible above. They do not affect drivability and are fixable
· It appears that the previous owner did not like the shiny power brake booster and master cylinder as both, along with parts of the firewall, have been painted black with a spray bomb. An odd thing to do but it doesn’t affect function.
· The heat riser to the air cleaner is missing and several vacuum hoses are plugged. I’m not sure if they should be but the car seems to run well just the way it is.
Body & Paint
The body overall is in great shape. The panels appear to be all original to the car and I can find no evidence of significant collision damage The car has been painted once in the original color but it has not held up particularly well. You can see it a little bit in the reflections in the photos– it appears a little cloudy. It is possible that a good detailer could buff this up quite nicely but the car will need paint at some point in order to be its best.
There are some dings and scrapes on the body. I have photos of each of them and can provide them to anyone interested in the car. Oddly, there are two areas of rust, neither of which is particularly visible at first. The left from fender has a rust through lower on it. It’s an easy patch job or could be replaced. However, if I were doing it, I would keep all of the original sheet metal on it. The other is the right rear quarter panel with a small area near the wheel. All of this is covered in the photos.
You can also some spots on the top. This seems to be mildew from storage. A good cleaning with Simple Green got rid of almost all of it. Again, I believe a good detailer with the right equipment could make this top look brand new again. There are no rips or tears and the top works perfectly. The rear window is glass and in good shape. The black boot is present and usable although it has been stored in an awkward way and doesn’t lay flat. They are readily available from various places
Interior
Interior has the optional front bench seat with fold down center arm rest and column shift. It also has the under dash 8 track tape player (with The Greatest Hits of Tammy Wynette included) I have no idea if the tape player works as I have never tried it. It also has the AM/FM radio with rear seat speaker. Probably a little unusual but it also includes the Sport Steering wheel.
The carpet was bad in the driver’s foot well when I got the car. It really bothered me so I pulled the entire interior out of the car one weekend and replaced. It. The floor pans appear perfect and rust free. You can see the before and after pictures in the file I have available. I put down new sound insulation and new jute padding as well. I did not glue anything down as I intended to take it all again someday. If I kept the car I was going to put bucket seats in it. If you watch the Oldsmobile forum you have probably already seen that the new carpets fit well everywhere except over the drive shaft hump. This one is exactly the same way. I also replaced the arm rest pads and chrome backing plates on both doors as they just didn’t look good. I cleaned up the arm rest bases but they need more work to match. The seat belts also need a really good cleaning. There is one seam split on the passenger side of the bottom front cushion. Everything else is in great shape. When I had the interior out of the car I also checked and filled the hydraulic fluid reservoir for the top. It works perfectly
You will never find a build sheet in a Lansing built car. However, you will occasionally find a broadcast card from the plant. I have never heard of it before but in this case I found two! The first one was hog ringed to the back seat bottom cushion. The other one was under the carpet next to the end of the passenger side bench seat. They are identical and show that the car was built on June 24th – a very late car.
Trunk
The trunk needs detailing. It includes the factory original floor mat. I did not want to tear that up but in the areas I could see, the floor pan looks perfect. I am confident there is no rust hiding underneath it. What is not visible here is the spare tire. I was shocked to discover that it was the factory original G70-14 Uniroyal Tiger Paw WSW that came with the car! It has clearly never been on the ground as all of the original mold separation lines and markings are present. The backside is perfect and still shows where the factory marked for and installed the balancing wheel weight. I have never found one of these before. The spare tire and wheel also prove (at least to me) that the argent SSII’s on the car are original. It seems like most ‘71’s and ’72’s had the wheels painted body color but the argent color was an option – just apparently not very common.
Underside
The underside appears to be almost totally rust free. The frame is as remarkably clean and rust free as only a southern or western car can be. There is a pretty good covering of red Georgia dirt and a few hornet’s nests from storage but everything else looks great.
The car runs and drives great. It needs nothing to enjoy now. Prices for these cars are all over the map. Hagerty and NADA place the value between $26,000 and $36,000. I’m asking what I think is a reasonable $28,000. There are clones out there with higher prices so why not have the real thing?
Equipment
455 V8 Turbo 400 Automatic
Power Steering Power Disc Brakes
Air Conditioning Power Top
Bench Seat Interior Dual Sport Mirrors with Left Hand Remote
AM/FM radio with rear seat speaker Under dash 8 track tape player
Tinted Glass Visor Vanity Mirror
Door Edge Guards Sport Steering Wheel
SSII Wheels VIN # 344671M208403
Car History
Lansing Built TR 980 = Black Bench Seat Interior
Paint Code 75 = Matador Red Top Code A = White convertible top
Build Code 06A = First week of June 1971 – a very late production ’71 car.
The following information is from the estate of the previous owner as well as my own research:
The car was purchased new at Robertson Oldsmobile in Gainesville, GA sometime in the late summer of ’71. The dealership still exists as a Cadillac/Mazda dealer. I have stopped by there to see if any records may exist from 1971 but they have all been destroyed and there are no employees remaining from that period. I was told that a Mr. McClure Sr. actually bought two 442 convertibles that day – this one for himself and another for his lady friend. There is no trace of the second car.
McClure Sr. appears to have driven the car sparingly until his passing (date unknown). At that time the car was passed on to his only son – McClure Jr. He also appears to have driven it rather sparingly. The car was last legally registered by McClure in GA in 2002. McClure Jr. passed away in 2014 and his estate was settled late that year. I bought the car at the McClure’s estate auction near Gainesville on Jan. 1 of this year. I knew that the car was there for sale but had absolutely no intention of buying it. However, the more I looked at it the more I realized I just couldn’t pass it up. At the time of my purchase, the car had been in inside storage since 2002
The odometer reads 44,959. I have absolutely no proof that it is actual but there is evidence to suggest that it may be.
Engine & Transmission
Numbers matching
There is no evidence that the engine has ever been out of the car or that any major repairs have been required. As noted earlier, the car was stored for many years. It ran when I bought it but not well. I drained the very old fuel out of it and had the carb professionally rebuilt. I also had to have the starter rebuilt. Many, but not all, of the clamps and fittings under the hood are unique and original to the car, again suggesting low mileage. The engine runs great and appears to have no significant issues. While I would never drive a car like this long distances, I would not hesitate to use it locally. The transmission works perfectly. It seems to shift a little more firmly than I recall but that could just be bad memory on my part
Known Issues
· There is an exhaust leak – I suspect it is between the exhaust manifold and the head pipe although I am not certain. It is a little loud on startup but quiets as temps build. This is an easy fix.
· Air Cleaner base – for reasons known only to them, the previous owner drilled two holes in the front of the air cleaner base. They are clearly visible above. They do not affect drivability and are fixable
· It appears that the previous owner did not like the shiny power brake booster and master cylinder as both, along with parts of the firewall, have been painted black with a spray bomb. An odd thing to do but it doesn’t affect function.
· The heat riser to the air cleaner is missing and several vacuum hoses are plugged. I’m not sure if they should be but the car seems to run well just the way it is.
Body & Paint
The body overall is in great shape. The panels appear to be all original to the car and I can find no evidence of significant collision damage The car has been painted once in the original color but it has not held up particularly well. You can see it a little bit in the reflections in the photos– it appears a little cloudy. It is possible that a good detailer could buff this up quite nicely but the car will need paint at some point in order to be its best.
There are some dings and scrapes on the body. I have photos of each of them and can provide them to anyone interested in the car. Oddly, there are two areas of rust, neither of which is particularly visible at first. The left from fender has a rust through lower on it. It’s an easy patch job or could be replaced. However, if I were doing it, I would keep all of the original sheet metal on it. The other is the right rear quarter panel with a small area near the wheel. All of this is covered in the photos.
You can also some spots on the top. This seems to be mildew from storage. A good cleaning with Simple Green got rid of almost all of it. Again, I believe a good detailer with the right equipment could make this top look brand new again. There are no rips or tears and the top works perfectly. The rear window is glass and in good shape. The black boot is present and usable although it has been stored in an awkward way and doesn’t lay flat. They are readily available from various places
Interior
Interior has the optional front bench seat with fold down center arm rest and column shift. It also has the under dash 8 track tape player (with The Greatest Hits of Tammy Wynette included) I have no idea if the tape player works as I have never tried it. It also has the AM/FM radio with rear seat speaker. Probably a little unusual but it also includes the Sport Steering wheel.
The carpet was bad in the driver’s foot well when I got the car. It really bothered me so I pulled the entire interior out of the car one weekend and replaced. It. The floor pans appear perfect and rust free. You can see the before and after pictures in the file I have available. I put down new sound insulation and new jute padding as well. I did not glue anything down as I intended to take it all again someday. If I kept the car I was going to put bucket seats in it. If you watch the Oldsmobile forum you have probably already seen that the new carpets fit well everywhere except over the drive shaft hump. This one is exactly the same way. I also replaced the arm rest pads and chrome backing plates on both doors as they just didn’t look good. I cleaned up the arm rest bases but they need more work to match. The seat belts also need a really good cleaning. There is one seam split on the passenger side of the bottom front cushion. Everything else is in great shape. When I had the interior out of the car I also checked and filled the hydraulic fluid reservoir for the top. It works perfectly
You will never find a build sheet in a Lansing built car. However, you will occasionally find a broadcast card from the plant. I have never heard of it before but in this case I found two! The first one was hog ringed to the back seat bottom cushion. The other one was under the carpet next to the end of the passenger side bench seat. They are identical and show that the car was built on June 24th – a very late car.
Trunk
The trunk needs detailing. It includes the factory original floor mat. I did not want to tear that up but in the areas I could see, the floor pan looks perfect. I am confident there is no rust hiding underneath it. What is not visible here is the spare tire. I was shocked to discover that it was the factory original G70-14 Uniroyal Tiger Paw WSW that came with the car! It has clearly never been on the ground as all of the original mold separation lines and markings are present. The backside is perfect and still shows where the factory marked for and installed the balancing wheel weight. I have never found one of these before. The spare tire and wheel also prove (at least to me) that the argent SSII’s on the car are original. It seems like most ‘71’s and ’72’s had the wheels painted body color but the argent color was an option – just apparently not very common.
Underside
The underside appears to be almost totally rust free. The frame is as remarkably clean and rust free as only a southern or western car can be. There is a pretty good covering of red Georgia dirt and a few hornet’s nests from storage but everything else looks great.
The car runs and drives great. It needs nothing to enjoy now. Prices for these cars are all over the map. Hagerty and NADA place the value between $26,000 and $36,000. I’m asking what I think is a reasonable $28,000. There are clones out there with higher prices so why not have the real thing?
October 12th, 2015, 01:51 PM
#3
Just an Olds Guy
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Edmonton, AB. And "I am Can 'eh' jun - eh"
Posts: 24,525
Very solid looking car. Good luck with the sale!
Just a quick FYI, the broadcast card shows the start date the car body started getting welded together at Lansing Fisher Body works. The date you posted is out a little - it's the 4th of June, not the 24th. Still it's in the last month of production so it is a late production car.
I'm amazed at how good the frame looks!
Just a quick FYI, the broadcast card shows the start date the car body started getting welded together at Lansing Fisher Body works. The date you posted is out a little - it's the 4th of June, not the 24th. Still it's in the last month of production so it is a late production car.
I'm amazed at how good the frame looks!
October 13th, 2015, 03:59 AM
#5
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Merrill, WI
Posts: 787
Allan R,
Thanks for the correction and information. I guess my vision isn't what it used to be. The frame is really clean. If I was to keep the car, I was going to pull the engine and trans to detail the engine compartment, paint the body and just clean everything else. It's that nice.
TenMidgets,
Thanks for your comments as well. I had hoped it would be seen as a fair price. I hate to sell it but as we all know - stuff happens...
Thanks for the correction and information. I guess my vision isn't what it used to be. The frame is really clean. If I was to keep the car, I was going to pull the engine and trans to detail the engine compartment, paint the body and just clean everything else. It's that nice.
TenMidgets,
Thanks for your comments as well. I had hoped it would be seen as a fair price. I hate to sell it but as we all know - stuff happens...
October 13th, 2015, 08:12 AM
#6
Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: milwaukee
Posts: 547
Very solid looking car. Good luck with the sale!
Just a quick FYI, the broadcast card shows the start date the car body started getting welded together at Lansing Fisher Body works. The date you posted is out a little - it's the 4th of June, not the 24th. Still it's in the last month of production so it is a late production car.
I'm amazed at how good the frame looks!
Just a quick FYI, the broadcast card shows the start date the car body started getting welded together at Lansing Fisher Body works. The date you posted is out a little - it's the 4th of June, not the 24th. Still it's in the last month of production so it is a late production car.
I'm amazed at how good the frame looks!
October 13th, 2015, 12:14 PM
#7
Just an Olds Guy
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Edmonton, AB. And "I am Can 'eh' jun - eh"
Posts: 24,525
1971 442 only offered the 4487 and 4467 body styles (HT coupe and Vert). Funny thing is though that the A51 Strato Bucket seats were standard equipment on all 71 442s. To get the A65 split bench seat in the vert you had to check the A65 option, which was no charge, which means you also couldn't have the console, but could have a floor shifter. IMHO, the 442 should always have come with A51 and console (D55) for AT and MT. That's just me though. The A65 seat is more practical if you want your cupholder sitting right next to you though. 
October 14th, 2015, 01:30 PM
#10
Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: El Mirage AZ
Posts: 182
Amazing find .
I was attempting to find a car just like this for a friend 90 days ago , and Rand sent further images for this car . The details on the trunk coloration and splatter , wheel and spare originality , stripes , just everything makes for a perfect canvas to build a real car from .
I hope it finds the perfect home with someone who becomes a member here .
Perhaps , do a photo documented build like Costpenn , or Jensenracing , and this one could one of the special milestone types of cars . They are really only original once .. Good Stuff . JT
I hope it finds the perfect home with someone who becomes a member here .
Perhaps , do a photo documented build like Costpenn , or Jensenracing , and this one could one of the special milestone types of cars . They are really only original once .. Good Stuff . JT
October 29th, 2015, 03:31 AM
#12
Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: maryland
Posts: 1,393
Me too. How often does a real Red 442 Conv. come up for sale; much less one that hasn't been monkeyed around. To me, this car makes sense to buy for several reasons. $28,000.00 in the bank is not appreciating and this car certainly will, the unrestored cars seem to be the latest fad and this fits that category, this seems like a drive-while-upgrade candidate, too. I'm surprised it hasn't sold.
October 29th, 2015, 05:30 AM
#13
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Merrill, WI
Posts: 787
Dave,
Thanks for the comments. I remain surprised it hasn't sold also. I've learned over the years though that things do happen for reasons we will never understand. At this point, my wife and I have pretty much decided to keep it. As you accurately point out, money in the bank isn't gaining any value and this car will. We will enjoy it a lot and work on it as time, and resources, allow.
Randy
Thanks for the comments. I remain surprised it hasn't sold also. I've learned over the years though that things do happen for reasons we will never understand. At this point, my wife and I have pretty much decided to keep it. As you accurately point out, money in the bank isn't gaining any value and this car will. We will enjoy it a lot and work on it as time, and resources, allow.
Randy
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