How did you get your Oldsmobile?

[marcar1993]

I was at a car club meeting with my dad, and they mentioned someone giving away a FREE 1968 Chevy C10. I asked, pestered, my dad to get it, he finally 3 weeks later said ok. Well, by then it was gone. I was on the hunt for a project. Growing up in a mopar family, I wanted a mopar, nothing in particular, just a mopar. When I noticed that was way out of my price range, I thought I'll never get a car (At least not at age 12). Fast foward a year, I'm out for a sunday ride with my grandpa and I happened to see a for sale sign in the window of an 87 Cutlass. I stopped and looked over the car. It was originally $650, he lowered it to $500. My dad has a t/a, so I knew Poncho's at least. I took the ph# and went on my way. When I got home I told my dad and we set up to see the car the next day.
We got there, looked over the car, it needed a radiator, the owner was driving it everyday and didn't want to invest the money in a 20 year old car to drive everyday, plus it was hit in the passenger side, needed a door, fender and the 1/4 banged out. So, I told him I definatly want the car, I'll call you if I can get the money.
I got $180 together and gave him a deposit, drove the car home 2 miles with a cracked radiator tank on April 23, 2007. About a month later I payed him the other $320 and all was said and done.
Since then I've replaced the radiator, the alternator, battery (killed by radiator spraying), dissasembled the interior and cleaned it, converted the bench into buckets (Cut the seats), replaced the door and fender and banged out the 1/4. Now I need a motor and trans, they've got about 150k miles on it and weren't very well kept. In the end I want a 403 and a 4 speed.

To this day I have keys to his ford that were on the ring he gave me.

When I bought it



Now

[the_boat]

Originally Posted by Rallye469

I found my Rallye 350 in Hemmings.

freakin' sweet.

[geckonz08]

My first n only Olds was a 1937 sedan .A friend n I wanted to go touring for xmas --warm time here in New Zealand at this time
A young chap --about our age at the time --needed the money to go to university. He wanted $240 for it .A bargain even 20 yrs back.
The olds was black --were they all?? and had only 6 owners .
We toured NZ for 3 months picking up american (mainly) hitchhikers --sometimes as many as 8 in the vehicle .
The favourite trick was to use the dashboard accelerator knob and swap drivers whilst still moving along the highway.-
Have some pics somewhere which I will try to locate --people all over the vehicle and taken in a town the day before the police forbad us in their district --we were evicted ,hangers on n all .
Today the vehicle is in Southwards car museum looking a picture

[Longhorncutlass]

Bought mine sight unseen from a guy in Ohio who I don't know (I live in Texas). Saw the car on the internet, but not on ebay. Mailed him a check and had the car transported to Houston where I saw it for the first time when the transport truck dropped it off at my house. I don't advocate buying a car this way, but I really lucked out. Car was just as nice in person as in the internet pictures!

[projectheaven]

I travel across the country alot so I found my cutlass while I was out of town.I was in Los Angeles and seen a ad on san francisco's craigslist.The guy didnt have a picture posted but I still was interested in it.I seen the ad on my blackberry from the airplane and called him during takeoff and told him I was flying from L.A. andI would be there in 2 hours.As soon as my wife picked me up we drove to the guys house and he had it covered up.When he pulled the cover off I knew i wanted it.I tried not to act happy but it didn't work.I gave him the $1200 that he wanted and called AAA to tow it home even though I could of drove it.The guy said it didnt run good and the tranny was bad but I still wanted it.So I got it home and put tranny fluid in it and corrected the fireing order and I was doing burnouts 1 hour later.

[tndrtgr]

In 1970 my dad wanted to buy my mother a new car. He really liked the look of the Toronado. We all went down to the local dealership to look at the cars. We were walking around looking at the cars when I spotted her. I immediately got my father's attention and showed him the car. He said it was nice, but we are here to get your mother a car. I told him that with this car my mom could get my sister and I to school much faster than with the Toronado. He looked at the car and then looked at my mom. She said that she liked the look of this car better than the Toronado. So we drove home in 1969 Hurst Olds that has 12,000 miles on her. I told the salesman that the Hurst Olds was going to be my car when I grew up, of course I was only 5. When I was 9 years old my dad bought a Quarter Midget for my sister and I to race. We pulled it behind the H/O. Of course it was metallic gold. When I turned 16, I started driving it to school. In 1989, the Olds Dealer had a few of the local Oldsmobile Club's cars on display to kick off Hot August Nights. My car was parked on the ramp leading into the building. I was standing in the building with a group of people when I heard one salesman talking to another saying how he sold one just like that in 1970. He said that the buyer's daughter told him that someday that car would be hers. He said he often wondered what ever became of her and that car. I leaned over and said "I told you it would be mine someday!" Boy was he surprised.

The picture attached was taken in 1989 as I was driving through Washoe Valley, Nevada. I still have her and the only time she will be sold is at my estate sale. I have done all of the Body work and Paint on the car. The engine is the 3rd one. The engine blew sometime in the early 70's and was replaced through warranty (bad oil pump). In 1990 I was driving from Elko to Reno and grenaded the engine. One rod went through the oil pan and the other ate a 4" whole into the block (Parts made a great hard luck trophy for our club).

I hope to have her back on the road in the next 2 years. -M'Lisa

[Oldsguy]

All good stories. I am really liking this thread.....

[JSGD1966]

It was in my family since 1967. My Grandfather bought the Cutlass which was originally a rental. It had a nice options package, power top, windows, steering, brakes, tilt wheel, bucket seats, automatic on the floor, posi rear and factory a/c. The engine is the ultra high compression 330 with a single 4bbl. Soon my parents bought the car from him and had it for a few years. Costly repairs prompted them to trade it in on a Ford. My Grandfather heard this and drove straight to the dealership and bought the car back! My Grandmother then drove the car after that. I grew up appreciating the car from the back seat as a child. I remember I was never allowed to put the back windows down. When I turned 17, I worked hard making barely $5 an hour at a local restaurant washing dishes and I mowed lawns every summer for three years and bought the car from my Grandparents for $1,000. Every penny I had, but it was mine and totally worth it. I have had it ever since and have slowly been working on it. It even made a little debut in a movie, Girl, Interrupted. Not my kind of movie, but it was filmed locally and they were looking for period cars. I called them and I was in. My plans for the car have shifted many times over the years. Should I keep it original, make a resto mod or should I make it a pro touring car? I settled on just making it "mine". A combination of everything. I decided to pull the two speed auto trans and replace it with a 3 speed TH350 with a shift kit, replaced the 3.08 rear with a 3.55 and a set of Kooks headers. The 330 will stay but will be freshened up with an aluminum intake and mild cam. Other mods to come but want to keep the emphasis on reliable fun. I have taken it on the HOT ROD Power Tour with my Dad and had an absolute blast! I now am 35 with a wife and three daughters 10, 5 and 1. They all love the car and enjoy summer drives with the top down. I look forward to making another generation of memories in the Cutlass and someday will pass it along again.

[Keieljun]

Mine truly is my father's Oldsmobile.

Or it WAS, anyway. We knew this baby would be mine since my age was still in the single-digit range, so Dad put it in the shed for 34 years - I never knew dust could get that thick!

The interior is like the one currently selling on eBay (Item number: 320238939285), but mine's got a couple miles short of 100,000 miles. It's a driver now, but it's completely restorable. The few things that need to be replaced in a frame-off I already have in my personal warehouse for when that day comes.

[dynamic88371]

well my dad had one in high school his was a 4 door hard top and would tell use about it so i got online and found a same as his but it was a 2 door for $1500 so i sold my dad on it and we drove to a town close to chicago in a weekend got it back to houston and by the time x-mas got close i had it running good but really it needs a frame off restoration done to it but now i dont know id really like to keep it but i dont have the time for it and the body need a lot of work rust but not to bad i think but i just came across another 60 olds that was really nice and it has renewed my intrest in it but i want to put a lot more hp then what my 371 has in it now and i want to swap out the 2 speed auto for a 6 speed man and make it a sleeper so my cuz is helping me with a 455 he knows a guy that wants to get rid of his 455 and i think i can get it for free he said its out of a hurst olds so i dont know what i want to do just that i want to do it now so any help i could get i could really use right now

[nohn]

I owned a 69 Cutlass back in 1994 that cost me only $400.00. I was young back then so I didn’t know what I had at the time. That car was sitting in a driveway covered in dirt and spider webs, it was so dirty you couldn’t see through the windows. I had it for a good 7 and it ran like a champ. It had a few things that needed to be fixed like the right quarter panel and the smell of gas that filled the car when it was running. I got pass the gas smell by lighting incense while I was driving. Yes really dumb but I remember I was young and fresh out of high school. I didn’t know anything fixing cars so that is how I fixed the bad smell. Any way I sold the car to a friend and he took better care of it then I did and that was the end of that car.

Now this is my second time around with one of the best but underrated cars in the world. Now I am a proud owned or a 69 Cutlass Supreme. My wife and I looked in the all the old car news adds we could possibly find. We looked at a 69 Cutlass convertible, but the seller was asking $17,000. The car was in great condition and needed very little work. I wasn’t happy with the price and it had too much new stuff on it. I wanted to be able to work on the Cutlass that I get, so it will have my blood, sweat, and hard earned money in it.

So after I returned for a 6 month deployment I was on the hunt again. I checked on EBay, news paper, and Diablo dealers and no luck. A friend told me about Craig’s List and that is where I found my lady. I called the seller and asked all the questions and it sounded like a great deal. The car was in Sacramento, CA. and I was living in San Diego, CA. which is about an 8 hour drive. I talked to the Boss (my wife who is stationed in Naples It.), emailed her the pictures that were posted online. She gave me that ok, I called the seller and he said a guy was coming by to look at it in an hour and if the guy doesn’t by it he will call me. He called me a hour later and I told him I will be on a plain on Friday. That was going to be 3 days after out phone call. He asked for a deposit which was fine with me so I put it in his bank account.

I flew to Sacramento and stayed at a friend’s house and the next morning I bought the car for $5,700 and drove her back to San Diego. The only problems I ran into on the way home was my IPod and cell phone batteries died on me. Thank God the car drove like a champ. Now we I have the car here in Naples, It. I have been here for over a year and I am proud to say 75% of my project is done. My car is currently at an interior shop getting new Italian leather seats, carpet, and door panels. When it is finished I will post before and after pic’s of the interior work.

[Aussie67Delta88Custom]

My girlfriend and I are into 60's Aussie GM (Holden) cars and are the founders of our States HD HR Holden Club ( if you wonder what they look like go and have a look at www.hdhrholden.com ).

About 2 years ago we had a 65 sedan, 66 wagon (modified), my girlfriends 67 Sedan ( only done 31,400ish miles & has 53 trophies to its name ) and my 68 sedan (sports 186ci motor with GMH's first 4speed on the floor !) project... when we were coming home from a Club run one day I said to her "I'm going to sell them all" ( all but hers that is ). She thought I had lost my mind.

That week I listed the 65 on Ebay and 7 days into the auction my father calls me and said that he'd had a look a cool cruiser that day in a neighbouring town ... Lochsport.

I asked what it was and he said it was a 67 Oldsmobile. Then he said the magic words - pillarless - 4 door - Big Block - right hand drive converted ... and I was interested !

No, I didn't really know Oldsmobile as a brand, but a couple of weeks later a couple of mates and I went for a look.
The idiot son of the previous owner had rolled the Olds out of the garage and into the carport so that he could store his 2 damaged Datsun rally cars in the garage ... the carport was about 200 yards from the beach !
My father said it was for sale from a deceased estate and that the seller was pretty dumb about the whole thing so he thought we might get it for a steal ... maybe $4000.

A couple of days after we saw it I sold my GMH 65 and had the $4000 so I called him and asked him to make it happen. Unfortunately someone had got in the seller ear about how rare these cars must be in Australia and so he called me back to say the bloke wanted $5800 now !

I asked for the sellers phone number and called him up... after telling him what a great household his fathers treasured Olds would be going to he agreed to sell it for $5500 in 3 weeks time.

3 weeks later I had organised a long backed tilt tray tow truck to fetch the Olds and went with him to pick it up ... 2.5 hours each way... cost me $450 cash but it was worth it.

I have had my 67 Delta 88 custom about 18 months now, with it leaving for a workshop last November and I cannot wait to get it back on the road with its new 455, auto, LPG only fuel system, & new paint and chrome.

I have joined the Oldsmobile Club of Australia but have found them to be more into the pre-50's vehicles so I created www.oldsmobilesdownunder.com and have found many 60's Olds enthusiasts online and on Ebay.

My Olds' progress can be seen at - http://groups.msn.com/MyAussie67Olds88

enough from me for now

[Oldsguy]

Gary,
I like that engine! No alternator, no power steering, no A/C. Looks cool with that little belt from crank to water pump. I realize that is just a Dyno set up but still I love it. It really shows off the engine for what it is. Too bad they can't shine like that when they get in the engine bay of the vehicle.

[Aussie67Delta88Custom]

Dan,
Yes it was an interesting visit... but I like the look of it now it's painted better .
Thanks for checking it out.

[pontchief]

I found mine for sale at the HAMB, but he wouldn't sell it out of USA

Later he put it on eBay and when it was 24 hours left, he mailed me, that I could bid on it.

I bought it for 7500$, the price at the HAMB was 10 000$

This car will be finished next year.

Picture from eBay



Transportation from Columbus Ohio, shipped out from NJ.



Transportation from Oslo Norway's capitol to North Norway.600 miles




Today

[esisson]

When I started this thread I had no idea that there would be this much enthusiasm from classic Oldsmobiles owners and fans. I just wanted to thank everyone for taking the time to share their own personal stories. You guys and gals rock! I've really enjoyed reading each one.

Without a doubt, I've learned from you all that fixing up an old car has nothing to do with how much $$$ is spent, but that the rewards of aquiring/restoring/owning/driving a classic Olds far outweight the challenges that one experiences during the restoration process. Damn I'm getting philosophical!!!

Again, Thanks for all the stories keep em coming!!!

[real442]

I found my 68 442 convertible by accident. I was talking with a guy that was doing some work for my parents and we started talking cars. He told me he had a car he needed to sell and I asked him what it was. He told me I figured there was no way I could afford it untill he told me he wanted $1300. for it. I looked at it that night. It was a 68 442 convertible 4speed, power steering, 12 bolt posi rear, power top, power antenna with 74k on it. It was never apart and never repainted. He had the protect-o-plate, window sticker, and manual with the original owners info in it. His uncle bought it new and sold it to his brother in the 80's who gave it to his son in 93 who sold it to me. I bought it for $1000.00

[Modern Motoring]

Craigslist, I looked at a 63 88 convertible down in Stockton. It was clean and original, but didn't run worth a crap, it would go about 50 to 200 feet and sputter out. It was priced a bit high @ 13.5k since it didn't run and I would have to tow it home.
A week later I found Marge, my 63 98 convertible. She was up in Minden Nevada. She was topless at the time, ran OK, but the steering was shot. The owner wanted 10k and I offered 8.5 and he took it! Filled up the tank with gas and back down to Sacramento she went !

[Oldsguy]

pontchief, how do you like the big engine in that older car? Just wondering.

[Redog]

Well I'm reading all these stories and I have to expand mine now.

Went to Vegas in 1999 for a week with the wife (ex wife now) and I had a rental, a 1999 Oldsmobile Alero. I loved the car, I thought I was driving a V6 all week. We took that car to the western ridge of the Grand Canyon, Death Valley National Park, My Zion National park, and of coruse the Hover Dam. I just wanted to drive the car.

After our week in Vegas and 1000 miles on the rental, I poped the hood and to my disbeliefe, I was looking at a 2.4 twin cam 4 cyl motor This little 4 banger had more balls than my 3800 Cougar 6 months later, the Cougar's 2nd motor deceied to die with only 65,000 miles so I went car shopping.

The Alero was on the list, esp after I found out they offered a 3.4 liter V6 motor. Test drove the car, and almost didn't buy it. Loaded the car was $22,980 and I didn't want to pay $450+ a month for the car. I tried to walk out of the dealership and they stopped me and asked if I'd take the car if they got the price down. Well they did.

The Alero's story is fast forwarded to 2005. I'm getting more into drag racing now and the stall launches at 2500 RPM's didn't do the tranny very well. I blew the weak 4t45 tranny on a launch, but all the car did was slip. I finished out the day and drove the car the rest of the week. Friday of that week the car started slipping and missing gears a bit and a huge puddle of a thin clear liquid was under the car everyday. This was due to the 6" x 2" hole that was blown out of the driver's side axle housing. $2000 and a week later, the car's back on the road.

My mech told me to buy another car for racing and not to race this car all the time anymore. Look for a "framed" car, because of the strenght it will have for more power. I was looking all over the place. My wife suggested buying an Olds for this. I was looking for a "G" body car, but not neccessaryly an Olds.

I drove all the way up to the New Jersey sticks to look at a 1988 4 door Cultass and was only in OK shape, but ran pretty good. It was on eBay and the guy wanted $800. I told him I'd bid on the car, I did, and the bidding when over the $1000 I wanted to pay. I found the Delta on eBay, with a fresh paint job, but not insured or reg'ed for a year or 2. The guy was still driving it around. He wanted about $1600 of the car. I haggeled a bit but I really wanted the car. I got it for $1450 and he took it off eBay after I sent him the money. He had over 20 watchers, but he told my wife when we picked it up in Lodi, NJ that he was willing to sell the car to me since I took the time to come up and look at it and test drive it, and he knew the car was going to a good home.

I then got the bad news with the Delta It needed a center link, rear wheel cyl, 2 front tires, and something else to pass inspection in PA and I was told that since the title was a New York State transfer, it needed to pass emissions in PA and could not be exempted. After $800 for inspection, and an exemption form My pissed off wife drove me down to pick the car up. It hasn't needed anything for the past 2 inspections, and in Jan 09 it will probably just need rear brakes and rear tires.

My mech helper hated the Delta, it was down there a lot to fix little things that were wrong, so he decided to only put in 2 quarts of oil after replacing the manifold. I didn't know that was why the oil light kept comming on, I thought it was the oil pump. After changing the oil, the motor blew a few weeks later. 6 months pass, while paying for a wedding, trying to find and build a 350 Olds to drop in the car. Got lucky and found one that didn't need a rebuild right away with a 400 tranny (which is being rebuilt right now)

The Alero will be getting a new bottom end from GM in a few years with a set of "stage 1" heads (milled .020 for 10.1:1 CR, 3 angle valve job, LS1 springs, Virton seats, gasket matching on the intake side) and a cam, haven't decided on stage 1 or stage 2 yet, probably a stage 1, stage 2's lift is .556/.560

I love them both the same. I hope my new mech will let me do some of the work on the Alero's new engine like my old mech let my do the work on the Delta's 350. It was a PIA, but a good learning experience and fun at the same time

[garyboehm]

This story is so sad that I almost hate to share it...almost. My wife and I ordered a 69 442 and took delivery in the fall if 1969. We enjoyed the car for two years, until kids and a shrinking budget caused me to trade it in on something more...ah...family oriented. It was a 4 speed, factory air, 8-track Meadow Green over Gold (which must have been special order - according to the books I have now, Meadow Green over Gold wasn't possible).

In 1999 I started to look for a 69 442. All I could find were finished cars that I couldn't afford, rust buckets, or non-factory air cars. In 2001 a new co-worker told me of a guy that had a bunch of 'Cutlasses or something' not far away. My wife and I drove all over that area, but couldn't find anything. The co-worker finally got his number and I called him on a Friday afternoon. I told him I was looking for a 69 442, factory air project car. He said he was looking at one right in front of his shop. I said, no you don't understand, a 69 442 factory air project car. He said, right, it's in front of me. I told him I'd be there in an hour. My wife and I met him, and we bought the car. It had a 455, auto tranny, interior was shot, but the body looked good, only one rusted out section on the left rear quarter. He and his wife were in the business of rebuilding cars, and we struck up a deal. He would make this car into a driver, new interior, & paint. Then I made a fatal mistake, over the next two months, I paid him 100%. They were about our age (old enought to know better) and I thought I could trust him.

Two years later, he had not touched the car, it still sat in front of his shop. I had since gotten the title, and found out that I was the official second owner of a Texas car! Neither he, nor the young man that bought it from the original owner had changed the title, so I'm second.

Then I made my second fatal mistake. I told him that I wanted to take the car to the Woodward avenue show that was coming up in several months. He said he wouldn't let me. LET ME! HUH? Then he said not unless we did a frame off restoration. I asked him what that would add to the price, and he said $800, and add two weeks. TWO WEEKS??? Anyway, I thought it might push him, so I said do it. In about 1 month I drove by and he had taken the body off the frame, sat it on rims, and I couldn't find the frame. After several months, (forget Woodward) I asked him about my frame. He said it was in a frame shop, I asked which one, and he said he wouldn't tell me, because I might cause trouble. (Yup, he got that right!). After about another year, I decided it was time to pull the plug. I contacted a lawyer, and was advised I was wasting my time. The guy probably didn't own anything. I'm sure all the cars in his yard were owned by someone else.

The lawyer sent him a letter, but it didn't do any good. So I contacted the Sheriff, and was told it I wanted to 'take' my property, I'd have to do it when he wasn't there. So, I gathered up all my male kin, 9 of us, and we loaded my body on a trailer. When we got there, there was a rolling frame sitting next to my car. My nephew said, 'Isn't that your frame?'. I don't think so, I said. He said 'I think it is'. I said, maybe it is! So we took it too.

The next morning, the guy called me, calling me every name that's unprintable. I told him I'd swap frames.

After several days dealing witht the Sheriff to make sure the swap happened, I took his frame and swapped for my frame. He gave me my front fenders that day. I asked him for the rest of my parts, but he refused.

So for the past 2 years I have been slowly replacing the parts, and licking my wounds over the money I lost.

The frame has been powder coated and is now being re-assembled. The body work is almost done. In about a month I'll have the body on the frame, then I'll start on the interior. I bought a 400 engine a year ago, and it has been rebuilt and painted and I found a rebuilt M22 4 speed.

When this car is done, I'll have more money and emotional energy in it than anyone in their right mind would do. But I'm determined to drive this 442 one day and spit in the eye of that thief!