1972 road test of a '71 W-30 convertible! Those bias ply tires make me cringe! Enjoy~

Craig

 

I like the look of the old bias ply's. Cool video!

 

I was waiting to see if those bias plys would roll right off their beads. Fun ride for sure!

 

It's funny how, even though performance and quality seemed frozen there for a couple of decades while technology caught up, now the standards have finally improved so much.
My 75 year old father's Acura crossover grocery getter could beat that on all fronts, silently, with the climate control on and all cups firmly held in their cupholders.

Of course, driving the Acura is like driving a polished bar of soap, while driving any Olds convertible is just plain fun, and if the Acura's computer decides to, it can lock the doors, hit the gas, and disable the brakes, all while playing a Banzai yell over the 16-speaker stereo, but, still, it's amazing what the new cars will do.

- Eric

 

Not to mention the "Bucket" seats that wont hold your DERRIERE in around a few of those slides!

Craig

 

Of all the things that Olds (and GM) did right, the A-body front end geometry really sucked..............

 

That was cool! The professional driver makes it look easy. They had a lot of nice things to say about that car.

I really liked the reverse 180*.

 

Something tells me if I try that reverse 180, Dad will hear about it...after something breaks. LOL. Nice video!!

 

Now that is funny right there

I had an 84 trans am in my more stupider days that was a great one for pulling off the old reverse 180*


Great video, thanks for posting.

 

Love it!!!

Regarding the bias-ply tires, they obviously don't grip as well as today's radials, but I don't see them rolling over any more. If you saw a close-up of radials under hard cornering, you'd cringe at them, too. In fact, I bet they roll over more. Of course, that's partially due to the fact they grip better and thus experience more lateral force.

 

Well, speaking of wringing out a 442…

I must say this video influenced me greatly on my purchase!
I never got the hot girl that came with it. Maybe it is a blessing
in disguise!

Craig

 

Yes, it is. I know because I did get her. Maybe not the exact one in the video, but pictures of my wife from the eighties look exactly like her. Either that or Pat Benatar.

As in the video, when they look like that, they're nothing but trouble.

- Eric

(The actress's name is Ingrid Anderson, by the way)

 

i cruise with a pair of 40 year old l60 firestone super sports on the rear just like 'back in the day' wouldnt have it any other way. if i raced of course i would upgrade

 

Lucky you! I hope she didn't so the same to your car!!!!!

I hope the tires aren't 40 years old!!!!

 

Never mind the car - she'd do that to me if she ever got a mind to.
Back when this video was made, she broke her (now ex-) husband's girlfriend's jaw when she caught them together - pulled her out from behind the driver's seat and busted her one in the chops. And she was thin like the actress in the video, too (still is, come to think of it).

- Eric

 

As much as I love these cars I can't help to chuckle when they brag about the handling and braking. I realize this video is very old and these cars were probably really good in their time but 70 to zero in 191 feet. My 540 does it in 120 feet. I would hate to think how my 69 would stop, it has four wheel drum. But everything aside I would love to have it. Great videos.
Cheers

 

I liked both videos. I was going to make a comment about how I'm not interested in chasing girls that don't want to be chased, but the end of the video redeemed the girl; maybe she was just doing the old "s**t test."

 

Again, a LOT of that is the tires. With the good rubber I have on my '70 442, I'll put its braking performance up against any of the ABS crap they put on cars today. I've only got discs on two wheels instead of four, but I bet I stop quicker.

 

I am sure we all shudder to think about cars then and now. Back then you had a couple of tons of steel surrounding you and you could still get wacked hitting a light pole, these days, you have a pretty good chance of surviving. Bad brakes, bad tires, poor handling by today's standards, rotten fuel economy, little to no "safety" features, points and carb adjustments galore. They were all death traps in comparison. But yeah, very fun and there is nothing like a 4bbl wide open and the roar and torque of a Olds V-8. New cars have no soul with a few exceptions and those exceptions start in the $100K range.

If I had more money than sense, aside from having several Oldsmobile's in the stable, I think my daily driver would be a Mercedes Benz E63 AMG. I drove a 2012 E63 and whoa man! Not the fastest sedan in the world, but just the thrust of flooring it at a roll was breathtaking!

 

This about sums it up.

 

Maybe it is shallow of me to notice the 442 has a granny steering wheel but I would still prefer to drive the old car instead of the new one in the later crash video. Just need to watch for the Idiot in the newer car IMO.

 

The 70 Olds has a much better frame than the 59 Impala. They picked about the worst year to prove a point (biased.)

 

Those "X" frames probably weren't too good in a crash!

 

That would be a bet I would take you up on. I realize this is an Oldsmobile forum and I love my 442 and would dump the BMW long before I would get rid of the Olds but as far as braking I'm afraid the 540 might do a little better. Tires are definitely a factor and sticky tires can be put on the Olds but the 50/50 weight distribution of the 540 is a large factor as well.