stevengerard

My car did not originally come with fender braces, I thought they may have been missing, then figured all 442 got them, then I thought only W30s got them, but according to the assembly manual all "455 coupes" received the fender braces but not convertibles.

So since they are already on, I guess it doesn't hurt correct? or should I take them off. I have never been to a judged olds show so not sure if it matters for judging either. My thinking is if they are extra support then why not keep them. Any opinions?

Bluevista

Just leave them, at most shows the judges have no idea what they're looking at anyway unless it's the nationals,and even then I don't think it would hurt. Not having them when you're supposed to might mean something at a real Olds judged show but those are few and far between. The Olds show in Alliance here was one of the biggest and best but went to the lazy organizer's participant judging this year so it all depends on how many friends you have and if you're a member of the sponsoring club, the car means nothing, schmoozing does.
I think every club officer who entered won a trophy, they shouldn't even be participating, the show has jumped the shark and I won't go back.
Rant over.

507OLDS

I never understood why they didn't put them on convertibles.They need them more than a coupe.Even the good solid ones will sag in the front,when on a lift or suported in a similar matter,causing possible issues if you need to open one of the doors.I know those skinny little bars are not going to hold the whole front of the car up,but I would think it would help keep the sheet metal in teh same zip code as the rest of the body.

stevengerard

thanks, I have yet to have my car judged so I'm not real worried but it is good info to have. I also was thinking that they should have been mandatory on all convertibles but who knows the reasoning behind that. So I guess I'll just keep them on as long as they are there. Thanks.