alright, i have a question for the olds guru's.........

now, i've been told that all of the 68 442's, and the 68 hurst, had the rear chassis braces that go from the top front control arm mount to the front lower trailing arm mount. but, the last 3 68's that i've taken apart....... none of them had them, and doesn't look like they ever did.

were these a optional suspension upgrade part? dealer installed?

 

They are missing on my 68 442 also. I was wondering the same thing.

 

Supposedly all W30's had them & 4 speed 442's. Mine was a 4 speed that didn't have them but the rear end wasn't original & the car originally had a non-posi rear.

 

3918061, 3918062 reinforcement listed for 70-72 A bodies, OAI, or 455, or 442.

 

68's didn't have them...came out in '70

 

Old wives tale.........


Correct! All A-bodies with a 455 except wagons.

70_Sec_2_-_Sec_5.1_.jpg

 

According to the parts book 70 W31 and 70 4200 "perf. eng." would also have them. See Group 5.382

 

Yup. If I remembe correctly, the assembly manual agrees with the '70 W31 having the braces.

 

I can believe that, but where does it show that? The illustration I posted was from that manual.

 

Sorry, Kurt, I didn't see the picture the first time you posted.

You're right, page 104 of section 4 of the assembly manual calls out the reinforcements only for 455 except 4800 (wagons). No mention of W-31.

However, look at page 102. The bolt which attaches the upper control arm to the frame is part number:
9427318 for all applications except 4400 (442s) and 35W31
9421430 for 4400 and 35W31.

I am not sure, but I believe this bolt is longer to handle the extra thichness of the brace. While this isn't conclusive, it at least implies the W-31s also received the braces.

One more bit of not-so-perfect evidence:
Figure 4-2 on page 4-1 of the Chassis Service Manual shows the frame reinforcements and states they are used foor 442s and W-31.

While I like to believe the assembly manuals are "the bible" and infallible, I have found other errors and ambiguities in them.

Comments?

 

I like the way you think. Researching these things can sometimes take a "lot" of detective work coupled with a good sense of deductive reasoning. Often it is *not* just a case of grabbing a book and and looking it up. And you absolutely need to understand the origin and significance of any source of information you have.
Yes, even the information sources directly from Olds are not always 100%, as you have already noted. Add to that the midyear changes and other minor anomalies that happened on occasion and you can end up with more questions than answers! This is exactly why I generally get as many sources of reference as possible (Like 16 different Parts and Accessories books that cover the '60s)
This particular case with the braces on W31s is a good example. Because of the different information turned up in this thread, i believe the answer can be found, but it will take more more digging to make a reasonable conclusion. Need more info to add to the mix. (This *may* end up being a mid-year thing, based on what has turned up here)