OK, I know this is a loaded and probably unanswerable question. However I will just lay it out there and see what happens. What can I do to tell what options my Cutlass came with from the factory without the build sheet?
I know that 72 was the year of the W-29 where you can have anything the 442 had without the power or W-30 tag. What options were there? My car appears to have factory boxed trailing arms and rear sway bar. Faux hood louvers, Factory ac and is a convertible. Wonder bar radio with 8 track player, tilt column with a front split bench. When I got her she had no interior and the front clip was off. I know she was a bench by the cowl tag. The 455 is the original engine (I verified the #'s on the driver’s side of the block and it matches the VIN.)
I have found the previous owners that date back to roughly 15 years ago. She originally had the faux hood louvers and I now have two hoods, one with and one without. Can I find out without the build sheet if she had stripes, or which grille set she had? Her VIN is 3J67U2M113317 and I will post the cowl info when I get home. Thanks for any assistance.

 

I believe the U in the VIN denotes a 455 so does V (4-speed?) and X (W30).
Convertibles would have the boxed trailing arms so that would be on Cutlass and 442 convertibles, either way with the U in the VIN you have a nice documented 455 convertible

 

You are correct Steven and with it being built in Lansing chances of finding the build sheet are slim to none However you may be able to find a broadcast card or two I wouldn't worry too much about the W29 since it was just an "Appearance & Handling" Package not a Performance Package. But I know the desirability of a 442 is a bit more than if it were just a Cutlass Supreme Convertible.

 

Post some pictures if you can. I'm always interested in seeing another '72. ( W-29 or not .)

 

I have a 72 supreme convertible without rear sway bar. Did'nt think all convertibles came with rear sway bars. Thought the only way to get rear sways was to order the W29 package.

 

Thanks for the input. I know all convertibles did not have sway bars and boxed control arms from the factory because my first 72 did not have them. However she was not a BB car, so maybe with the addition of the BB you got the better suspention. Honestly I am not concearned about my car being a "442" or not. I would just like to know what she looked like when she was a baby. It may alter the way I restore her. I promise to get some pics up soon of Red Wine 1 and 2. Thanks again for the insights.

Semper Fi

D

 

I thought this for many years too, but with these "special ordered" and "dealer installed" options i hear about, i don't know what was or wasn't available on these cars anymore.

 

My 72 Supreme Convertible 350 does not have boxed control arms, but the arms are predrilled for a sway bar that I bought NOS and added a year or so ago.

 

Thanks, I was hoping I was'nt losing my mind after all I have read and heard about this topic.

 

How did you attach a sway bar to non-boxed control arms? Are the open arms strong enough to safely stand the twisting force of the bar? Please keep an eye on them.

 

You did not have to have the W29 package to get the boxed lower arms and sway bar. Those were the FE2 suspension option. All W29 cars had that option standard, but you could have the FE2 suspension on a non-W29 car. I've had multiple '72 Supreme hardtops that could not be W29 442s that had the FE2 suspension and had it documented on their window stickers/build sheets.

 

The U code also denotes factory dual exhaust with WZ manifolds.