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My father-in-law just passed away, and we were sent pictures of his belongings so we can plan how to dispose of them (we're in TX, he was in NY). He apparently owned this Olds for many years, and it has some sentimental value for my wife. She asked if I would be interested in taking it and fixing it up (I've owned a lot of classic cars, from 60s-70s corvettes/camaros/trans-am's etc., so I'm no stranger to that work). I am not, however, very familiar with Olds. From what I can tell, it looks like a Cutlass S, but I have no idea what year/etc. it might be. It also appears to have a "500ci" badge, which I can't find any info on from Wikipedia/elsewhere. From my brief search it doesn't look like any Cutlass was offered with a BB 500. Obviously I would have to look at it in person to see what kind of condition it might be in (and I'm guessing not great since it's a NY car with likely tons of rust), but any help doing a preliminary ID would be appreciated. As you can see, the car was less-than-tastefully modified, but that can be fixed. Pics are attached.
Post pics of the vin and firewall tag for definitive proof.
The front clip and vent wing windows on the doors do suggest 68 Cutlass S Convert. 69s did not have the vent windows(on the verts or coupes).
If the frame, floors, and trunk aren't rotted it has value regardless if the drivetrain numbers match. It definitely has parts value if it's beyond saving.
Typically they came with a 350 and 2 speed auto trans called Jetaway. A factory stick shift car is a bit more unusual and worth a little more.
A 6 cylinder is a rare bird but less desirable for most enthusiasts.
Bucket seats and console are a bit more desirable.
Depending on where it is in NY Id be happy to give it an unbiased look if its local to me.
It looks like 1968 or 1969. Tail lights will narrow it down, maybe.
Originally Posted by droldsmorland
Post pics of the vin and firewall tag for definitive proof.
The front clip and vent wing windows on the doors do suggest 68 Cutlass S Convert. 69s did not have the vent windows(on the verts or coupes).
There is no doubt as to the year of the car, and it can be determined from his first photo. It is a '68, as that was the only year in that era ('68-'72) of Cutlass where the turn signal lights were located between the headlights. For every other year in that five-year span, the turn signal lights were in the bumper.
If the peak quarter trim is on both sides (we can see it on the driver side), each of those two pieces for a convertible are worth a lot just on their own as they are very, very hard to find and, if you find them, they are very, very expensive! The door and fender peak moldings are much more available as they are the same for the two-door hardtop versions. Looks like a decent start for a restoration. Convertibles have extra value.
Randy C.
'68 4-4-2 convertible
'69 4-4-2 convertible
Got the title and insurance cards for it today, looks like the VIN is 136678M217248. I think that may be wrong and the first digit is supposed to be a 3 (so 336678M217248), but can't see the car in person yet. From what I can tell that confirms it's a 68 Cutlass Convertible w/v8? Not sure how much other info I can get from it.
I also started a website to document the journey and restoration. We'll see how it turns out! http://www.customcutlass.com
3 = Oldsmobile division (if it were a 1, it would be a Chevy)
3 = Cutlass
6 = V-8 engine (because it's an even number. If it were an odd number (5), that would indicate the L-6 engine
67 = convertible
8 = model year (1968)
M = Lansing assembly
217248 = "plant sequential number," to use the words in the chassis service manual
And yes, that first number in the VIN should be a 3 instead of a 1. If the title says 1, you may have to jump through some hoops with DMV to get it corrected.
Alright so we got the car today, and it's some really weird stuff. The body/interior is in terrible shape, so I will likely be doing a frame-off on it. The really weird part to me is the engine though. I found the casting number (390925E), which is really weird. As far as I can tell, this is a Cutlass S, not a 442. So I'm guessing at some point someone swapped a 400ci 442 engine into it? Additionally, the emblems on the side which I thought said "500ci" actually say "Sport Edition." Is that even a thing, or are these some autozone emblems that were stuck on?
Anyway, here are the rest of the pictures. I started a site to track the progress of the car (www.customcutlass.com), and will be uploading this stuff there as well!
Odds are the car came with a 350 Olds and 2-speed Jetaway automatic. You have a 65-67 vintage 400 E block which is a good engine and MUCH better than the correct 1968-69 442 G block 400- which was prone to launching its connecting rods thru the block if spun up too tight. You WILL have to be careful if you replace the cam as this big-block Olds engine is a 45 degree cam bank angle, not the later and more common 39 degree engine. Look at the lower left corner of the heads (as you're facing them) and you'll see a letter code which identifies the heads. From factory this engine could have had A, B or C heads depending on year which are good heads.
Cars worse than that have been brought back. A lot of things cross over to same year Chevelles so parts are not impossible to find. There's more reproduction stuff for this car now than there was even 10 years ago. www.fusick.com , OPGI and others supply parts and there are people who have parts.
Odds are the car came with a 350 Olds and 2-speed Jetaway automatic. You have a 65-67 vintage 400 E block which is a good engine and MUCH better than the correct 1968-69 442 G block 400- which was prone to launching its connecting rods thru the block if spun up too tight. You WILL have to be careful if you replace the cam as this big-block Olds engine is a 45 degree cam bank angle, not the later and more common 39 degree engine. Look at the lower left corner of the heads (as you're facing them) and you'll see a letter code which identifies the heads. From factory this engine could have had A, B or C heads depending on year which are good heads.
Cars worse than that have been brought back. A lot of things cross over to same year Chevelles so parts are not impossible to find. There's more reproduction stuff for this car now than there was even 10 years ago. www.fusick.com , OPGI and others supply parts and there are people who have parts.
Thank you for the response! Much appreciated. I suspect given the amount of work is going to take that I will likely swap in an LY6 in or something so I can get rid of the carb as there isn't much here worth saving. Would the block or engine be of any value to anyone since it's the 442 block?
I am fairly certain the E block was 1967 and is the more common 39º cam bank angle. That is a VERY good engine and I would seriously consider keeping it.
I am fairly certain the E block was 1967 and is the more common 39º cam bank angle. That is a VERY good engine and I would seriously consider keeping it.
I've never met a carburetor that I got along with! I've had (at separate times) a Chevy 350 and 454 both carb'd in C3 corvettes, and I've never been able to get them to work as well as I wanted, even when the carbs were professionally rebuilt/tuned. I would prefer to just put a modern, high horsepower, reliable, and easy to drive LS in there and call it a day.
I know the engine might have value to someone, so I will see if anyone wants it. I have no idea how much and olds engine like that is worth, but I guess I can do some research. I think the only other thing of value might be the peak convertible trims, which I have on both sides. I will probably get rid of those and the engine (possibly trans depending on what it is) to help fund the restoration.
Some words of encouragement for you. The interior doesn't really look bad at all! Door panels, rear seat area stuff, dash pad look from this side of the screen like they might work for you for anything other then a 1000 point resto. Don't get careless or ditch any of that on the tear down in any event. Guys prefer OE to re-pop condition considered.
You won't have any trouble finding a home for the 400ci presently in car. I needed one for years for my '66 and had a hard time finding the right combo of price and condition. Those 66-67 400's were at one time a lot harder to find in this area in pre-internet days, especially drilled for pilot bushing for manual transmission. For years I toiled under the illusion 1965 400 was the same as 66-67, which thanks to this board I now know it is not, I almost bought more then one '65. See if one of the heads has the correct "V" prefix for 442 hand stamping on front surface of head to establish if heads are 442. I can't read the casting number above exhaust ports in your one shot to help a close guess. The stamped head if correctly installed should face forward on pass side, a GM practice, but they get switched or sometimes a odd head replaces a original in pre-restoration days. So report all visible head numbering, hand stamped and cast for a closer ID.
Make sure you know exactly where you stand on frame condition. A serious point of condition regardless of what climate the car had it's use. Examine area ahead of rear wheels especially. Frame kick-ups rot out too, I have a '68 frame bad in that area I might fix for a car of mine.
Really anything else other then cowl and/or windshield base rot is straightforward work.
If money was the concern I wouldn't be restoring this car
Time for a reality check.
The factory put millions of dollars and tens of thousands of hours into making these cars reliable when they were new. NOTHING will be more reliable than a properly maintained original car. Can you add an aftermarket EFI or even do an LS swap? Sure you can. Just don't kid yourself that there won't be collateral damage that hurts reliability. And sorry, but the fact that you admit you can't tune a carb yourself suggests that you probably lack the experience and skill to convert to EFI or swap drivetrain yourself. Who is going to do this for you? Do you really think they know all the details of an Oldsmobile and how it ISN'T a Chevy? What happens when they screw up and you have to take the car back?
If you want dead-solid reliability, get a new Honda or Toyota. If you want a new car, figure out how to maintain and modify it yourself. Very, VERY few "mechanics" have a clue anymore.
The factory put millions of dollars and tens of thousands of hours into making these cars reliable when they were new. NOTHING will be more reliable than a properly maintained original car. Can you add an aftermarket EFI or even do an LS swap? Sure you can. Just don't kid yourself that there won't be collateral damage that hurts reliability. And sorry, but the fact that you admit you can't tune a carb yourself suggests that you probably lack the experience and skill to convert to EFI or swap drivetrain yourself. Who is going to do this for you? Do you really think they know all the details of an Oldsmobile and how it ISN'T a Chevy? What happens when they screw up and you have to take the car back?
If you want dead-solid reliability, get a new Honda or Toyota. If you want a new car, figure out how to maintain and modify it yourself. Very, VERY few "mechanics" have a clue anymore.
Appreciate your opinion. We'll agree to disagree and move on.
Some words of encouragement for you. The interior doesn't really look bad at all! Door panels, rear seat area stuff, dash pad look from this side of the screen like they might work for you for anything other then a 1000 point resto. Don't get careless or ditch any of that on the tear down in any event. Guys prefer OE to re-pop condition considered.
You won't have any trouble finding a home for the 400ci presently in car. I needed one for years for my '66 and had a hard time finding the right combo of price and condition. Those 66-67 400's were at one time a lot harder to find in this area in pre-internet days, especially drilled for pilot bushing for manual transmission. For years I toiled under the illusion 1965 400 was the same as 66-67, which thanks to this board I now know it is not, I almost bought more then one '65. See if one of the heads has the correct "V" prefix for 442 hand stamping on front surface of head to establish if heads are 442. I can't read the casting number above exhaust ports in your one shot to help a close guess. The stamped head if correctly installed should face forward on pass side, a GM practice, but they get switched or sometimes a odd head replaces a original in pre-restoration days. So report all visible head numbering, hand stamped and cast for a closer ID.
Make sure you know exactly where you stand on frame condition. A serious point of condition regardless of what climate the car had it's use. Examine area ahead of rear wheels especially. Frame kick-ups rot out too, I have a '68 frame bad in that area I might fix for a car of mine.
Really anything else other then cowl and/or windshield base rot is straightforward work.
Good luck
Thank you sir! Appreciate the constructive response. I will most likely strip it down to the frame to make sure everything is as it should be (as I said this is probably going to be a multiple year project). I also found a group in my neighborhood of Olds fanatics who can give me advice on the peculiarities of this particular brand, which should help a lot!
As for the heads, here are some pics. It's really hard to tell, but I think it says "V201155 G" on the front of the head. on the side, it looks like a big C, then C(G?)FD 394 548?
1964-67 V-8 Engine:
Code is stamped on the right cylinder head. Unfortunately, this only applies to what was originally the driver's side head. This code consists of a prefix letter (330 V8=T(1964-65) or W(1966-67), 400 V8 = V), then a production sequence number, followed by a suffix code letter (L = Low compression, E = 2-bbl export, G = High compression, H = 4-bbl export). A 2-letter code on the oil filler tube identified the engine.
From https://oldsjunction.classicoldsmobi...sfaq/ofblk.htm. Not sure of the accuracy. That would confirm the heads were for the 400V8 with High compression and would seem to line up with the block casting numbers.
Had to repair a few hoses, replace the battery, and use a can of starter fluid... but I got the old beast running lol. Doesn't sound great but it does idle!
I was just browsing through old posts and came across this one; what's the status of your project now? Did you ever complete it? If not, no judgement from me, I've got a '69 Cutlass S convertible that has been parked on the side of my house for 30 years.
I was just browsing through old posts and came across this one; what's the status of your project now? Did you ever complete it? If not, no judgement from me, I've got a '69 Cutlass S convertible that has been parked on the side of my house for 30 years.
Thanks for checking in! It got sidelined while I am doing a frame-off on a '72 Triumph GT6. That one will be done in the next 6 months or so, and at that point I will be back on the Cutlass. It's still on a rotisserie in the garage, so not dead yet.
I missed this the first time around, but those numbers mean the engine is from a 67 442. If you are going to LS powertrain the car, I am sure we can find a home for that 67 400 and the transmission here easily.
Need help ID'ing this model
Post a closer pic of it so we can make out what it might of come from.
I've had (at separate times) a Chevy 350 and 454 both carb'd in C3 corvettes, and I've never been able to get them to work as well as I wanted, even when the carbs were professionally rebuilt/tuned. I would prefer to just put a modern, high horsepower, reliable, and easy to drive LS in there and call it a day.
