When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Did the 1968 Cutlass S Holiday Coupe (3368) ever have an option for the black grill used on the 442 (only without the 442 grill emblem), or did 100% of them come from Dealership with the silver vertical bar grill?
Related:
Has anyone found a spray paint that comes close to the original color of the silver grill?
re spray paint krylon "dull aluminum" spray has been used as a close match on later year grills and tailights (70-72) so probably a good match for your 68.
Did the 1968 Cutlass S Holiday Coupe (3368) ever have an option for the black grill used on the 442 (only without the 442 grill emblem), or did 100% of them come from Dealership with the silver vertical bar grill?
Cutlass got the Cutlass grill, 442s got the 442 grill, period. There is no fuzz on that whatsoever. Keep in mind that lots can happen in the half a century since these cars were built.
To add some info...the 68 H/O had the 442 grill as well, without the 442 emblem. The 442 and H/Os were void of the triangular sheet metal piece standard on the cutlass F85 grill as well as the two rubber contact bumpers affixed to the bottom of the chrome trim on the hood nose.
Are these the two rubber bumpers you are mentioning? The two on my 1968 4-4-2 are original to the car. It's the original hood to the car and this car has been in the family since new. It's a Lansing car. As you imply, though, those two bumpers don't seem to serve any useful purpose with the 4-4-2 grill!
Are these the two rubber bumpers you are mentioning? The two on my 1968 4-4-2 are original to the car. It's the original hood to the car and this car has been in the family since new. It's a Lansing car. As you imply, though, those two bumpers don't seem to serve any useful purpose with the 4-4-2 grill!
Randy C.
Yes, Randy, there seems to be no rhyme to reason here. I've seen it both ways on the 442s. I've witnessed a large majority of 68 442s without them and a large number of the other models with them(F85/Cut). Some low mileage original cars. It would make sense that it wasn't required on the 442 as there's nothing to engage the bumpers as seen on the F85/Cutlass. Quality control was loose in 68.
I don't remember if your 8 is an early or later build car? Z code? Who knows what 50 years will do. Hell, they can fall out or be unknowingly added during resto. Ever seen the 68 headlight bucket eyebrow gaskets? My 09C Z code has them.
Yes, no rhyme or reason, but I know the rubber bumpers are original to my '68. It's a Lansing 4-4-2 convertible built in the first week of April 1968. The car was bought new by my parents and stayed in the family all of these years. When I restored it (2004-07), I took great care to remove those bumpers as they are aged and there weren't any repros of them then. So, those bumpers, weak as they are right now, are still the original ones.
I've seen cars without those bumpers and just assumed they didn't have them at the time because there were no repros available or they just rotted out. But now I know what their real purpose is and it doesn't make sense that those bumpers would be on my car, except for...new guy on the assembly line...the old guy on the line made a mistake...it was Friday...and so on!
Yes, Sir, I'm (we) are well versed with your 8 and 9. Not sure which one I like better.
No science here just casual observation on the bumpers. The 442s I've seen in the last 40 years seem to not have them and the other models do or at least have evidence that they did.
Its likely that the parts were simply available to both. But the Cutlass/F85 required them and got the inspection and the 442 simply didn't matter, who to say for sure.
Another fun quirk of the late 60s at GM. The lazy parts bin supply replenisher person just looked in the trim bins on Friday and said yep there's plenty of them and went home. Or a there was a parts/drawing rev to eliminate two similar part numbers and it was just easier/cheaper to have the one with the bumpers cover both??? Hell for all I know mine had them and they rotted off.
My 09C has several early car oddities. It has the earlier style window cranks, no rubber pad above the gas filler attached to the pinch weld behind the middle of the bumper the eyebrow gaskets and a few others odd things about it. My car was so clean and dry when I bought it way back in 85 that I can't see the evidence of witness marks like I see on others. That original OEM trim piece was so nice it went back on after the resto.
I have never been able to get to the bottom of the eyebrow gaskets. No repros exist. I don't see them in the AIM. They were sandwiched between the plastic buckets and the core support held in with the eyebrow trim screws. They look like a factory molded piece with specific cuts towards the inside edge to merge into the inner grill line. They did not fit very well and interfeared with the hood line gap, but did appear to be factory? If my old memory serves me I remember another car at a Chico CA car show that was fitted with them...but that's lore until I can prove it with pics which I may have? Maybe one of the other two owners of my car added them??? Ill dig them out and upload some pics.
July 16th, 2018, 11:55 AM
