Not sure if this the right place to ask, but I'll give it a shot. I have a few questions:
1) Steering wheel. Mine has some cracks and the horns don't work. Has anyone tried the restoration kits? Do I need new horn contacts or new horns?
2)Gravel guards and Rocker panels: I have all mine but they are not show quality, and some genius put 2 screws right in the middle of one. Grr! Does anyone make these or refurbish them?
3)Grill emblem: mine has no color, just plain silver. Is this correct?
4) Oil: What's the best kind of oil to use? I assume something with zinc in it, but that is as far as my knowledge goes.
Sorry if these are stupid questions, and thanks for any help!

 

Not at all stupid questions. This is a great place to meet fellow Olds nuts and find information, parts, etc. '67 98's are great cars...how bout some pics?

Welcome to the forum!

 

I used Eastwoods steering wheel kit. Worked OK, have not driven much to see how paint holds up, still a work in progress.
Horn problems can be anything from dirty contacts, relay, ground etc. Check CSM. Have someone press horn and check voltage at horn. Most times I have found horns do not go bad.

 

Second opinion of Patrick that "Most times I have found horns do not go bad." As for oil, a lot of ways to go. Can get the needed zinc by adding STP (Blue) to any oil you desire. Also Shell Rotella T has the required zInc. So do Brad Penn and Hemmings Motor Oil.

Do not know about the crest. Need to see a pic.

Nor do I know about the steering wheel, other than there are steering wheel restore companies out there. Also know that others have done it themselves and are pleased with results.

 

[QUOTE=tfatboy;569163]Not sure if this the right place to ask, but I'll give it a shot. I have a few questions:
1) Steering wheel. Mine has some cracks and the horns don't work. Has anyone tried the restoration kits? Do I need new horn contacts or new horns?
2)Gravel guards and Rocker panels: I have all mine but they are not show quality, and some genius put 2 screws right in the middle of one. Grr! Does anyone make these or refurbish them?
3)Grill emblem: mine has no color, just plain silver. Is this correct?


Hi- the grill emblem (Rocket) had a Red background... the "Oldsmobile" emblem on the left side used black lettering. See Pic.

You might want to post this in the Large Oldsmobiles/98 section too. Hope this helps, Dave

 

Thanks for the replies. I will try to attach some photos. One other thing I forgot was the windshield trim on the passanger side is jacked up. I don't think it is long enough for one thing, and it isn't attached on this end and I am not smart enough to figure out how to do it. Anyone know how?

20130718_152755_zpsa28bc1fe.jpg?t=1374205746

 

Here is my emblem. I saw one available at Fusick, but it says it is for a Toronado and I am worried the posts won't match my grill.
20130718_152620_zps400f4b3e.jpg?t=1374205726

 

My cracked steering wheel
20130718_152603_zps0e3d0022.jpg?t=1374205733

 

Rocker panel with 2 screws right in the middle. Who does something like this? Please tell me someone fabricates these!
th_20130718_152548_zpsf082e766.jpg?t=1374205739

 

Ha! Figured out how to make a smaller picture! Sorry for the giant ones. Please forgive me! Here's a couple pics of my ongoing project.
th_20130713_205732_zps3b457158.jpg?t=1374205669th_20130714_141654_zps69e65046.jpg?t=1374205715th_2013-05-25_13-28-04_393_zps3e266b3e.jpg?t=1374205707

 

To try to answer some of your questions. I have a '67 Delta 88.


1. ALL steering wheels this old will have cracks in them. The plastic slowly crystallizes and shrinks over the decades. I just live with it. Restoration is possible, but, as I understand, it's expensive and not easy.

2. Nobody fabricates any body and trim parts for the big Oldsmobiles. Those lower trim panels with the screws in them are not reproduced. Any replacement will have to come from a donor car.

3. That grille emblem should be red in the middle. Mine is faded as well, and pretty much every one I've ever seen is also faded. DON'T buy the one from Fusick that looks just like it but is supposed to be for a Toronado. The mounting stud positions ARE different. In fact, MANY Oldsmobile emblems look similar but are different in terms of mounting stud locations because they're from different model years

Here's a photo of what the grille emblem should look like. It wasn't the focus of this photo, which is why it's at the far right, but you can see it just fine.





4. As far as oil, I put in a good brand of 10W-30 or 10W-40 and I add a container of STP oil treatment.

5. As far your horns, the first thing to do is make sure the horns themselves are OK. They couldn't be easier to get at as they right on either side of the hood latch right in front of you when you open the hood.



Here's the steps in testing the horns right out of the '67 factory service manual.

1. Have someone hold the horn button down and then tap each horn lightly. If a horn fails to blow when tapped, see step 6 below. If a horn does start to blow after tapping, see step 2.

2. Release horn button so horn stops blowing.

3. Hold horn button down again. If horn blows normally, your tapping has dislodged a piece of foreign material between the contact points, and the problem has been solved. If the horn doesn't blow but will blow again when tapped, see step 4.

4. To adjust horns which blow only when tapped, turn adjustment screw one full turn counterclockwise. The adjustment screw is located on the same side of the horn as the mounting bracket in line with the mounting bracket.

5. Check horn for normal operation. If it still won't work, it's time for bench testing.

6. If tapping does not cause the horn to blow, check that 12 Volts actually appears at the horn terminal when the button is pushed. You'll need a voltmeter or 12 volt test light. If the correct voltage is there, the horn is well grounded, and it still won't work, then you move into bench testing which gets more complicated.


If the correct voltage is not present, then you would need to check the wiring as well as the possibility that the horn relay is bad.


If it were me and a horn didn't work and I verified that electrical connections are good and 12 volts was getting to the horn, I'd just go buy a new one. After 46 years, most any horn could easily have gone to that big horn graveyard in the sky. Rockauto.com has both the high and low-note horns for your car for about $35 each. You might be able to get them through a local auto parts store as well.

 

Jaunty, thanks man, that helps! I wish you had better news for me though. I can't believe that there isn't someone out there that can't fabricate a rocker panel. I mean for the right money, anything can be done, right? Maybe somebody can fix the screw holes that some idiot put in it. Did I mention it's right in the middle? God Dang! As for the steering wheel, I might try to do it myself. I am running out of things to fix, lol. At least things that are in my skill level. I am headed to my first car show ever in the morning. I don't know what one does at a car show, but I am fixin to find out. I bet I'll be the only Oldsmobile in a sea of muscle cars. I also bet that my trunk will hold more beer than anyone elses too!

Did you happen to see the windshield trim pic? That is something that is going to drive me crazy. I have to fix that! But, that is one funky clip and I have no idea how it goes together. Any help on that little project would be appreciated.

By the way, your car looks amazing! I think I like your black better than my red. Both sides of my cowl seem to pop up and some of the paint is chipped where it meets the quarter panels. So a new paint job is going to be needed, but I'm gonna just enjoy this car for a while before I spend a bunch of money on it. I only paid $6,500 for the car, so I have some room to put some money into it. I definitely will need to have the dash redone, but taking it all apart scares me. Not to mention being without it for 2 months.

I appreciate your help! Trent

 

So I just found the grill emblem at oldsobsolete for $245.00! They have got to be kidding. Wow!

 

Yes. I didn't say that someone couldn't fabricate what you want. Anything can be fabricated if you find the right person and money is no object. My point was that body and trim parts for the big Oldsmobiles are not part of any company's standard catalog of products.

This is entirely possible, and don't be surprised if there are people who think your car is some funny version of a Chevy. I always remember a comment someone who was looking at my car made at a car show once. I had a '64 Jetstar 88, and he said "neat Impala!" Ugh.

If you can't get it easily, I suggest just going to an auto glass shop and let the pros handle it. They might just remove and reseat the windshield, which might be better in the long run, especially in the sense of keeping rain out. I always get nervous handling windshields. They're big, heavy, and delicate.

I didn't mean to mislead you, but that's not my car in the photo. That's a '67 Delta Custom I saw at the '09 OCA Nationals and took some photos of. I wanted an example of what a '67 Delta is supposed to look like!


Make sure you take photos at that car show. We want to see your car in with all the others, and we want to see whatever other Oldsmobiles are there!

 

Well, I made it back from the car show. It was a blast! Best part was getting my car out for an hour and a half drive to get there. Worst part was driving it home in the pouring rain! Guess what? NO other Oldsmobiles in the show. I got there kind of late and parked under some trees in the shade. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but for one, I had a bunch of leaves in my car, and two, only a few more cars came over and parked where I did so I wasn't really in the mix of things. I did win a trophy though, so that was cool! I was in the same class as some sweet corvettes, which I didn't think was fair, but big boat car wasn't a category, so I just went with antique. Any way, had fun and I'd like to do it again sometime. I'll post a link to some of the pictures I took today.

20130720_165301_zps43507fbb.jpg

20130720_151707_zpsa5c83d81.jpg?t=1374378073

 

Grr. I'll try that again

http://s1302.photobucket.com/user/tf...ldsmobile%2098

 

Jaunty, You were right. If I had one more person say nice caddy to me, I was gonna blow a gasket! Lol. Thanks for all your help. A body shop guy was at the show and helped me with the windshield trim. Trent

 

Glad you had fun!

Why was it bad driving home in the rain?

- Eric

 

I think I was just sad cause I spent a lot of time polishing, and cleaning the car. I never used the wipers before, so I was glad to find out they work! Only 1 speed, and they are hitting the side trim of the windshield. So, I'll have to see if there is a way to adjust that.

 

Rule of thumb: If you wash the car, it's going to rain.

Works for old cars just as well as for new cars.

Over the years, pretty much every time I've taken mine to an event, it's rained, and my car has no top.
What's a little water?

- Eric

 

I used a wheel cover from Wheel Skins to cover my damaged steering wheel. It is the best $50 I've ever spent on my Olds.

http://wheelskins.com/

My father and I also used one of the Eastwood kits on the steering wheel we put in his 69 Delta 88. It turned out ok. IMHO, the Wheels Skins cover is the way to go.

 

I used one of those (not sure whether it was that brand or not) on my GMC pickup with a cracked-up wheel.

I've been glad I did for tens of thousands of miles, now. Makes it much more comfortable to grip the wheel, especially during hours of high-vigilance driving, like towing.

- Eric

 

I'm a bit surprised there were no other Oldsmobiles, but I'd have been a lot more surprised if there were dozens. Get used to this!

Get used to this, too!


Local car shows/cruise-ins typically just don't have the attendance to warrant a large number of classes to accommodate everything that might show up. Many shows just do a "top 25" or "top 50" awards process rather than divide cars into however many classes. I can understand, but I do agree with you that you're sometimes up against cars (or trucks) that are nothing like yours.

I can see doing the Top 50 thing except for one thing. I would have something like two main classes, one for vehicles under 25 years of age and the other for vehicles 25 years old and older.

I don't mind so much if my '67 Delta 88 is competing against a '63 or a '73 Corvette or something like that. Both vehicles are a similar age. We may not be comparing apples to apples so much as apples to oranges here, but at least we comparing fruits. I DO, however, mind if my '67 Delta is competing against a 2011 Corvette. That's comparing apples to rutabagas and just not fair to the older car.

Actually, I think that car shows shouldn't allow any vehicle newer than, say, five model years. What fun is it to go to a car show and see cars you can see driving down the street every day or can see at your local new car dealer? What effort has the owner of that one or two year-old car put into bringing the car to the condition it's in compared to the effort the owner of a 30 or 40 or 50 year old car put into bringing his car to near showroom condition? Nothing.