47 Convertible

Picked up this kind of scruffy air cleaner housing at the Portland Oregon Swap Meet in April. I'm not sure what made me do it. It just asked me to please take it home with me.

My little bit of research indicates it was for a 65-67 Cutlass with the Ultra High Compression 330 cubic inch engine. It is very solid with no rust but is dirty and has what looks to be over spray from a poor repaint. A little judicious rubbing with rubbing compound might clear that up.

Housing is 17.5 in. diameter with 4.25 opening in the base where it sits on the carb. I'm just guessing it was intended to sit atop a pre Quadrajet Rochester 4 barrel.

I thought someone on CO might be in need or if not that it would make a dandy wall hanger in my shop. I'd like more information from those more knowledgeable if it is original, fits the year and engine I indicated and decals are actually original Oldsmobile.

Thanks for any further information. If its too good to use as wall art I'll put it in parts for sale.
Jerry

VI Cutty

I saw that one too but passed on it due to not knowing anything about it and not wanting to carry it for the rest of the day! Glad it found it's way to a good home.

z11375ss

Nice piece!

joe_padavano

That air cleaner is 1965 only and is sized to fit the 4GC carb. The 1966-67 cars used the Qjet and the air cleaners had the larger opening as a result.

47 Convertible

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Thank you Joe. I appreciate the information and now know the correct application. I don't have a 65 with 4GC carb and don't want to be a 'dog in the manger' if someone needs this for their 65 Cutlass. So it will likely go into parts for sale here on CO. It would be very useable with some cleaning up. Thanks again.
Jerry

Octania

good score
much nicer than what we get here

47 Convertible

Thanks to all for the information and compliments. I picked it up on a whim mostly because it looked so cool and really did want to come home with me.
I don't know if these are at all scarce nor what a realistic range of values might be. So, if I can ask one more favor on what a reasonable range of values is, it would be most helpful

Jerry

joe_padavano

Jerry,

You clearly have this wrong. The fact that the air cleaner wanted to come home with you means that now you need a 1965 Cutlass to park under it.

47 Convertible

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That's what a normal Oldsmobiler might reasonably conclude but I was never meant to own a 65 except briefly. Here is proof:

Decades ago I did briefly have a 1965 Cutlass Convertible. It was white all over (paint, upholstery, top). I bought it pretty cheap thinking I would fix it up and see how I liked it --do you see a theme here yet?

Anyway, I cleaned up rust around deck lid opening and in trunk, prepped it and had it painted. White, what else, as I didn't want to go to the expense of changing colors which is a real pain done the correct way. Mechanically it was good and upholstery was great. It was nice but it had a slug of a 330 with 2bbl carb and the two speed automatic transmission. All show and no "go" as they say. But it was really a looker. The car equivalent of a 'trophy wife.

A few months after being fixed up a guy is following me in his BMW and keeps honking at me and gesturing for me to pull over. I finally did and he insists he is going to buy the car. I said its not for sale and he kept on until I named a price that was about 2.5 times what I had in the car. I figured that would make him go away. He wants to drive it, gives me his drivers license and keys to the BMW and off he goes for a ride in the Olds.

He is back in 20 minutes and says he will be at my house that evening with cash and his wife and they will take it if I have a clear title. I thought I'd never see him and he just wanted to relive his youth for 20 minutes during that ride. So I said OK.

Darn, that evening he does just as he said. Brings a nice looking blonde wife who loves the Olds at first sight, hands me money, I hand him keys and title. They drive off into a nice summer evening with the top down and her at the wheel of the Olds. Total time of ownership about 6 months most of which was in the shop or the paint booth.

If it had been equipped with a 4 speed and the Ultra High Compression 330 I might have had the 65 until this day. So maybe its God's joke on me to put that 65 Cutlass Ultra High Compression air cleaner right in front of my face at the swap meet twenty years later.
Jerry

joe_padavano

See, now I would read that as proof that you absolutely have the touch with 65s and are destined to get another.

Great story by the way, and no one would argue with selling a car for such a profit.