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So I just wanted to put this out to the knowledgeable Oldsmobile people. Did Oldsmobile have a list of VIN's (Vehicle Identification Number) for cars in brochures etc?
Are you looking to identify the specific car used in the photos in a dealership brochure? I think you'll find that most of those are pre-production models and may or may not have even had VINs assigned. Keep in mind that those brochures were laid out and printed months before the cars were released to the public.
And some were just doctored pictures that were airbrushed to look different than what they were. Pre-photoshop. I'm sure it was pretty common to have slight differences in production vs. the cars in the brochures.
1971 brochure comes to mind with the 442 spread as far as pre-production parts. I'm sure there are many other examples. Has 1970 style mirrors on the car, the grille wasn't as recessed as the production model, and the body side stripes appeared to be slightly different spacing and/or thickness than production stripes. At least they did go with the 3-part stripe. Then again, it could just be camera angle but something just doesn't look right about them.
The 1986 Oldsmobile brochure talks about the Salon/442 together. 1986 was supposed to be the year they would first use the new "Euro nose" as it was nick-named as was used on 87-88 Cutlass Supreme 2 doors. For whatever reason, that front end was delayed, which really screwed up the parts books that were already printed. With a close look, you can even tell the airbrushing done to change the nose in the official brochure. They just dipped into the previous 1981 model for the grilles for re-use, and made the centers black for Salon/442. The Salon has the "Oldsmobile" emblem too low in its picture. The 442 appeared to have a chrome bumper, but in reality it was painted silver. There was also the use of the "wedge" mirrors which they completely forgot about airbrushing them out, so they remained in the brochure pictures. And for the longest time, the parts catalog still listed one of the outside mirror glass pieces as the same part number for the wedge mirrors, which also was used on Monte SS starting in 1986.
Last edited by 69HO43; April 16th, 2022 at 06:40 AM.
The reason I brought it up is because of this picture. This car.
I know it most likely isn't but I swear this car is optioned exactly like my old car. Same tires. Same wheels. Same color. You can see the standard steering wheel. Standard rear view mirror. No rear speaker. Thin pin stripe. Factory hood and sport mirrors. Every time I see these I think about it. I have the dealer invoice and build card from under the seat. They are tucked away though. Have to dig them out.
There were 14,709 442 Holiday Coupes built in the 1970 model year. How many of those have you seen? More than one of them came with W25, sport mirrors, and rally red paint. You'll note that the mirrors on the car in the magazine ad above are not the final production sport mirrors either. Also note that the car in the magazine ad has SSII wheels.
Yes I get it. My car came with the SS II's. I took the wheels in the picture of my car off of my SX that I had at the time. That picture is from 1984. I am sure it probably isn't the same car but like I said I have seen many many 70 442's over time. I have never seen another like mine. I am sure there were others but I have yet to see one set up the same as mine was. It was optioned weird. Got the hood. The mirrors. Wheels and a dual gate. 2.78 open. No clutch fan. AM radio. Standard steering wheel. No gauges. It actually was put on the showroom floor as a display. I bought it from the guy that bought it new. Like you said I am sure it isn't the same car but exactly what my car was.
Yes I get it. My car came with the SS II's. I took the wheels in the picture of my car off of my SX that I had at the time. That picture is from 1984. I am sure it probably isn't the same car but like I said I have seen many many 70 442's over time. I have never seen another like mine. I am sure there were others but I have yet to see one set up the same as mine was. It was optioned weird. Got the hood. The mirrors. Wheels and a dual gate. 2.78 open. No clutch fan. AM radio. Standard steering wheel. No gauges. It actually was put on the showroom floor as a display. I bought it from the guy that bought it new. Like you said I am sure it isn't the same car but exactly what my car was.
Look, this is easy. What's the build date on the cowl tag of your car? The W-machine brochure was printed Nov 1969, which means the photos were taken some time before that. The two page magazine ad appeared in the Oct 1969 issue of Hot Rod. At that time there was a three month lead time on magazine publications, so the photo had to have been taken in June or July 1969 at the latest, making it a pre-production car. The actual photo was likely take before that even, since the art department needed to lay out the print on the ad. This was before computer systems - that was all hand done. I'm also pretty sure you don't know what rear axle is in either of those cars.
I will have to dig up dates etc. I am really not too worried about it. I just think it is cool to see a car exactly like mine in print. I am sure you are right. Surely it isn't my car. I'm am a ok with that. I just was curious if there was such a thing as a registry of V.I.N.'s for show cars or cars in catalogs etc.
The reason I brought it up is because of this picture. This car.
I know it most likely isn't but I swear this car is optioned exactly like my old car. Same tires. Same wheels. Same color. You can see the standard steering wheel. Standard rear view mirror. No rear speaker. Thin pin stripe. Factory hood and sport mirrors. Every time I see these I think about it. I have the dealer invoice and build card from under the seat. They are tucked away though. Have to dig them out.
the bottom poster is my inspiration…I love the W-25 look without the big side stripes.
Yes, Oldsmobile kept track of their promotional cars and their VINs. As Joe mentioned earlier, they were very early serial numbers. The cars that you see in the magazines were well documented. They also used some unique colors as part of the promotional cars such as aegean aqua with gold stripes, sebring yellow with red stripes, etc.
Yes, Oldsmobile kept track of their promotional cars and their VINs. As Joe mentioned earlier, they were very early serial numbers. The cars that you see in the magazines were well documented. They also used some unique colors as part of the promotional cars such as aegean aqua with gold stripes, sebring yellow with red stripes, etc.
He's not talking about the magazine press cars. He's asking about the cars used in the dealership brochures. Those were typically photographed and laid out before production started.
He's not talking about the magazine press cars. He's asking about the cars used in the dealership brochures. Those were typically photographed and laid out before production started.
Who said I wasn’t talking about both? The gold and black W-30 used in the promotional material was also a magazine car.
Who said I wasn’t talking about both? The gold and black W-30 used in the promotional material was also a magazine car.
He's specifically asking about this one. The ad appeared in the Oct 1969 issue of Hot Rod, which means that the photo had to have been taken in early summer, before production started. It doesn't even have the correct mirrors.
He's specifically asking about this one. The ad appeared in the Oct 1969 issue of Hot Rod, which means that the photo had to have been taken in early summer, before production started. It doesn't even have the correct mirrors.
Why did you say he was asking about dealership brochures in your previous post and then reference the Hot Rod magazine?
Why did you say he was asking about dealership brochures in your previous post and then reference the Hot Rod magazine?
Because if you scroll up and read the whole thread, he's also asking about the car on the cover of the 1970 W-machines brochure. He's trying to determine if the car he owns is this exact car.
It was just a question that I have always had. I am sure it more than likely isn't my car. My car was a very unique car that a I have never seen a twin of. Just thought it was ironic to see a car almost identical to mine. The way it was optioned was odd. To have all it did then a 2.78 open no gauges. Standard steering wheel. Fixed blade fan. Like I said. Optioned weird.
I will have to dig up dates etc. I am really not too worried about it. I just think it is cool to see a car exactly like mine in print. I am sure you are right. Surely it isn't my car. I'm am a ok with that. I just was curious if there was such a thing as a registry of V.I.N.'s for show cars or cars in catalogs etc.
How do you know the one in the pic has 2:78 open rear? You said exactly like yours
if anyone had to guess which car they are most likely to see at an Olds show, I would bet it would be a red 1970 and most likely have the W25 hood.
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Last edited by CANADIANOLDS; April 22nd, 2022 at 07:07 AM.
April 16th, 2022, 06:14 AM
