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Question on W30

Old December 31st, 2018, 11:44 AM
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Question on W30

Hi all - I am new to this board and am looking for a car, have owned several olds over the years. I found this very expensive W30 online, wondering if anyone on here knows anything about this specific car? One would think someone here might know who originally restored it/any background info? Also, doesn't seem to have actual documentation that it is indeed a W30 which would make it very expensive for an undocumented car. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thank you and Happy Near Year to all!

https://www.rkmotors.com/vehicles/28...SAAEgKt0PD_BwE
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Old December 31st, 2018, 12:24 PM
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Welcome.

No documentation. Manual trans W-30 with power brakes. Also the world's worst repro red inner fenders. Yeah, it does have H heads.

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Old December 31st, 2018, 02:14 PM
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Thank you for the quick comment, that all makes sense, potential buyer beware. Figured maybe this car had some history on this site, but who knows.
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Old December 31st, 2018, 02:27 PM
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While I MIGHT have considered that the power brakes were added in the resto, the ad clearly says this:

Factory power front disc and rear drum brakes
Also, that "GM Heritage Center documentation" doesn't actually say that the car is a W-30 (and couldn't, since those records don't survive). For over $100K asking price, the car and documentation should be rock solid.

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Old December 31st, 2018, 02:33 PM
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And look, the "W-30" motor apparently doesn't even have notched valve covers.

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Old December 31st, 2018, 06:43 PM
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Wing only has 4 bolts?
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Old December 31st, 2018, 06:48 PM
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Originally Posted by jozw30
Wing only has 4 bolts?
Good eye!
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Old December 31st, 2018, 07:27 PM
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Very nice car, but I do not think the core support is original to this car.
It has the 2 1972 humps I described 20 years ago on this link: http://www.texas442.com/02coresuppor...resupport.html


Last edited by Texas442; January 1st, 2019 at 05:53 PM.
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Old December 31st, 2018, 07:55 PM
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?
Anyone have a pic of the correct spoiler?
Mine flew off out of my truck and landed on the highway.....
My "spoiler/ wing" has 6 bolts, but i had to buy a shittly fitting aftermarket trunk lid and only lined up 4 holes..

Really ******* unbelievable, my body guy forgot the trunk pin stripes, so i boxed it up, wiezled in the bed of my work truck, tied down, blew out of the bed like a beer can.......
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Old January 1st, 2019, 08:33 AM
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Ok so that one is a definite no go. How about this one? Seems better, although also not documented but maybe for the right price is a good one. Not crazy about the vinyl top though, I would assume removing it would require new paint?

https://classics.autotrader.com/clas.../442/101057524
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Old January 1st, 2019, 08:47 AM
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Originally Posted by Texas442
Very nice car, but I wonder if the core support is original to this car
Amen. Some of the details point to the running gear being transferred to a pristine body with aftermarket hood, wiring, etc.

I'm not completely sure on each of the following and these are nits. However the price is for a car without nits.

1. Fisher body tag rivets don't look original
2. Aft edge of under-hood screen should be bound
3. Hood fit is better than factory (could be a Thornton hood)
4. Master cylinder should have bleeder screws
5. Corrugated wire conduit instead of vinyl wrap (driver side under-hood)
6. Heavily pitted axle but unpitted body and frame
7. W27 axle cover



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Old January 1st, 2019, 09:08 AM
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Originally Posted by Tommy442
Ok so that one is a definite no go. How about this one? Seems better, although also not documented but maybe for the right price is a good one. Not crazy about the vinyl top though, I would assume removing it would require new paint?

https://classics.autotrader.com/clas.../442/101057524
If this is the same car that used to belong to a member of the http://motorcityrockets.com years ago, then try to track down the prior owner first. Very nice car, but I talked to him back in the 90’s at the Oldsmobile Centenial Celebration and he was openly stating that it started as a 442 not a W-30.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 09:24 AM
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Originally Posted by VC455
Amen. Some of the details point to the running gear being transferred to a pristine body with aftermarket hood, wiring, etc.

I'm not completely sure on each of the following and these are nits. However the price is for a car without nits.

1. Fisher body tag rivets don't look original
2. Aft edge of under-hood screen should be bound
3. Hood fit is better than factory (could be a Thornton hood)
4. Master cylinder should have bleeder screws
5. Corrugated wire conduit instead of vinyl wrap (driver side under-hood)
6. Heavily pitted axle but unpitted body and frame
7. W27 axle cover
You bring up many good points. The car has definitely been completely apart and restored. The cowl tag rivets sure look like repops, as the originals would have had seam sealer in and on them. Of course, if the body had been blasted or dipped you'd have wanted to pull that tag off anyway to avoid damage. The underside of the hood sure looks too nice to be an original. The fact that the M/C is bolted to a power booster is more troubling to me than the lack of bleeder screws. The W27 cover was a factory option in 1971.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 09:34 AM
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Originally Posted by Texas442


If this is the same car that used to belong to a member of the http://motorcityrockets.com years ago, then try to track down the prior owner first. Very nice car, but I talked to him back in the 90’s at the Oldsmobile Centenial Celebration and he was openly stating that it started as a 442 not a W-30.
Thanks for the comment, any idea how I would track that person down? The current owner states that it was a North Carolina car prior to him buying it.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 10:24 AM
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My main concern would be a 455, 4 speed, 3.73 geared car with no positraction. That's because I'm more go than show.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 11:05 AM
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So what would be a fair price ?
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Old January 1st, 2019, 12:41 PM
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Originally Posted by Fun71
My main concern would be a 455, 4 speed, 3.73 geared car with no positraction. That's because I'm more go than show.
Anti-spin for that corporate 8.5" axle is trivially easy to install. The units grow on trees.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 02:58 PM
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There are a ton of pics of this other car on this website...https://www.gatewayclassiccars.com/D...obile-442-W-30

Hoping Joe and others can point out the good and bad. Not documented but seems to be a quality restore and seems priced lower on other sites. Thanks all.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 03:16 PM
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Gateway Classic Cars reputation is questionable, sold a car thru them in Dearborn Mi. Would not recommend them, check there reviews. For such a high dollar car, sure seems to have a lot of questionable issues. Have a inspection by a Olds W specialist, money well spent.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 03:32 PM
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Still a lot of money for a car without documentation.....

Another funky wing.....looks like a “one-piecer”?



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Old January 1st, 2019, 03:39 PM
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Well, from a cursory look at the photos, I at least see correct manual brakes, correct core support, correct notched valve covers, and either extremely nice original red inner fenders or a set of the much better repros. Frankly, it's hard to tell from the photos, but the driver side looks "worn" enough to be original while the passenger side looks a little too new. Hard to tell. The washer tank should be on the passenger side, but they have what appears to be the dealer-installed overflow tank (they were not factory but you could get them from the dealer). While it's a nit that takes seconds to fix, it bugs me that neither car has the passenger side breather clocked correctly for alignment of the metal tube to the air cleaner.

I think the bigger problem with this car is the seller. Let's just say that Gateway doesn't exactly have a stellar reputation.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 03:45 PM
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They went a little overboard on the grease pencil marks.

To me, that's a numbers matching 442, nicely restored, with some w-30 parts. Numbers engine is nice, but it needs real documentation for that kind of money. To me, that's a 50k car, not a 95k car. They, of course, will be insulted by such a statement, so one can not deal with them, as they cannot provide documentation for a car that has none.

Edit: commenting on first car.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 03:47 PM
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Commenting on second car: " If marked as such, the Owner states, this vehicles as numbers matching and/or original mileage. It has not been verified by Gateway Classic Cars. As such Gateway Classic Cars is not guaranteeing the authenticity of this claim. Buyer is encouraged to verify this information on their own, prior to purchase. "

That says "run!" to me.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 03:55 PM
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Originally Posted by Koda
Commenting on second car: " If marked as such, the Owner states, this vehicles as numbers matching and/or original mileage. It has not been verified by Gateway Classic Cars. As such Gateway Classic Cars is not guaranteeing the authenticity of this claim. Buyer is encouraged to verify this information on their own, prior to purchase. "

That says "run!" to me.
That says "too many lawyers in the world" to me.

Seriously, every single classic car dealer and auction house has some form of that disclaimer. While I am not defending Gateway, the reality is that none of these hucksters are experts in the cars that they sell and frankly I wouldn't believe them if they claimed that they were. Heck, if you took the time to actually read the licensing agreements on your software, we wouldn't be having this discussion because you wouldn't have any software on any of your devices!
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Old January 1st, 2019, 05:21 PM
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Originally Posted by joe_padavano
Anti-spin for that corporate 8.5" axle is trivially easy to install. The units grow on trees.
I agree, but for the money they're asking for that car it's ridiculous that the restorer didn't spend the small amount of money and time to install one.

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Old January 1st, 2019, 05:32 PM
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I noticed there's an anti-spin differential warning label on the inner trunk lid. They drilled the bolt hole for the wing right through it!
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Old January 1st, 2019, 05:45 PM
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I know this is way off topic, but most dealers are good at selling cars only. They don't know the cars they are selling.
Here is an example of an extremely expensive W30. Whoever removed the headlight bezels to clean them forgot to check with this Forum on the correct orientation before putting them back on:

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Old January 1st, 2019, 05:46 PM
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Originally Posted by v8al
I noticed there's an anti-spin differential warning label on the inner trunk lid. They drilled the bolt hole for the wing right through it!
That's the first car, not the one currently being discussed.
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Old January 1st, 2019, 06:55 PM
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vinyl top 71 W30

Originally Posted by Tommy442
There are a ton of pics of this other car on this website...https://www.gatewayclassiccars.com/D...obile-442-W-30

Hoping Joe and others can point out the good and bad. Not documented but seems to be a quality restore and seems priced lower on other sites. Thanks all.
After further digging, this vinyl top car was offered for sale on this Forum for a slightly lower price back in August 2017. Here is the old link: https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...0-4-speed.html
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Old January 2nd, 2019, 04:59 AM
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Is it me or does that back bumper look like its a little low?
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Old January 2nd, 2019, 10:00 AM
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Image attached, bumper too low?
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Old January 6th, 2019, 07:46 AM
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What year was the corrugated wire harness conduit put to use in the engine compartment?
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