http://www.mecum.com/auctions/lot_de...=FL0112-122557

Super nice car and rare options but $90K & reserve not met? What do you think of that money for a hard top?
Personally the color combo doesn't do it for me.
Next highest price for a '70 at this auction was $55K, and that was a 4 speed car.

 

wow, that is a sharp car!

 

I agree, white vinyl isn't my thing... but damn, thats a very nice car

 

It is a very nice car but I don't like the white top on that car with all the black on it. A little too cluttered. About the only tri colored cars I ever cared for were the Mopars of the mid to late 50's.

 

I like it! even with the white vinyl, kind of different. Looks like a great car but still seems high priced to me. And in too good of condition for me

I know it was probably weird to option out a W30 but its more auction speak for please pay us more "This is believed to be the highest optioned Oldsmobile 1970 W30 in existence" It does have a lot of options including the rear defogger and cruise. I would say its rare to see a hardtop W30 with cruise and both electric windows & door locks (usually has one or the other) but with almost 3000 W30s made in 1970 I'm sure there are plenty with as many options if not more - mine included. I've seen a few with a ton of options

The towing package is really cool - wish they had pics of that.

 

I like the odd color combinations because I own an odd ball car too. So as with my car you either like it or don't. Sebring Yellow is one of my favorite colors.

Sometimes the first offer you get is the highest offer. Last year a Level One Restoration 4 speed made $100k at Mecum Indy. Based on the pictures, I think Level One does better than the quoted museum quality restoration in the auction listing.

A couple other notes based on things I noticed. Kurt can correct me if I am wrong but the broadcast sheet usually does not list all the options. So many of the options could have been added to the car if no additional documentation exists. Broadcast card with the W-30 is to me only weak to moderate documentation. When you say believed 43k miles you better have some good restoration pictures to convince me. I would also have pictures of the original OW tag before I put on a restored one or restored my original. BTW the 4 speed last year at Mecum had very heavy documentation.

Lee

 

Partners got a triple black '71, loaded like that - gave it to his wife!
After I 'tweeked' it a bit, she picked it up, and called him about 5 min. later - "Now how do I drive it without spinning the tires?"
It scares her now, and she hasn't driven it in 4 years!!
With gold stripes, and about 65,000 miles, should pull more than his reserve!

 

Not sure exactly why someone would get the towing package on a muscle car. The original owner must have had an awesome yellow boat to tow behind it.

 

in some ways now different than Ordering a CTS-V now a days or a loaded Shelby, of course the towing package is radical but I'm seen a bunch of 442s with those on, though I bet few were dealer installed but I wouldn't know the difference anyways.

I do not believe my Broadcast cards have all of the options on it either. Interesting though the hard top order firm I have lists the sport mirrors as paid for extra option, but everything I've seen states the W30 package came with the mirrors and the hood as standard (as far as body parts go) So can you even trust the dealer documents.

 

I believe a towing package got you things like a heavy duty radiator, HD suspension, HD alternator and battery. There might have even been a lower gear ratio in the rear end. All good upgrades for a muscle car.

 

Nice car! Do not like the color combo as well. What is that thing mounted to the left fender?

 

Who ever did the restoration spend a ton of $ at in line tube...LOL

 

I want to know what that thing is, too. Is that a red light in the middle of it?

 

as mentioned probably an option that it didn't have when it left (which is fine by me) but an option not available in 70. Only thing close would be the thermometer which mounts on the door near the mirror and it doesn't look like that.

What ever it is it goes well with the car

 

Looks like the autotronic eye (self-dimming headlights), which was NOT an option on the 1970 A-body cars as far as I know. Here again we have a fully-restored frame-off car that has every single option in the Olds parts book (and some that aren't). Anyone want to bet on how many of those options the car was actually born with? Yeah, it's possible that the car was ordered that way, but unlikely.

Now, my 68 W-30 has PW, Pseat, tilt wheel, UHV ignition, Rally Pac, and all the W-30 parts, but I bought it as a completely unrestored field car, so I'm very sure it was born that way.

 

A friend of mine was at that auction he confirmed it was an Autotronic eye and this car was a one owner car. Wonder when that was added, maybe even from the dealer but aftermarket back then?

Joe, my car is loaded and I have heard many convertibles including the W30s came that way (of course I've seen plenty of no-optioned ones as well). But again I am not the original owner so who knows.

 

Steven: Back in the day late 70s through the 80s these cars were hitting the wrecking yards on a regular basis. I can't remember how many ram air hoods I bought out of wrecking yards back then but more than 5 less than 10. Most of the options were added to cars back then.

Lee

 

To me, that is a $2500 used car.

I could buy cars like that back in the 80s for $1500.

Sadly, it these classic car dealers who have been driving the prices up on classic cars for the last 20 years, they are just like realtors, selling something for 20 times it's actual value.

 

Well, considering that my '70 Cutlass SX is Sebring Yellow with a White vinyl top and Pearl White interior, I guess you could say I really like this 442. While I do think it's a bit odd to see Black stripes on it, you can be pretty sure he won't see his twin at a car show.

I think it's wierd where the factory located the power door lock switch on the door panel. It's right through the bright trim.

I don't think it's the dealer's that drive up the price, it's the buyers. If no one would pay $100k, then they wouldn't sell for $100k. Go check out 442.com right now...there's two '70 W30 4-speed convertibles for sale; one restored, one unrestored. I would argue that the convertible versions of these cars (at least when restored) are well worth 6 figures. Beauty, performance, rarity, very high desirability...an actual work of art...that you can drive!! Just like anything collectible, the cream rises to the top.

As usual, us Olds guys want it both ways. When selling the high-end Olds', we complain that they are undervalued when compared to their Chevy equivalents; but when buying high-end Olds', we complain that they're "outrageously" over-priced.

 

Example of over restoring....but not restoring. GM rear end housings never looked like this.

 

Goes back to my original comment Jason. That car in the auction is called a museum quality restoration and I am not sure what that means. Sadly very few actually appreciate a very accurate restoration. Lee

 

Exactly, if I am not mistaken those are the wrong shocks for the 442. Additionally, I believe the OW plate on the trans is incorrect color. Who knows what else.

 

For such a highly optioned car I'm amazed that it doesn't have a W-27 axle cover

 

Every 1970 OW transmission tag I have seen has been black which is what this car has. However 507 Olds says he has seen both black and blue tags on 1970s in this thread: https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...nsmission.html

 

I think this is a beautiful car but also believe it is over restored. I tend to be a purist and all of the great restorations I've seen the restorer paid close attention to flaws (over spray being one) that came from the factory. The guys that put these together in the factory were not always perfectionists, they were probably thinking of what their wife was preparing for dinner that night among other things. That being said I certainly would not mind having this machine in my garage.

Cheers, Mike

 

Trans tag could be black but this tag is way wrong. Font is wrong.

 

I would want to see extensive restoration documentation.

 

You might have more luck if the auction in question hadn't taken place in Jan 2012.

 

THAT was funny!

Highly optioned, but it isn't a convertible, no W-27, no tape deck. Why can't they just say "very highly optioned", instead of claiming it's "believed to be the highest optioned...."?

And it looks strange with a white top. Needs a black top/black stripes, or white top/white stripes. Nice car though.

 

You'll note that I didn't restart the thread. Blame Boiler if you're angry.

 

nice car but priced a bit to high. some peep think they got gold

 

Underside pic shows prop shaft ID color bands of yellow/green?
Believe the 70 inspector's guide lists black/purple.

Derek

 

This car was in Chicago for the Muscle Car show last fall. I'll have to post the pics I took. Car had a '70 power trunk setup as well as 'factory' air shocks from what I remember. The coolest thing for me on this car was the W-30 core decal and the material it was made of. It looked exactly like the repop decals, but was made of a different material that wouldn't shrivel up from the elements.

 

I will take the blame, but I was just correcting the color of the tag comment.

 

I wonder where they got the decal? The first reproductions were done from my sticker in the early 80s. I still have the reproduction decal which I got for providing the sample from my car. However, it looks terrible due to the shriveling.

 

What font are you referring to? The screened font or the stamped data? I cant seen the stamped font well enough to read it. I am not familiar enough with the screened font to know the difference.

 

The font on the decal on the ID tag not the stamped #s.
This is how the tag should look.

 

Thank you, the two tags are not even close!

 

I think I might have the owner's number still (providing it's the same owner that had the car back in November of 2012) and can shoot him a text asking. He mentioned it to me and I knew I should have jotted it down.