Was driving the wagon back home tonight and noticed the little green light above the ashtray door to let you know where it was at night. That got me thinking about the little things that make an Olds an Olds.

What else have y'all noticed on yer Oldsmobiles that other makes left out? You know, those nice touches in trim, fit and finish that let you know you had a car that was a cut above? Or as their own 1962 ad said "You're always a step ahead in an Olds!"

Here are some I've noticed:
1) The ashtray lamp
2) 80s B-C cars with digital radios or without clocks had a nicely detailed "Eighty Eight" or "Ninety Eight" filler plate for the clock hole.
3) steering wheel horn bars and centers (49-50 are especially wowser with those stars on a deep blue background as is the red 1967 starburst!)

 

The deeeeeep v steering wheel on my 59. Not sure if the other gm's had that.

 

The "Rocket" rear side marker lights on the '68-'69 A bodies, not sure if earlier A bodies had them (seems like '66-67 did too) and I can't remember if the '68 Delta Custom that I had back in 1975-76 had them.

 

The oil fill tube to the front of the engine! V8's

Pat

 

The easy to get to spark plugs.

 

1949 to1964 the Rocket V-8 engine firing order was 1-8-7-3-6-5-4-2 while the other GM V-8s (except for Buick) were 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2. Notice the 4/7 positions.
At first glance the Buick ("nailhead") firing order 1-2-7-8-4-5-6-3 appears to be different, and due to Buick division engineers assigning different numbers to the cylinders (odd #s to the right cylinders, even #s to the left cylinders), in all reality the engine itself experiences the same firing order as the Olds Kettering engines!

 

The heater blasts out the heat!!!

 

AMCs and early small block Chevys have this feature too.

 

Remember that Olds stood for engineering prowess. That first OHV V8 is a great example. Another would be in 1966; front wheel drive, torsion bar front suspension, unitized power package, hidden headlights, 385 horsepower, ventless side windows, flow through ventilation and a very dramatic and daring body style.

 

Cord had front wheel drive and hidden headlights way back before Olds. IMHO all the manufacturers had good and bad points.

 

Oops, I guess I am on the younger side, I did not start working on cars until the early eightes and don't pay too much attention to the Chevys at the car shows! I just drive those.

 

I guess it really would not be a little thing but I am very fond of my rear dual cut out bumper with trumpet tips.

 

Olds always had such a nice interior.. little touches like the door panel lights that were red/white with the nice chrome trim surroundings. Seats that had a nice pattern in them, and were soft.. I mean who wouldn't want to sit in those nice comfortable mid late 70's Cutlass Brougham seats! Even the older Cutlass Supremes' that all had real nice polished trim that wrapped around the whole car that really set it apart from other variations and your run of the mill chevy.

 

My wife and I both agree! FTW

To the OP, Glenn I know what ya mean, just can't put it into words. unless its about just being different.

 

Im thinking my power convertible top was standard on my 67 cutlass. Was there ever an olds convertible with a manual top?

 

The thick vinyl trim, woodgrain finishes, five little antique Oldsmobile badges, three little and two big '70s rocket symbols, the sound of that engine and four speed Jetaway transmission, the smell.........

 

It's funny to see all the new pickups with the cut out bumpers nowadays. We know where it all originated....

 

High nickel cast iron that doesn't wear like SOB [some other brands].
Rockers attached with BOLTS, not pressed-in studs that can work loose.

"Super" gear.

SSII wheels!

Many divisions have number/letter RPO codes like W30 or W27, but how many have a MODEL "442" similar... with meaning?

 

& the fender bling on a new Escalade looks a lot like a reversed version of the '66 442 fender trim.

 

Not to mention on the 69 442
there was not one emblem anywhere
on the car that said Oldsmobile.
Unless you had the underdash 8-track
and on the radio. Just 442's front, back
and on the front fenders. Rear rockets
and rockets on the door panels.
Kinda cool.

 

1.when stock of course better mileage then most. 2 better ride. 3.class and plenty of it that is the real reason we like our cars, plus fast of course and plenty of torque.

 

Linda Vaughn

 

I agree. I replaced my non cut out rear bumper on my 71 with one and added the trumpet tips.

Also, I love the cut outs on my Dodge Ram for the exhaust. It's a nice touch that differentiates it from the others....just like the 442 back then.

 

The heat reflective treatment on the 59 Scenicoupes rear window ( I wonder if any other GM divisions had that?), and the rear sunvisors to keep the rays off the back of the passengers neck or maybe the the over 150 individual pieces of chrome and stainless brightwork that adorns my 98, or the kooky hubcaps or .......

 

True "1-finger" power steering!

 

+1 Unique and awesome.

I used to have a guy with a mint '70 SS Chevelle beg me for the SS1's off my rotting '72 Cutlass Supreme. His- painted silver spokes (like the Pontiacs), mine- polished steel....still got em

 

The green "COLD" light that stayed on 'til the engine thermostat opened.

 

I'll go with the "POWER BRAKE" moulded into the pedal of my '55, the shift indicator that 'appears' when you turn the key on, and the distinctive air cleaner on the early Olds V-8s (that all the rodders want now). I also love the green-orange-red-black 'rotating' speedometer in my father's 61 Starfire as well as the floor mats that are color matched, bordered in chrome, and are secured to the floors with trim screws.

 

You gotta Love the speedos
in the eary Toros. Too cool.

 

O.A.I. in the front bumper (1966), a high pressure area, instead of a "trash can" on the hood to pick up air.

 

For me I have to say is the design of the engine, its just so very awesome to work on, the only 2 things I would change, is put the distributor up front, and make aluminum blocks waaayy more easy to find haha!

However, once upon a time a friend of mine bought a 69 toronado, at the time I had a lincoln continental, I was really surprised with how much more luxury the toronado had, and it was easier to change the plugs in too! To top it off, we had a drag race and that fwd beast ate my lincoln for lunch, once i got my first olds and rebuilt the motor I loved to just listen to it run, they just sound different than other engines.

But my favorite part is working on the car around town, everyone is always dumbfounded to see an olds engine, they just dont get it, and taking an olds powered car to the dragstrip nearby always gets a lot of attention from the announcer! last time I raced he said "this aint your grandpa's oldsmobile" oh man i had such a smile on my face haha.

so to sum up,
luxury,
easy to work on,
sound,
mystique,
torque!

 

Huge, easy to spot casting ID's on heads and engine. Try to tell one C type head from another.

Not just Olds but all GM had a window in the dist'r cap to adjust the points while running... whereas at the time others such as Frod had to be done by setting the gap as many times as needed to get the dwell right.

Dist'r in on LEFT [correct] side of the cam, such that the cam drives it downward against the thrust surface in the block. No axial force on the distributor housing.

ALL FORGED CRANKS and RODS, thru 1967 anyhow.

Electronic ignition available before most cars had it...

Engineering details...

You realize that if you move the dist'r to the front of the engine, then the oil pump has to be up there as well, typically? Thus the sump, also, unless you perform some strange sump/pump plumbing. I think that's called the Buick V8.

 

Not being real familiar with Toros, what was it about the speedo that made it memorable? It did not have the rolling ribbon (Safety Spectrum, green-orange-red) speedometer like the 59-62 Olds, did it?

 

Kinda like a roladex.

Pat

 

Definately love the sound of my 425 olds engine.

 

Never worked on Olds until starting rebuild of my 98.
Forged crank and large journals.
Styling inside and out, good chrome, all parts heavy in wieght.
After many years I have my own opinion on what maker had best engineering, but I like a lot of what I have found.
Never thought above which side of cam dist. ran off of, but makes sense.
BTW, dwell on fords can be set by cranking and adjusting with cap off if you'r careful.

 

Rumors don't count

 

A friend of mine builds 410 chevy engines.He switch 2 cylinders in the firing order.Probably those are the two.
railguy

 

x2
railguy

 

Tons of stuff.

But one of my favorite :

The "Rocket" in the IP cluster on the 69-70 big cars .....

That would light up red when the high beams were on.