I am going to look at a RALLYE 350 this weekend ,the car has no documentation but appears to have all the right stuff( hood,wing, data tag with -- for paint code). Is there any tell tale signs I should be looking for? The -- on the data tag could have been for any special order paint color so how much weight does that carry alone? The vin reads 332770m..... Any info I'm missing is appreciated!! Thanks!

 

Your on the right track, I would look for any signs of missed paint that may reveal it was a different color from the factory. These cars came as Cutlass and F-85. Just make sure it appears without question to be a Rallye and all ram air parts and steel backed hood is there.

 

a couple things you can look for. look inside the door jambs for a trace of the original stripes that were folded around the edges. i found the original stripe decal, or a piece of it, at the front edge on the inside of the door jamb. another thing is look at the right rear bumper mounting bracket. this bracket had a ground strap on it that goes from the bracket to the bumper where the tail light housing mounts. this ground strap is there because of the urethane bumper paint. the rallye was the only car in 70 to have black around the perimeter of the tail light and black outlined head light bezels. it also has to have a cutlass S grill. the grill originally had a gray stripe around the edge of it. it is the only S grill that had this gray stripe. this grill should be black all but the edge.

 

Wow! That's a factoid I did not know. Thanks.

 

Was the bumper urethaned on the inside also therefore the needed ground strap or the urethane on the outside kept the bumper bolts from grounding? Great info I never heard of that one! The tip on the stripes is a good one unless they took the fenders off and stripped them. Thanks!

 

they were not urethaned on the inside but the tab that the housing mounted on was. so the bumper bolts would have grounded the bumper but not the tail lights. i think they have there own ground wire but this is a backup. if someone was to clone one it is unlikely that it was added. also if they replaced the bumber on a rallye 350 they may not have replaced the ground strap. this ground strap is close to the same size as the one going from the engine to the firewall.

 

Would you mind posting your ss# and birthday.....just kidding That is some excellent info.

 

Shouldn't a real Rallye have W45 stamped in the body data plate? or am I off in tangent-land?

Then there's that matter of the Rallyes in NC that were repainted and chrome bumpers fitted just to move them off the dealer lot.

 

Not just in NC. There were a number of Rallyes that had chrome bumpers installed because the general public expected chrome bumpers. This is like the Charger Daytonas and Plymouth Superbirds that had their beaks and wings clipped and chrome bumpers installed because the dealers couldn't give them away.

 

Reminds me of the first Rallye post car I saw for sale about 5 years ago. The ad said it was original owner car but when I saw that it had chrome bumpers and I thought... naw.. not possible! If I could only have that opportunity again I would never doubt it! Btw, has there ever been a difinitive answer as to whether there actually were 6 Rallye 350's that were built to W31 specs? I've read about this on a few forums but have not heard if it has been finally settled either way?!

 

Back in '76/77 when I had my '70 SX, I was going through a Chrysler lot looking at a used Olds, the saleman says "how about this one" referring to a used blue Superbird sitting there, my response....why? it's a mopar!

 

According to Helen Early, none were produced.

 

I think it is simply one one of those things that until someone ponies up with documentation, there is no reason to believe they were made. Which is pretty much the same way with any claim. It is "settled" until someone "unsettles" it with proof.

 

good luck I think those are sweat cars hope its a 4 spd . bench seat with the floor matt. . Is the price right ?

 

X2... i have followed Rallye 350s for 20 years and never heard of one. i did know a guy that claims he has one but just happens to never let anyone see it. he has told his story for years. he was an OCA advisor for the Rallye 350 for many years but no one ever seen his W-31 Rallye.

 

George Berejik had 11 raylle 350 s for sale when they were new he had to
repaint and put chrome bumpers on a lot of them to move them off of his lot......

 

do you know if there are any pictures of them on the lot? i would love to see any picture i can find of any Rallye 350 on the new car lot. i am trying to document the fact that some Rallye 350s had the chrome bumper bolts on the Yellow bumpers. i know that some did but can't prove it yet. and so far, every Rallye 350 that i have seen restored with yellow bumper bolts have the wrong bolts in them.

to anyone restoring a Rallye 350, DON'T pant the chrome bolts yellow. get the right bolts and paint them.

 

Black Cad-Olds in Greensboro NC had to do the same thing. Of course, when Bill Black Sr stood up in the sales meeting and said he would sell 50 of them after the other dealers hemmed and hawed and were very lukewarm toward the car, it kind of put the onus on him. I think there were about a dozen in NC that were repainted. As late as 2002 there were still two of them in Greensboro- one charcoal gray and one white.

Any of you who were around when that "I Am Curious (Yellow)" soft **** flick came out, that was Black's Rallye 350 sales campaign- Curious Yellow Cars. The billboards were all over Greensboro and the Triad area.

 

Here's one for you...although you might have seen this one before.

 

yes, i have a copy of that one.

 

 

That's "Rallye Bob" Tomlinson from ROP. He bought it new & still owns the car

http://wildaboutcarsonline.com/cgi-b...=9990405209377