The story

hello everyone, this thread is the story for my 1970 oldsmobile, it was built and sold in Michigan and it lived in Michigan until about 1976 when its original owner sold it to his brother who lived in Virginia from what i gather the brother also had a summer farm out in the arnprior Ontario area and would come out here for his summers, then for some reason in 1982 with 62,000 miles on it the brother parked it in his barn, best reason i can figure is a starting issue as the the terminal from the starter solenoid to starter was lose anyway there it sat until earlier this year when the brother decided to have the barn taken down because it was falling down, the guy they hired to do it made a deal that he would get the contents of the barn, and he put it up for sale and i bought it, when you think about it its kinda sad that this car has done 12 years of driving and 32 years of sitting, i wish i had a pic of it sitting in the barn

The plan

now for some detail on what i have planed for the car, i bought this car for its rust and weathering,after my last project i want something with original paint and a good amount of weathering, i will repair the bad spots, leave them in primer and wax the crap out of the car, if my 350 is no good its getting a 455 and i would love to find a 200r4 trans for the car,

this winter i will redo the interior, not quite sure what i want to do to it though, i also want to lower it about a inch, nothing too crazy

The expense list

the total investment i plan to have in the car is no more than $2800.00 on the road this spring

cost of car $600
cost of delivery $100
reman master cyl $35
reman W/P $100
misc brake line and fittings $45
battery $free from work good used battery
used tires $free from work
misc primer, bondo ect $40
starter solenoid $20


TOTAL so far $ 940

 

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IMAG0523.jpgit wont let me upload pics

edit: works on spare laptop

 

check size they might be to big.

Larry

 

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the good

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the not so good

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so far i have put a master cyl on it and 2 brake lines and the peddle came right up, have to get new keys for it hoping to get them cut off the code on the lock cyl, 4 newer tires on it, new starer solenoid, ive had it running for a couple short 10-20 second bursts and the engine sounds ok so far, going to hook the fuel pump up to a jerry can today and run it for longer but i have to fix a trans line leak first, i have a water pump coming for it as the one on it is seized, i was able to get the rear window down but its stuck down now and the tail gate wont fold down it only swings out, the gas tank looks like new on the inside, thats about as far as i have gotten so far

 

I'm sorry, I'm not a member of the "Vista Fanatic Club" (though I do like them), but from what I can see, it looks to me like what you've got there is a parts car.

Good Vista glass, good trim, maybe drivetrain components and some interior to sell.

If this were a documented Hurst Olds, or maybe a W30 or W31, someone might want to put the energy into the amount of reconstruction required, but for a regular Cutlass, even a Vista, I sincerely doubt it.










Good luck, though!

- Eric

 

Dimple free 1970-only front fenders.
350 engine?
Lots of Vista Parts

 

Agreed.

 

wow, i think i joined the wrong forum.....

 

You joined the best Olds forum that exists. What you got are some good opinions which is what you get from most folks on here. I agree with them. If your plans are to restore this to a rust free car I hope you have a BIG checkbook. Nobody is going to fault you if you decide to do that. It is your car and your money. It will be thousand and thousands of dollars to restore the rust damage. It will take a really good body man to do all the work on the roof. Like Eric said, if this were one of the really valuable cars like a W30, it might be worth it. The best thing is to look for a relatively rust free car or wagon and transfer all the good stuff from this one.

 

I found one in much, much better shape everywhere with a professionally built Olds 350 for 4 grand. A 2 door Cutlass in the same shape would easily demand double, even in the same ugly brown. I like them too but my wife would hate it. Anyways there are more desireable Olds out there that I would rather have. Search Olds on Saskatchewan Kiijji and see it for yourself.

 

I really like the looks of wagons sadly I have never Had one of my own.
I say get it running drive it and have fun that's the point of these old cars

If you decide to fix it just be ready to put many hrs into the rust repair, as I had a friend help me with mine and between the two of us we are into body work 450 hrs and I have about 20 hrs into prep and prime work if you can do it your self then you can save some cash. I have many hrs but very little money into it

Good luck and remember cars are a hobby the moment there not they become a burden.

 

Welcome to the site. For what it's worth the guys are just trying to tell you that if it were them, they'd find a better specimen to rebuild. But everyone has their own reason to try and resurrect these old cars. If you've got the skill to take care of all that rust, then it would be an interesting project. Good luck with your pursuit.

 

this is exactly what i plan to do because that is the point, a little about me, i dont build shiny show cars, thats not my thing, i build fun drivers on a budget thats what i do, haters going to hate

 

What is the deal with the hate comments? Nobody is hating anything. Good luck with your car. Please keep us posted as you progress on the rebuild.

 

Who say's you have to fix the rust? Get a couple of cans of Pledge and wipe it down. Just call it "extreme patina". Make sure the roof glass won't blow out, and drive the wheels off of it! Maybe stick a built 455, a gear, and some street slicks on it, and scare Mustangs. When you've had your fun with that one, yank the built motor, stick it in a 4 door, and scare more Mustangs, lol!

 

I think the guys are just educating you that the car over all value isn't worth putting 30k into restoring, not that they are "hating" in my opinion it just plain cool some of the best rides are pos you don't care if it gets scratched dented just enjoy and have fun

 

Different strokes for different folks. Nothing wrong with that.

 

its just a little irritating when someone calls it a parts car in the first reply, i get it that this kind of a project is not your thing, and yes i may be taking this too seriously,but to me when you call something a parts car its basically being called junk, so can you see why this might offend me?

 

thats pretty much it!!!

 

here are some better picks from today, had it running for about ten mins today it runs well for saying all i did was change the oil, clean the points and add gas, for now im going to urethane a piece of sheet metal in the window opening to keep the water out until i get glass for it

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Looks like a champ! Anyone calling it a parts car is obviously just jealous. Amazing how much better it looks after a quick clean up.

 

Welcome, Nice savable car indeed. There are a few angry people on here that just visit in between **** sites, and spew there negativity at any car with rust or in their opinion are not worth putting money into. I wish they would give them the boot. Have fun with your "AWESOME WAGON".

 

To emphasize what the others have said I don't think anyone meant to be disrespectful to you or your car. This is the forum where normally people discuss and share their major overhauls/restorations and so they probably figured that was where you were headed.

If you were looking to restore the car I'd say I'd have to agree with the others, and you'd be better off starting with a better candidate. But seeings as you just intend to clean it up, make it safe and drive the snot out of it, go for it. Build a 500 ci stroker for it and just embarrass the hell out of some mustangs and cameros.

A friend of mine had a '66 Vista Cruiser when we were in high school. His dad had bought it new and ordered it with, get this, a 330 four barrel and a muncie four speed. Honest to god it had a Hurst shifter in it from the factory.

Anything can be fixed if you are willing to spend the time and the money to do it. Welcome to the site.

Scott

 

That's a cool car! Congrats!

 

Cool Cruiser...do as you please with her, and congrats on saving it!

Ted

 

make it safe so that rusty tank wont hit my w30 restoration. how about that ...

 

The truth can be difficult to hear.


You do? How do you know what my thing is?
I drive a rusted out convertible painted pink with spray cans, with no roof.
But your perceptions are quite acute.


Ya think?


It was my impression that you, like many posters, having found an old car tucked away, were looking to market it, believed that you had discovered a goldmine, and were seeking information that would help you get the most you could out of it.

If you don't mind potentially getting wet when it rains, and the chance, as noted above, of losing a piece of Vista glass when you hit 70mph, there is certainly nothing wrong with driving it. If I came across a car like that, I'd probably drive it myself.


No, not really.
You posted a fairly glowing introductory paragraph that seemed to imply that you thought you had purchased a valuable car, and that you had high hopes for it, and making it clear that it was beyond the point of rational restoration seemed important to do. If you want to drive it as-is and just have a good time with it, that is an entirely different thing, and I think it's a fine idea.

- Eric

 

im sorry but no where in my first post was i trying to "market it" all im trying to do is share a story here, i quite like this car so to me it is valuable

 

That's really all that matters, isn't it?

Drive it and have fun with it!

- Eric

 

Looks way rougher than a VC I spent a lot of time fixing rust on...good luck..

 

I like the vista cruisers, I'd have one if there were any half decent ones here. (or any for that matter..)
Good luck with the car mate, nice to see someone getting stuck in.
It's a bit too far gone for my dismal bodywork skills and the dept of finance only trickles cash in my direction when the planets align. It's all I can manage to keep one Olds on the road..

Keep us informed of the resto, looks like you may be spending a bit of time across the road at the auto parts place

 

Don't know if you intend to drive it in the rain (holes in the bodywork), but if your not and they don't bother you (the holes), I might suggest some things to preserve the rust from getting worse.


POR 15.
KPG Coatings.
Ankor Wax.


The first 2 comprise of a 2 part cleaning process (etch clean and a marine clean) then a paint- like coating that seals the rust in air tight. Sounds weird I know but I have used it and still do. Must follow the instructions to the letter otherwise it fails. For example, only wire brush the rust, NOT grind it away as the top coat needs to bond to the rust. Top coat is NOT UV resistant to the sun so must have a regular paint covering it.


Ankor Wax, just about to give it a crack it is supposed to preserve old paint and Patina (***** for surface rust in my day) from getting worse.

 

I have the glass you need, if you have not found one yet.
I'm in Calif.

Gene

 

The hate comments are there because it's one of the "other" Oldsmobiles, not a Cutlass

Baby steps: You might be able to find a shop around you to fix up the rust spots if you choose to do so. The biggest spot I would be worried about are the "C" pillar and around the sunroof.

Since it's been in a barn since 1982, I would look for evidence of mice before going any futher. Mice like to build their nests in the seat foam and chew on wires, which can cause a fire

Oh Yeah, nice find. Have fun with it

 

Haha ...I almost bought this car but he beat me to it.....guess I better sell my Cutlass......

 

do you ever go to the Syracuse nationals?

 

I first started reading this thread before i logged in, so I had to log in to see the pics and if the comments fit. I had a pre-defined notion the car was really bad, but after seeing the pics its not as bad as I thought. I agree with most that throwing any more $$ than is needed to get it safely on the road would be wasteful, and the car is likely worth more parted out. I think the guys here were being truthful and probably have "been there before" and just wanted to save you the headaches. Certainly you can do what you want, but I hate seeing someone bury themselves in a car that has little value. I don't know your age, but your post came across a young excited guy who might make that mistake. I think the readers here, possibly older than you, just wanted to help, and were in no way "hating".

 

"Estate cars" we call them in Britain. Wagons aren't in high demand over here, whether American cars or domestic models.
They generally fetch a fraction of what a coupe or saloon (sedan) version would.
I have to confess, i'm in the same boat, don't like 'em. Bit too much soccer mom/Chevy Chase image for me.

Having said that... I used to work on and restore classic Mercedes. I bought a barn find in not too similar condition to your car. I posted on the Mercedes forum that i used to inhabit at the time, and the reaction was very similar to what you experienced.
Yes in reality, and with sensible trousers on, it probably was only fit to be a parts car, but sometimes a car is more than just the sum of its parts, and i went and restored it anyway. Turned out great. Never made any money, but i had fun, and it was good to know i'd saved that car in the nick of time from the crusher.
Despite what you may read on forums, in magazines, or see on tv, most people rarely make any money from classic cars.
You have to be very talented, have plenty of disposable funds, or be very lucky.
Most people do it for the love, which is great. If everyone was just looking to make a fast buck or making purely practical decisions, there'd be far fewer classics on the road.

So although your car doesn't really hold any appeal for me personally, i wholeheartedly endorse your efforts, and wish you every bit of luck saving the old girl.