As you can tell I'm new here and the reason I joined is to find out as much as I can on a car I recently purchased. The car is a factory 1964 Olds F85 wagon with a 330 V8 4 speed and 12 bolt posi. Thanks Neil

 

Welcome

The 12 bolt is not original to your car. Manual trans was available in the wagon but was usually a 3 on the tree. I recall seeing 1 factory 4 speed on the floor in a 1965 wagon.

Did you get any history with the car?

 

A '64 wagon with a factory 4-gear? Three words: pictures, pictures, PICTURES! Don't care if the rear end isn't original, I wanna see this thing!

 

Welcome to the site, wouldn't mind seeing some pictures also.

 

Sounds like fun! I agree, please share some pictures with us!

John

 

DSCN0005.JPG
Working on more pics but satellite ISP is killing me

 

Looks like there's lots of potential there. Oh, and I forgot to say welcome. Welcome! More pictures whenever you can, please!

 

DSCN0009.JPG

DSCN0012.JPG

DSCN0020.JPG

IMG_1836.JPG

IMG_1823.JPG So here are a few more pics of the wagon. I talked to a friend of the family who owned the car for the past 40+ years and they say it's all original but the wheels and the current M20 and shifter in the car now. He also says the original M20 might be up on some land they own and if there could be had. Not sure what direction I want to go with the car but first I have to know what I have. Thanks in advance

 

They are mistaken. There was no A body 12 bolt in 1964.

A floor shift tilt column in a 1964 A body is rare. In a wagon it is exceptionally rare.

 

Yes, that looks to me like a Type 'O' which only would have been in production 1967-70. Definitely not the rear it was born with.

 

one of 3 "442" wagons? it does say 442 on the shifter handle.

either way I like it.

 

The 2L on trim tag pretty much confirms a factory floor shifted manual trans. Car is very rare as optioned but not necessarily extremely desirable. Cool as heck yeah and deserves a resto. Rear anti-sway bar appears not to be stock as well.

 

It is definitely a Type O. FYI, this is NOT a "12 bolt" axle, despite the common misconception. There are only 10 bolts holding the 8.5" ring gear to the carrier. A Chevy 12 bolt axle has 12 bolts holding the 8.875" ring gear to the carrier. It is only coincidence that the number of ring gear bolts equals the number of rear cover bolts on Chevy axles. In any case, it is not original to a 1964 automobile.

The "442" shifter isn't original either, as all factory 1964 4 spd shifters were Muncie shifters, not Hurst. Also, the bolt-on stick means it's an aftermarket Hurst shifter. The factory Hurst shifters all used snap-in sticks to speed up the production line. The red-painted trans isn't orginal (I see you know that already) as factory four speeds were left natural aluminum.

The car could have been ordered with a floor-shifted three speed or four speed trans as options. The "2L" on the cowl tag just means it had a floor shifter. The only way to prove any trans is original is to find the Protect-O-Plate and match the trans unit number with the one on the P-O-P. Olds didn't start stamping a VIN derivative on the block and trans case until the 1968 model year.

In any case, it's a very cool car in my book.

 

First off I would like to thank everyone who took time to comment on the car. It seams it's not the find I'd hoped it was but cool nun the less.

 

I wouldn't say you should be disappointed at all - any floor-shifted wagon has "special interest" written all over it.

 

Temper that disappointment. It is a floor shift wagon with tilt. It will make a great hot rod. Rear end is wider than original so use rims with extra 1" of backspace. Enjoy.

 

I can tell you that 2L stands for a 4-speed in a 1964 Pontiac. Where are you guys getting the info that it means a floor shifter for Oldsmobiles?

 

You are correct, Diego. 2L is four speed floor shift only. 2B is three speed floor shift. Sorry for the misinformation.

 

Thanks again for the info it's great to hear it can be proven to be a 4 speed on the floor. Like I said in a earlier post I have a chance to search for the original 4 speed and now I'll be on the hunt for the rearend. From what I've read the car has the correct manual trans frame and the upper control arms are in the second from the top bolt holes. Does this mean I'm looking for a different style 12 bolt ?????? Does anyone know what the G means ahead of the 2L ???

 

The original rear end was an 8.2" 10 bolt. The current one is better.