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Newbie to classic cars and Oldsmobile. Just bought a 1966 Cutlass, but it has the '67 front grill and headlights. She's been poorly restored at some point in life but is in very good condition under the skin. The ol' 250 and powerglide run pretty good after 3 days of putting up a good fight. Next up is brakes and gut the interior. I'll try and take some pics of the progress. I'm trying not to restore this but more like, make it a good cruiser. This is my first project car so it will be a learning process for sure. Here's what I've learned so far. Inline 6 250's need lots of fuel in the bowl, not squirted into the intake, to run. Also, old cars, no matter how rough they are, still turn heads everywhere you go.
Welcome to Classics and Oldsmobile. 250s are great, forever engines. And Jetaways are silky smooth transmissions. Had one in a 66 442. With regards to year are you sure that's a 66 ? because everything indicates 67... This is the tail light and emblem placement for a 66.
And the base Cutlass engine for 66 is a 330. However the 250 was base offering for 67 Cutlass.
Just bought a 1966 Cutlass, but it has the '67 front grill and headlights
Originally Posted by LPalmer80
Title says 1966, car says 1967
The title is wrong, which is not unheard of. If it has a '67 front end, which we can't see in your photo, then it matches the rear, which is a '67.
What's the car's VIN? Assuming it hasn't been tampered with, the VIN will have a single letter in it, which indicates the assembly plant. The number just before it is the last digit of the model year. It will obviously be a 7 if the car is a '67.
All my front end pics suck. It has the split dual headlights with the indicator light in the middle. It’s for sure a ‘67 I may have to correct the title at some point. For now it’s getting a fuel tank, brakes and cleaned out. Then I may daily it for a while and see what it needs the most. My heart says a big block but my wallet says keep the inline 6 and go to cruise night.
FYI, that's not a Powerglide, it is the two speed Super Turbine 300, called Jetaway by Olds. Other than having two speeds, it shares exactly nothing with the Powerglide. Yes, Olds even used this trans behind the Chevy six cylinder engine. And yes, your photos indicate that the car is a 1967, not a 66. While the front end can be changed, the tail lights cannot. Is the sixth character of the VIN a 6 or a 7?
To me the back end looks like a 67 also. On a 66 the tail lights dip below the top of the bumper, the 67s are even the top of the bumper, which is what the picture shows. Definitely a head scratcher!
Back in the late 60s early 70s I had a 66 f85 2dr coupe (post) white over red and black interior. 330 2bll and Jetaway, wish I still had it, they were fairly rare.
Last edited by Cutlass Fan; Jun 22, 2025 at 01:05 PM.
The cowl tag is obviously 1966 and does not appear to have been tampered with. The residual wheel opening trim on the right rear quarter is also 1966. Someone went through a lot of trouble to add 1967 taillights and rear bumper, because while the 67 nose is a bolt-on, installing the 1967 taillights is not. It would be interesting to see what the tail light openings look like with the light housings removed.
Well LPalmer80 if you want to go back to original it's doable. Lawrence Camuso has the panel. He is great to deal with by the way. Had personal experience buying parts from him about 35 years ago. Awesome that he is still in business.
I'd pull the taillights before buying any body panels. I suspect you will find that the mods to the 1966 tail light openings are not significant and might be easily reversible. Also, in your lead photo it appears that the bondo that was used to cover the Cutlass emblem holes in the rear quarters is coming off and I think I can see remnants of the original emblem holes. I assume the VIN (not the cowl tag) also starts 338076xxxxxxx.
Here’s the best picture I could get of the cowl tag.
The low Fisher body number (329) and early build date (9E) make me think it was an early 1967 and someone didn't change year number stamps in the ST number. I think this could have been a New car "showroom" model. Does anyone know when the 1967's went on display in show rooms ? The POP and VIN number could help figure it out.
Would the trim be a '66 or '67? I need to find that, mine is long gone.
Anything I should be watch out for when swapping the engine? I'm looking to swap with a GM v-8 of some sort.
It has a dual Master cylinder with drums all the way around.
Would the trim be a '66 or '67? I need to find that, mine is long gone.
This is the problem with a car with mixed identity. Your car has 66 molding but a 67 nose and rear. 67s don't have your model or molding.
A 66 Sports Coupe is in-between a 67 F85 Club Coupe and a 67 Cutlass Supreme Sports Coupe.
Here as you can see an F85 has no molding.
And here is a Cutlass Supreme Sports Coupe which has completely different molding than a 66 Cutlass Sports Coupe.
Originally Posted by LPalmer80
It has a dual Master cylinder with drums all the way around.
Beautiful, someone did you a favor. I've had front brakes go on a dual cylinder, managed to get home. Could of been a very different story if it was single.
Also, in your lead photo it appears that the bondo that was used to cover the Cutlass emblem holes in the rear quarters is coming off and I think I can see remnants of the original emblem holes.
Good eye Joe... wow ! I cannot make that out...
LPalmer80 If you could do us a big favor at your convenience of course. Please peak in your trunk and look at the back of the taillight housing. Do the taillight openings look like this ? https://www.gmsports.com/content/196...s-tail-panel-0
Or are the openings gigantic like the ones in the pic I uploaded in post #18 ?
Also if you could please post the first 6 digits of your vin number, it could help enormously to better understand what you have.
Which is a 1966 Cutlass Sports Coupe, consistent with the cowl tag and the wheel opening trim. Someone spent a lot of effort to make it look like a 67. Go figure.
