65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

Hi there-

I recently aquired a 1965 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Sedan. Such a great car with it's 425 7.0L v8 and smooth automatic tranny.
I believe it is the 'holiday' version.
It is in pretty decent shape, needs paint, but is able to drive around on it's own no problem.
It does have a few problems I am starting to address because I'm falling in love with it..

I filled it up with gas, almost 7/8ths full of gas, and parked it in my driveway, it leaked from the top of the gas tank or somewhere, and down onto my driveway. The liquid looked to be black oil but was actually gasoline mixed with what? Something dirty.. Anyways, needless to say I need to drop my gas tank and I don't have much experience doing so, but I know how to get it down and how to slide it out.

A problem at night is all the lights work when I pull the lights switch, but the dash lights (illumination) has never worked since I got the car a few weeks ago.
Any suggestions?

Have a little exhaust leak. Wanted to possibly run headers + a modified system.
Last question, Is the 425 Super Rocket motor compatible with similar cars/makes when im looking for aftermarket headers?
Would a Buick Rivera w/a 425 be the same? Or a Cadillac with a 425?

As she stands..


Thank you
So.Cal.Cruiser

Oldsmaniac

The Olds 425 is a completely different engine than a Buick or Caddy 425. No off the shelf headers are available for this car but the special left side factory style exhaust manifold needed for dual exhaust is reproed. The gas tank is undercoated usually and gas will dissolve it and appear to be black if leaking. You should pull the tank to be sure there are no holes at the top....there are no fittings that I can remember on top of the tank so if it is leaking there it may be a hole. Check your hoses and connections first back there.

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

so these headers would not work....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/_W0QQ...KQ3aMEWAXQ3aIT

any idea on dash illumination? or where I should start with that?

Always seems like the interior fan (air) is running when the car is on too.

mpolds

I have mountains of 1965 - 1970 OLDS FULL SIZE parts ------ all N E W ------- no pieces of car....
All the Brakes -- Master & wheel Cylinders, Brake shoes, Brake hoses, wheel bearings & seals, emergency brake cables, and BRAKE DRUMS and BRAKE ROTORS-------
Entire Front End -- Ball Joints, Bushings, Tie Rods, Center Link & Idler Arm, Coil Springs & Shocks,
Motor Mounts & tranny Mounts,
Fuel Pumps & Water Pumps,
& a whole lot more........... some N.O.S. and some ++++ DELCO +++++
Best to call me, Craig, 516 - 485 - 1935, New York..............

mpolds

Was just leaving when noticed your question about interior lights.
The rheostat portion of the headlight switch controls the interior lights. I have the headlight switch, ignition switch, and much more.......
Best to call me, craig - 516 - 485 - 1935, New York..............

Oldsguy

Welcome to CO, you have a keeper there.....

jaunty75

Yes, your car was officially a Delta 88 Holiday Sedan, with the "Holiday" meaning a hardtop (no center pillar). If you had the non-hardtop version, it would be a Celebrity Sedan.

1965 was the first year for the Delta 88. It more or less replaced the Super 88 at the top of the 88 heap, with the Dynamic 88 and Jetstar 88 below it on the family tree. The Delta 88 was not available as a convertible in '65. If you wanted an 88 convertible, you needed to go with a Dynamic or a Jetstar.

Base price on your car was $3,330, and with a production of 37,358, the Holiday Sedan was the most popular Delta 88 body style. Production of the Celebrity Sedan was 29,915, while the two-door hardtop, the Holiday Coupe saw 23,194 come off the line.

The base engine for the '65 Delta 88 was a 310 hp version of the 425, the standard "Super Rocket." A lower power, 300 hp version, and a higher power, 360 hp version were also available.

As far as your dash lights, there is probably a separate small-amp (4 amp?) fuse that is in line after the headlight switch that specifically protects the dash lights. You might check and see if that fuse is OK.

Oldsmaniac

I highly doubt those headers will work even though the ad says so....

66ninetyeightls

Its AMAZING how one set of headers can fit multiple generations of multiple models. Must be MAGIC!!!!!!

That will not clear the steering on the car.

copper128

Nor will ANY other commercially available headers! You can use a "S" manifold and run duals the way the factory did or you can spend upwards of $1500 for custom-fabricated headers or you can spend that much or more to convert to rack & pinion steering (again, custom-fabricated) which will get the steering gear box out of the way, allowing the use of off-the-shelf Olds headers.

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

Hey Craig I am going to wait to give you a ring until next week.
Need to dig into the olds a little more on my days off...
You guys are such a wealth of knowledge with these older cars!!
I appreciate all the feedback I've gotten so far, and I want to know more information about this "S Manifold" as I really want to replace my headers (manifold leak + more power).
Testing out my phone camera, took a couple more shots+a picture of the headliner I had installed 2 days ago (much better than a rust roof with bars running across + torn up visors).









I think there is the wrong size fuse for dash illumination. I'm going to buy a new set today.

Hope you guys like! Time to drive her to work

Oldsmaniac

Bingo....wrong panel light fuse...it needs a shorter one...thanks for the picts!

66ninetyeightls

I love the headliner fabric. Looks almost like tweed.

http://www.themotorcompany.com/Full-...d-p-16158.html

jaunty75

Wow, you do need some serious cleaning of the fuse panel terminals. Has anyone ever found a good way to do this? The thing is so hard to get at under the dash, and then the pins themselves are difficult to get any abrasive on.

I agree the headliner looks great.

I like the view of the dashboard, too. The look is so clean and different on cars of that era from what you see today.

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

Should I just use a wire brush?
Or how would u attempt such a thing because it is in a tough to reach space.

And I put a smaller fuse in that spot and my speedo and round gauge pod with fuel to the left lit up!
Oh my god its beautiful, the only thing I need to do is light up the column shifter.
There is even two green erie lights that are under the stereo that light up really faint, but still green and kinda cool.

I almost filled it up with 91 gas, then ran through that and filled all 24gals up with 87 gas and it's running like **** and missing alot. May be something unrelated, but im going to change the oil tomorrow. Still runs pretty good tho





bling bling

jaunty75

I would think a wire brush would be a way to start. But disconnect the battery first and then remove all the fuses.

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

Great! I am going to clean it up early tomorrow before work.

I did take the olds into my best friends shop today. He looked it over and changed the oil with 10-30. He saw a lot of things it needed, but he said the most pressing issue was the steering column. He said that the coupler at the bottom was about to snap or something, and it was moving everything around. Also said one of his customers had this happen on the road and lost steering completely. So on my day off Tuesday i'm going to bring it in and have him take it apart to order a new coupler.

When the car was on the lift he said these things needed attention as well...
the center link and idler arm re-check for play in other components
left side wheel bearing re tighten
sway bar bushings and links
upper and lower control arms complete with ball joints
engine mounts
and trans pan (fluid filter and gasket).

Had some mucky oil on the bottom of most of those parts, but nothing that leaks to the ground.

Just thought I'd give you guys an update, off to work now

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

anyone know where I can get a new or refurbished gas tank?

jaunty75

Probably nowhere. They're not reproduced for the big cars of this era that I know of. If yours can't be repaired, you will likely have to find one from a donor car.

It's possible something from a Chevy or Pontiac would fit, but you would likely have to find someone who has done this and what he had to do in the way of modifications, if any, to get it to fit.

66ninetyeightls

Nope there are no repro tanks for these things. I had mine restored locally for $175 including rebuilding the sending unit.

stranger

Sweet looking '65 "Holiday 88" you have there... Add a paint job, and a set of the old skool GM wheels (in black)....

As for the gas tanks, any of the B/C-body tanks "should" fit I would think (might check around)... think that 65-70 used the 25 gallon tanks, then 71-76 went to 26 gallon IIRC.... (with GM's new B/C body style)...

jaunty75

You know, this an interesting point.

I checked just now at one site that sells new reproduction gas tanks for GM cars, and while they do have them for A-body Oldsmobiles, there no mention of B or C body, which is pretty much what you find anywhere. Anyway, here's a photo of the tank they sell for full-size '67 Chevrolet.




I have a '67 Delta 88, and I've had the tank out and have photographed it, and I'd say it looks pretty darn close. The fuel pick-up/sending unit and filler neck locations are in the same place.



I would have to measure the tank on my car and compare it to this, but assuming it's close, it looks like it could be made to fit pretty easily if it isn't just a drop-in replacement.


Here's a photo of what this site sells for '65 and '66 full-size Chevy. Does it look anything like yours? It's not the same part number at this site as for the one above. The location of the sending unit is different.





This site is here:

http://www.classiccarautoparts.com/gastanks.html

I'm sure there are others if you hunt around. But if I were you, I would definitely get down under the car and measure your tank's dimensions, determine the location of the sending unit, and then compare it to what you can find out there.

One other thing that's interesting is that this place's price for the '67 tank is $329 while for the '65-'66 tank, it's half that at $168. I wonder why.

66ninetyeightls

When I was looking for a replacement tank I found that the tanks themselves were almost identicle. However when I went to check out the tanks the filler necks were always different on the non Oldsmobile tanks. Wrong angle, too short etc etc.

Your tank looks way better than mine did before I had it restored. It should be pretty easy to fix and seal.

Here is a list of places in Ohio that do what I had done to my tank. Maybe one of them is close to you.

stranger

I had a tank issue with a 1978 Lincoln Continental Sedan... I ended up ordering a tank to fit a 1975-78 Ford LTD, and it was identical, yet the seller's book only showed it to fit a Ford LTD, not a Lincoln... Everything matched up perfect... So I"m wondering if some of these guy's listings may show only 1 particular car, yet often the tanks are interchangable....

bigred

if you are interested, i have the wire wheel looking hubcaps with spinners from my old 66 delta 88 (which has long since moved on) i have four good ones, and one slightly bent one that took a flying leap off the car in the carolina mountains. the olds emblem in the middle is red.

stranger

Others might want to chime in on this - but have you thought about using 10w40 oil in your Olds instead of 10w30? Just curious... I used 10w40 on the 460 in my '78 lincoln and it didn't seep as bad around some of those older gaskets on that car...

navvet

Great car...love the dash....big change from my 64 88. I used my "dremil" drill with a small wire brush attachement to clean my fuse box, horn relay and all my light sockets.
It works great on small metal parts and electrical parts. You will appreciate having it.
As for the leak in the tank you will need to drop it and check for leaks. When you do you might as well change out the fuel pick up and replace fuel lines.
I have heard of shops that can repair and seal fuel tanks. ( I have not seen one after the service so I can't recommend it)
I got my tranny and motor mounts from Fusicks and USA auto Parts and they were good quality. CHECK FIRST for tranny filters and gaskets. They are impossible to find for 64 an earlier!!! Other members may know about 65 tranny filter availability.
Give the brake lines a doctors inspection...too many stories of failed brakes and the pain and loss that goes with it.
When I got my 64 I gave it a weekend special tune-up. here is how to do it:
1.Alone and no one to bug ya in the garage.
2. six pack of cold beer.
3. Great tunes.
4. plugs, wires,fuel filter, carb cleaner, air filter, ignition coil, distributor cap. It is always needed and its quick and fun.
Again great style good luck with it. You will be sooo suprised at the power and speed

spiderjason

Welcome!!!! Nice car...

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

So I dropped the gas tank....the only thing leaking was one of the rear hoses.
So I replaced all the hoses and hardware and put it back up.

I decided to purchase some super cheap Accel Spark plug wires because I was tricked into thinking they were vehicle/motor specific.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...84.m1439.l2649

I also put in new high perf. spark plug wires and a new distributor.

Now.......my car runs really rough, lack of power, very hesistant/choked off....

Could it be, all of a sudden now, my car needs a carb rebuilt?
Would anyone here suggest I upgrade my carb, or just rebuild the stock 4bbl jetted carb?
I really love this car, hence why im trying to upgrade/replace parts to make it run better.
Unfortunately I just made it run worse!

Any help fellas? My next purchase is a dual exhaust manifold partly because I have a leaky manifold/exhaust as is...

jaunty75

Certainly rebuilding the carburetor can't hurt. I did that on my '67 Delta with the 425 and a 2-bbl.

But you really want to do a complete tune-up. You've changed the plugs, wire, and distributor, which means you've changed the points and condenser as well. Have you changed the coil?

Then you need to adjust the timing, dwell, and idle speeds. If you've not adjusted the dwell angle, it could be significantly off since you've just put a new distributor on.

Have you changed the fuel filter? Even if you did recently, if your work with the gas tank came after the fuel filter change, you might want to change the filter again as working on the tank stirs up all sorts of dirt in the entire fuel system. It's a $2 part and a 5-minute job, so it's well worth doing again if you've done fuel system work since changing it last.

radioburningchrome

X2 on the fuel filter and points.

Do a complete tune up to rule out the usual stuff.

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

I'm going to replace the fuel filter as well...but I discovered it was my carb and it was sticking pretty badly.
So I took it off and I am sending it out to be rebuilt

jaunty75

But half the fun is doing it yourself!

oldsrocket88

Very nice 88 you have there. Be careful, The '65 Delta 88 Holiday hrdtp was my 1st Olds back in the late 1980's. I still have her plus a '65 Dynamic 2dr & a Convertible. They're like potato chips, you can't stop at just one

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

Anyone know where I can get replacement bumpers and tail light lenses for my delta 88?

radioburningchrome

Good luck on the rear bumper. It took me 3 years to find an affordable one. There are ones (fully restored) from $500+!

Are you rear lenses broken/cracked or just faded?

I used a lense restore kit to bring luster back into my original set.

It might be cheaper just to rechrome yours if they are not rusted through.

65OldsDelta88SuperRocket

I may try to rechrome it. I get the carb back tomorrow and I will put it in and see how she does Really starting to love my olds...

Does anyone know the bolt pattern and offset for a vehicle like mine?
I wanted to upgrade the wheels + tires

stranger

Rear bumper and tail light lenses are the same on all B-body Olds models except the Starfire... Those models are Delta 88, Dynamic 88, Jetstar 88, and Jetstar I...

jaunty75

The point is, though, that those bumpers are not reproduced. You'll have to get one off of a parts car. Or, as radioburningchrome says, you can find someone who specializes in bumper repair and rechroming and who has already repaired and rechromed one, and you'll pay the better part of a grand for it.

Or you can find a used one that's a bit rusty and in need of rechroming, and you'll pay $100 for the bumper and $600 to get it rechromed. Either way, you're looking at anywhere from $500 to $1000 for a single, show-quality bumper. If you need both bumpers, double these values.

stranger

Whats a grand if you're making a show car.....