76Olds88

Hello,

I might be dragging home my first Oldsmobile, a car that has been passed through the family. The biggest thing that scares me is one of the people it passed through let it sit in the yard for a bit, and I don't believe panels are available.

My cousin wants to swap me my Harley for it, and he would be getting the better end of the deal, but it is a 2 door big block car, and I hate to see it continue to degrade.

I got it running at his house last week, and it drives. It needs brake work and some other minor stuff I have found so far. I think it might be fun to play with though. The interior is still near mint.

I figure it has a few grand in rust repair

We will see if he still wants it gone now that I got it running though! LOL

76 Regency

Hello and welcome to the forum as well as to Oldsmobile!


You've got a fairly rare car there and one I'd say is definitely worth saving. I have 2 '76 98's and cars like these are getting harder and harder to find so it's good that you're hanging onto her. Mechanically, you should have no problem finding parts for it. Body parts aren't quite as easy to find but there are plenty of yards out west with these cars so you'll find whatever you need with a little bit of hunting. Eighty-Eight and Ninety Eight doors, fenders, hood and header are all the same which should help your search.


I say clean her up and get her mechanically sound and then see about the body work. It doesn't look all that bad from the pics.


Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!

oldcutlass

To be honest, it looks like some considerable rot. How is the frame? I would think long and hard prior to trading the Harley, I understand about the sentimental value, however one must remain optimistic. As a 2 door, it is more desirable, but not as desirable as an A body.

76 Regency

Here are a couple of parts cars in Texas:


This one's a coupe
http://www.partingout.com/Listingdet...taEighty-Eight


Sedan
http://www.partingout.com/Listingdet...-Oldsmobile-88

Oldsguy

Nice car to have and good that it has the 455. Too bad about the rust but as you said it can be repaired. I think you should get it. Welcome to CO.

76Olds88

Good to know about the 98's I was pretty worried about having to fab in patches with the curves in those areas.

It was garaged 90% or it's life, frame should be fine. I did not see any signs of frame rot when I looked at it. It's a 2005 1200 Sporty, and those aren't selling in MI right now, its been on the market for over a year at a more than fair price. Rather than just give it away to someone I don't know I can hook a distant cousin up with a bike.

I will probably regret it later, but you only live once. I forgot to mention, every service record and the original window sticker are in the glove box.

Looks like I should be picking it up in a week or two.

jaunty75

How many miles on this car?

76 Regency

If you were already looking to sell the bike, I doubt you'll regret the trade, especially once you start driving your Olds! These are great driving cars and as long as it was taken care of, the 455 will last forever. One of the links I sent you was for a parts car coupe in Texas. Maybe you can pick up the panels you need from it.

76Olds88

89,900 miles on it.


A little hesitation in this video, but there was still some 2 year old gas in the lines. Once that was through it smoothed right out,

76 Regency

On the first video, she sounds great, not so much on the second one but maybe that was before you put some fresh gas in her.


Was that gas spewing from the fuel pump???

76Olds88

Yes, one of the minor fixes that need done. The 1' long hose was cracked on both ends. Everything mechanical I saw was little stuff like that from sitting.

In the second video you are also hearing a manifold leak on the drivers side.

I get sad looking at the car because I know how well the owner who died in 1993 took care of it.

76 Regency

OK good. If it's been sitting a long time, I would definitely suggest replacing all of the rubber lines at the fuel pump, gas tank and brake lines and flushing all of the fluids.


OK, on the manifold leak...no big deal. I see it has dual exhaust. Do you know how this was done? These only came with single exhaust. Some people keep the stock manifolds and cap off the crossover rather than replacing the manifolds to duals.

I know what you mean about how such a well cared for car can deteriorate. I've seen it plenty of times.

76Olds88

I couldn't get a good look at it, but it appeared to be full dual from the manifolds back I believe with a balance pipe toward the rear. I believe it had 2 flowmasters underneath. I hope to be able to put it on the lift my dad is part owner of when I get it home.

The exhaust is I believe less than 5 years old, as are the rear tires.

76 Regency

Very good. Well, keep us posted as you get your hands officially on it and make progress with things.

76Olds88

Going to go pick this up tomorrow, does anyone know if it will fit in a 8.5x20' enclosed car hauler? I originally was going to fix some minor stuff there and attempt to drive it home, but can't get a buddy to go with me now so I have to take my trailer.

76 Regency

The car is definitely well within those dimensions so it should fit based on those figures alone.

76Olds88

Great! I was searching around but couldn't find the exact dimensions! Thank you!

Allan R

Welcome aboard. The car actually looks to be in nice shape inside. The rust you see is typical of cars of this era, but the front and rear chrome looks better than average. Just an FYI, I believe that 74-76 Delta 88 and Ninety Eight coupe model doors are interchangeable. That should give you a bit of expansion on your search for a replacement if you need one.

I believe the reason for the single exhaust on these cars was the routing from the manifolds back to the catalytic converter. John would know more.

76 Regency

Hey, I just pulled your car's actual dimensions from the '76 factory manual.

226.7 inches long and 80 inches wide. It may be hard to believe when looking at the size of your car, but the 98 is about 6 inches longer than the 88!

Hey Allan,

I believe the actual reason for the single exhaust starting in '75 was to accommodate the cat as well as for emissions control. There is absolutely nothing stopping you from converting back to true dual. In fact, both of my cars are converted. I replaced the original manifolds with a set of duals, swapped out the tranny cross member from an earlier model (I believe 71-74 are the same) and bam, true dual exhaust. It's a marked improvement in performance and I only wish it was the way they came from the factory.

Allan R

John, I wasn't suggesting that a dual exhaust wasn't possible. Just from the factory it appears not to be. I like the idea of a true dual exhaust but also question how it would affect the sound level inside the car? These big cruisers were built for quiet floaty luxury and I'm sure that if duals were an option there would also be resonators involved before the tail pipe dump.

76 Regency

Hey Allan,

I figured you knew it could be done

You are so right that these cars were made to be whisper quiet. If you watch the promotional video I posted on youtube, they even show how the engineers had microphones set up inside the car to test the noise level inside the car to help assure they got them as quiet as possible. I love watching that video! Check it out if you're interested:


Putting the dual exhaust on made a significant improvement in the performance of the cars without making much difference in the sound. I installed resonators just like a '74 exhaust would have come with from the factory and the cars have a little bit more "rumble" than they originally did but now they actually sound like they have a big block tucked away under the hood. Trust me, I love quiet cars and I wouldn't changed the exhausts if it was going to make the cars sound loud.

Allan R

Cool video John! I thought it was interesting that top mgmt would participate in QC on a daily basis. I tend to like the sedans more than the coupes. Can you imagine the stress on coupe door hinges?

76Olds88

These doors are smaller than my dad's 78 Trans Am... that sucker groans when you open and close the door.

I don't like how the duals were ran, but it is new enough I will leave it for now and just fox the exhaust tips.

The door in the trunk is a replacement for the passenger door that has the bottom rusted off. I am surprised the passenger side has the rot, normally the drivers side is the worst in MI.

I wasn't even trying hard and she did a nice burnout It helps the rear wheel cylinders are shot.

It did fit in the trailer... barely and tying it down was a chore.









Tight fit to my spare















The bike I traded... Still can't believe no bites in over a year...

Allan R

Actually I'm not surprised that more rot on the passenger side. That's where most of the road crud ends up - not on the center of the road.

Just noticed the dealer sticker on the deck lid. Your car may still be wearing its original paint.

76 Regency

Thanks Allan. My cars are both coupes so I know exactly what those poor hinges go through. Those doors weigh a ton!

[QUOTE=76Olds88;750942]These doors are smaller than my dad's 78 Trans Am...

Glad you got her home! Are you sure the T/A doors are bigger? That seems odd to me.

Very cool that you've already got a replacement door...that's a great start!

76Olds88

Around here they just dump all the salt in the middle of the road and let the slope and runoff take care of the rest.

It is original paint, and original most everything. I have a complete documented history of the car. I have been around it on and off since I was born.

I can go across the road and measure tomorrow, but I am pretty sure they are. These close nice compared to that T/A and the TA in in far better shape. If nothing else they are very close.

76Olds88

For giggles I went and Measured this morning. The T/A door appears to be 1/2" longer, but only because of the shape at the top. Overall they are both the same length.

I guess they just looked bigger because the car is so much shorter

76Olds88

Took 30 minutes and hit the hood and roof with the buffing wheel

Before


After




Roof Before


Roof After

Allan R

Great job! Now if you could buff out the rust and bring it back like that.....Really, I mean really nice touch on the buffer not to burn the paint through doing that.

76Olds88

Thanks, I have a lot more to do, but I had to prove to the wife it wasn't a complete piece of junk.

Once I got it home she wasn't thrilled I cut the bike loose for this. Especially when I sold my old rust free Caprice for less than 1k a few years ago. She doesn't see the potential value.

So far I found a small hole in the drivers floor (currently smaller than a baseball, but will grow when I cut it out)

The obvious quarter issues and door issue

The trans is squishy - but that just may be the way these were valved.

It has a stumble, but all the vacuum lines are in rough shape

The drivers door panel armrest is loose

Rear wheel cylinders shot

no thermostat

AC non-op (but complete)

2 burned out headlights

Dome lights, trunk lights etc are all amazingly functional

3 speakers do not work.

Nasty drivers side manifold leak - this doesn't look easy to get to

Fires right up every time, but it can be a little cold blooded - but not bad.

The rear bumper may need adjusted, the gas cap flap hits it, and the rubber is really hard now, I am worried that it will break.

The dual exhaust was put on even more jenky than I thought, I wish I could have gotten a picture of what was done up at the manifold.

Allan R

Actually most of the stuff you've listed is the perfect hobby car. Some of it is really minor and some of it could be a challenge.

Get an Oldsmobile Chassis Service Manual for this car - eg: http://www.ebay.ca/itm/OLDS-1976-Cut...27b72a&vxp=mtr

These books are like the Bible for the 76 model year and were the staple of all Olds mechanics back in the day. The repros - in the link - don't have as great pictures but the text is exactly the same. Worth its weight in gold.

Ya know? I was thinking about this just awhile ago and the more I thought about it the more I smiled. You are the epitome of the phrase "that'll buff right out". Hang in there!

76 Regency

That is interesting. The T/A doors are definitely pretty long for a car so much shorter than the Olds.


This looks like a fairly easy list to get through. From what I can see in the pics, it looks like somebody replaced the radio so most likely the speakers just aren't hooked up. These cars use a "floating ground" for the rear speakers and the new radio most likely does not work with this setup. Either put a stock deck back in or run new speaker wires to a new set of 6x9's in the rear and you'll be in good shape. The front speakers are always shot in these cars...3.5" speakers can't handle much of anything and they dry out in the sun.


Your cleanup already looks great and so I'll echo Allan's note that you did a nice job with the buffing. That paint is probably pretty thin so you buffed just right not to burn it off. Start with all the little, simple things and use the list above as a checklist. That's the only way I get things done. I'll all about to-do lists now and it's very helpful. Replace those vacuum lines (making sure they're hooked up per the emissions decal) and clean or rebuild the carb. I think you'll see a marked improvement in the engine with just those simple improvements.


Keep it up!

76Olds88

Well the buffing looked good, maybe if I get some wax on it. It seemed to chalk up again while I was gone, but the car is in the garage now so I may hit it lightly again.

There are some wiring issues I have found. The AC compressor is not getting power, but it does work if I jump power directly from the battery. I am thinking the radio is also something stupid.

I started changing out vacuum lines as well.

I took it to the gas station to fill the tank.. I found out the gas tank seam leaks like a sieve.

The rear brakes are toast. The wheel cylinders are newer but leaking and the drums and pads are shot. Not a big deal, but I may want to look into a disc conversion, not sure yet. I pieced one together for my jeep, not sure if anyone makes just a bolt on conversion bracket for this axle though.

76olds

Its nice to see another 76/88 saved, You seem to have the passion its going to take , Start soaking all the rusty bolts daily this will help. John has so much knowledge with these cars, he will be a great help. Cleaned up pretty well with just a buff, that's hard work in itself. Geez I have to take a break one panel at a time with my 76 when waxing, then a few advil for the muscle pain. I'm sure it was a tuff decision with your bike, I think it was a good trade IMO. You've done a great job so far, I hope you see it through very nice 2d car.
Cheers to the 76 guys!!
Eric

76Olds88

The original literature that was inside

IMAG1298_zpszz7cstjs.jpg

IMAG1299_zpsqlfrhhbn.jpg

IMAG1300_zpsxullo9j4.jpg

IMAG1301_zpssb9tsokx.jpg

76 Regency

Check the fusible link on the compressor...it's fairly common for them to be blown. It could also simply be low on Freon and therefore the low pressure switch (on the back of the compressor) would prevent it from turning on.


The brakes on these cars are actually very good as long as they're in good, working order and adjusted properly. I don't know of any disc conversions for the rears but I wouldn't go crazy with something like that. If they had drum on the front, then absolutely but they're discs which work very well. I'd rebuild everything and make sure your discs and drums are suitable to keep, otherwise replace them too. These cars stop very well with stock brakes.


The gas tank is not surprising seeing the rust on the undercarriage. There are reproduction tanks out there. I just did a quick google search and found plenty of results for not too much money. If the tank is badly rusted, then there's rust in the lines and that will definitely affect the carb and motor. I had a rusty tank like yours years ago and the fuel sock in the tank got completely choked up and the car barely ran. Probably a good idea to replace the tank, sending unit and straps.

76Olds88

I personally just hate drum brakes, and usually a conversion that I assemble myself is cheaper than rehabbing the front brakes. They are heavy and complicated, and don't work as well. My long term plans for this car will likely require a disk conversion at some point. I had ~ $150-200 or so into converting my D60 rear on another vehicle to disks. When drums alone are $80+ shoes, wheel cylinders, and spring kit the cost to swap is marginal.

Likely just to get it moving I will throw drums back on it. Do you know what rear axle this has? I have not searched yet.

As far as the tank, I was quite surprised. Most rust under the car is minor surface rust. The floor boards look great other than the small hole in the drivers floor. The frame is just surface rust and some factory paint does remain in areas. The Tank does not appear rusty on the outside either. The worst rust is the wheel wells.

I will likely have the tank Re-Nu'ed as it is a better warranty and only $40 more than the reproductions that reviews say aren't quite the same fit. (they do fit though)

76 Regency

There were a number of rears available on these cars. If you look on the axle tube (I believe on the front side of the passenger's side of it), you'll find the code that you can decipher in the service manual. The standard rear should be the same as the 98 which is a 2:41. They are very good rears regardless of what kind of performance you are looking for.