f85 rocket

Hello all, just thought I would I would make myself known on this forum,and introduce myself to you members. I have been an Olds fan since the fall of 1966,when my father brought home a shiny new gold 67 cutlass.
I now live in rural Alabama,where the only time I get to see a classic olds is when I make it to a car show,then its usually the same one or two.
I am now starting work on a 69 442(saffron yellow ,auto).I hope that this forum will be a place of support,and that you members may be a real resource of knowledge.
Wes

Allan R

Hi Wes,
Welcome to C.O. - Nice to have you aboard. 69? Cool. Is it a vert or HT? I know the feeling about when Dad used to bring home the shiny new Olds. Kind of wished he would have taken me with him when he was shopping though - after all I was the one who would end up driving it as much as him..

Lot's of guys with plenty of experience and helpful suggestions here, so feel free to ask away.

Please post pics of your car, and be sure to start a thread under "major builds/projects " to keep us up to date.

f85 rocket

I cant find the VIN for the 69 442 .Cowl tag# st69 33687LAN410681
the VIN numbers on the dash are undecipherable because of rust,also the car has been sitting 20+ years,no title with a vin..So how do I find the VIN ? Complete drive train not original I don't need to verify the car's authenticity,it is a gennie 442, But I will need to get it retitled. Any other places to look on car for VIN ?

501Paratrooper

Welcome to CO, there is another spot under the driver side door on the frame. I have not been able to find mine though. Is there an old tag on the car or the name of a PO if so you might be able to get your DMV to look it up for you.
Saffron was the original color of my car. Good luck on your restoration.

75cutty455

Welcome Wes,

HEY, I am in Central Alabama. I just got a 75 cutlass that I am fixing up mostly back to its original state. MOSTLY. I just rebult my motor which came from a 68 Toronado. I bought mine out of Tenn. and when I went to the DMV they told me they dont title cars over 30 yrs anymore. They said my registration serves as my title/proof of ownership. Im not sure if its because I got it from Tenn. or not but I would check into that. But anyway. This info below is from 442.com in the faqs area under blocks. Check that site out, it has a plethora of Olds information. Hope this helps.


The VIN derivative stamping or engine unit number on the left most side of the block, on the driver's side, just below the cylinder head, toward the front. The pad is part of the engine and will indicate the year of manufacture, but that is usually rusted beyond recognition, and it can be changed by restamping. If the engine was replaced under warranty, the pad may be blank. Rubbing alcohol and Q-tips help to remove the grime and grit from the stamping. The VIN derivative on 68-up blocks doesn't tie directly to the type of car it was installed in (unless you have some way to unambiguously trace the last six digits of the VIN), however it _can_ provide some indirect evidence. If the production plant (third place in the VIN derivative) was one at which no 442s were built (KC, for example), then it obviously isn't a 442 motor. Of couse, you have no way of knowing for sure that the heads were originally installed on that block or not.


1968-later V-8 Engine
Have the last six digits of the VIN number, the year of the block, and the assembly plant stamped on the driver's side of the block below the cylinder head. A 2-letter code on the oil filler tube identified the engine.
You can use the VIN derivative number to ID the year. For 1968 and up blocks, this number is located on a pad just below the cylinder head on the front left side of the engine. This number will be stamped on a machined pad on the front driver's side of the block, just below the deck surface. Typically it will be covered with a power steering bracket or something, below the number one spark plug location.
This number should take the form of "35Mxxxxxx" where: 3 = Oldsmobile division. 5 = year of manufacture (8=68, 9=69, 0=70, ..., 4=74, 5=75, 6=76, etc.). M = location of manufacture (M = Lansing, B=Baltimore, X = Kansas City, Z = Fremont, CA, etc). xxxxxx = last six digits of VIN of car that motor originally came in (original car's sequential production number).
The letter indicating factory must match the letter in the sixth position of the car's VIN (it should also, of course, match the factory indication on the body data plate - in other words, for a Lansing-built car, the sixth place in the VIN would be an "M", the body data plate should indicate "LAN", and the third place in the engine ID should also be an "M").
Some blocks, before 1977, have their ID cast above the right hand center freeze plug, eg. D for 425, F for 455. Olds didn't cast the displacement into the side of the blocks until they went to the light weight design in 1977. The 1977 and newer blocks will have the cubic inches cast in large raised numbers right above the right hand center freeze plug, eg. 403. The 307 will be in liters (5L), and a diesel engine will have the letters "DX" on it. The engine VIN letter will also be cast into the side of the block. Note that the 260 blocks sometimed have the last 3 digits of the casting number cast there, "355", which is rather misleading. From the factory, the oil filler tube had a sticker containing two letters which indicated components (carb, etc), model application (Cutlass, 88, etc), and other configuration items (timing, CA approved, etc).

DENT

Welcome to the forum Wes, got any pics?

Allan R

Wes, unfortunately if the engine is not original, it will be very difficult to determine the VIN deriviative of the car. It likely starts off exactly as your cowl tag does with 33687 but then the model year (9) and then the factory letter followed by 6 unique digits. The number on your VIN will NOT match the cowl tag. The only other place you can look for the missing VIN derivatives is where paratrooper described. Here is an example from John McNEEL (2blu442)
https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...tml#post334449

Hope that helps. Otherwise, you may be 'd

allyolds68

69 Lansing 442's will still have a 336 cowl tag

I bet you can clean up the VIN on the dash enough to read if you remove the windshield and plastic trim around it. Otherwise the only other place you'll find it is on the top of the frame rail behind the driver's door (if the original engine isn't there) but you can't really see it without the body off and if your VIN tag is that rusted I'd imagine you can't see it on the frame either

Allan R

X2, here's hoping. Even if you can spray some paint onto the VIN plate first before you try to clean it up? It may be enough to give the slight definition you need to read it. Rusty surfaces tend to flatten out the definition a lot.

f85 rocket

Thanks everyone for the info.Since my windshield was cracked anyway we pulled it on out. I cleaned up the VIN pad with a toothbrush.Well I could finally read it.
VIN # 344879M408389

f85 rocket

[QUOTE=75cutty455;440757]Welcome Wes,

HEY, I am in Central Alabama. I just got a 75 cutlass that I am fixing up mostly back to its original state. MOSTLY. I just rebult my motor which came from a 68 Toronado. I bought mine out of Tenn. and when I went to the DMV they told me they dont title cars over 30 yrs anymore. They said my registration serves as my title/proof of ownership. Im not sure if its because I got it from Tenn. or not but I would check into that. But anyway. This info below is from 442.com in the faqs area under blocks. Check that site out, it has a plethora of Olds information. Hope this helps.


I also have a 68 toro 455,I was going to use for a 68 HO replica.I sold that car. Funny, I am going up to Tennessee this weekend to get a 455 out of an old 98. Oh btw steel crank in Toro,urban legend .

Allan R

Well, that's definitely a 442.
3 - Olds
44 - 442 model
87 - Sports Coupe
9 - 1969 model year
M - Lansing production
408389 - Production sequence at Lansing.