First off, hello all, I've been searching and reading this forum for the past few days and still haven't fully found my answer!

Here is my dilemma: I have a 54 chevy truck for sale and got offered a trade by an older gentleman that has what he believes is a 66 442 Convertible,

His car is in arizona (originally from oregon) and he is in CA for now but will be going to Az in 2 weeks and can get more info on her for me. So far, he has sent over 4 pics which has both 442 markings and a cutlass emblem;

I, obviously a complete novice, can't figure out whether such thing makes sense or not; I asked him and he was telling my he is certain this is a 442,

If at all possible, please advise on what you think this is (as it looks like a cutlass supreme to me, but I honestly don't know all the differences)

if you can also tell me what to look for (ask for pics of) and what's a reasonable value for her.

Again, this seller seems like a nice gentleman, may even be a member on here; I, by no means, think he is a scammer; just want to know if he or I are confused,

Thanks in advance, and great forum you guys have here

Sam

 

Hi Sam, first of all welcome to the forum!
I'm not an expert either, but from the pictures it looks like someone started to make a Cutlass into a 442-tribute car!
The taillights are Cutlass/f85, the trunk lid is from a Cutlass as the 442 emblem would be where the Cutlass sits, I don't know why they mounted the 442 on the left side, it would've even fit into the Cutlass mounting holes
The trunk lid molding with the "Oldsmobile" on it is also from a Cutlass
The Hood also seems to be from a Cutlass, because it has the hood "spear" which 442's didn't have. The last thing I noticed is, that the rear quarter emblems seem to sit a little low, but that could just be the perspective of the picture!
After all it's still a very nice car and you can only be totally sure what it is, when the gentleman has any numbers for you to verify whether it's a real 442 or not...
https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...er-decode.html
Also take a look at the engine casting number right between the water pump and the intake manifold on the block, it should have a big E at the end if it's the 400 engine the 442 came with.
Like I've already said before I'm not an expert either, so the above is just my opinion and I'm sure some of the real experts will chime in soon to correct me if I'm wrong and to give you more tips what to look for
Hope it all goes well for you!

 

In 66 the vin number has a letter in the middle of it. That will tell you where it was built. Either in Lansing Michigan or Fremont California. Does he have the original owners manual and warranty booklet? If so the back of the warranty booklet will have a card on the back cover that has all the printing on it backwards, this is the warranty protecto plate. If that is there it will have a V code that should be on the right head of the engine if it has the original motor.
Odds are this is a Cutlass with some 442 items on it. What motor and trans does it have? I see it has a 67-69 style console and shifter. This could mean nothing as the 66 shifters were junk. It has more correct by the pictures to be a Cutlass not a 442. You should get him to provide you a picture of the "Cowl Tag" that is a metal tag on the firewall by the brake booster, wiper motor area. I can help you decode that. It looks like a nice car but can't just answer the question based on the information you have provided so far. There is as mentioned above a set of numbers and a letter cast into the block just behind the water pump and next to the oil fill tube. there is also a letter or number on the head on the drivers side this is just forward of the number 1 spark plug and in the same spot on the passenger side head just after number 8 spark plug. (important they match) A picture of the engine with the air cleaner both on and off can be helpful too. A picture of the rearend of the car. Not the back of the car but the actually rearend taken from like the area about the bumper. This will show if the rearend has a sway bar or not. All 442's had a sway bar and boxed lower control arms. Have them get you a picture of the fuel pump as well. That will tell if it has one or two fuel lines going to the fuel pump. All 442's had two fuel lines not one coming to them and one to the carb. The front fender vents are correct for a 66 442 but that can be changed. The grill emblem and grill is correct for 442 but also look new and are available aftermarket. The emblem looks aftermarket. The dead give away on that is that the emblem is painted red/orange/yellow. It should be dark red/medium red/orange. That is a typical aftermarket mistake. I am not sure other than someone not knowing what is correct, why they put a 442 emblem on the left side of the deck lid. That emblem would have been a bolt in for the cutlass emblem on the right. So, that and all that has been already mentioned. will help to figure if it is a real deal 442 or a Cutlass. My guess so far is that it is a Cutlass. A nice car, just not all 442 at face value for sure. It may still be worth the trade. That really is your final decision. If you get all that info you can email me direct and I can help you more.
On another note he may say it has factory wheels, Which is true. They just were not available in 66.
Larry
lemoldsnut@aol.com

 

Nobody would put cutlass emblems on a 442. This car screams fake all over. There are more cutlass parts shown than 442 parts. The console is not 66 era.

 

Welcome. You are right to be asking questions, as there are now more Faux-Four-Twos on the road than GM ever built. The rest of the car looks correct, but the trunklid and taillights are Cutlass. It's possible that this is a real 442 that was hit in the rear and the parts were replaced with Cutlass parts. Look for signs of damage repair inside the trunk.

Of course, the best thing to look at is the cowl tag. Real 442s built at assembly plants other than Fremont will have a "5V" or "5VY" in the bottom left corner of the cowl tag. Unfortunately, Fremont did not do this, and there's a high probability that a car originally delivered to Oregon came from Fremont.

As others have noted, if the car has the Protec-O-Plate, that would also be very helpful, since it will tie the engine unit number to the VIN. Of course, in 1966, the engine unit number was only stamped on one head, which is a bolt-on item. Naturally the only engine would be an E-block 400 with B heads, but again, this can be bolted in to any Cutlass. Good luck.

 

Thank you very much for all the replies, you guys do not disappoint
I will look for all the stuff mentioned,

One more question for now:
Looking at "collector car review" there is a section for 442 cutlass convertible, and cutlass convertible, then in another setting, I read someone talking about a 66 cutlass supreme covertible

can someone clarify this, as in, was there a choice to get 3 different convertibles with the word cutlass in the title in 1966?

thanks again
Sam

 

There is a LOT of incorrect information out there, ESPECIALLY in collector car magazines and collector car dealer ads. The facts are in the 1966 Oldsmobile sales literature, one page of which is reproduced here:



In the 1966 model year, the 442 was an option package offered on various Cutlass and F-85 models. The only A-body convertible offered in 1966 was a Cutlass (the Cutlass Supreme was only offered as a four-door in 1966). When the 442 package was ordered, Olds called it a "442 Cutlass", as you can see in the brochure, however the only emblems on the car were 442 emblems.

Edit: Apparently the CO site downsizes large images, so you can't click on the one above to get a larger view. Here's the URL for the full size image:

1966 Olds brochure

 

Whats your 54 look like?

 

 

Nice truck Sam. Got no advice for ya other than value is in the heart of the beholder.