Hello All! New forum member and new Oldsmobile owner. I live in Peoria, Illinois and have been a “car guy” for most of my young 50 years lol! Sad to say I ended up with my first Olds at the expense of a friend who has fallen on some hard times financially. The car I ended up with is a 1968 Delmont 88 convertible. I don’t have the data plate or engine numbers to post right now but will start a new thread once I get that information and some better pictures. My friend claims the car is numbers matching. He rebuilt the Rocket 350 a couple of years ago so it sounds and runs fantastic. The underside and frame of the car are in surprisingly great shape. The interior is serviceable but could use a good freshening. The car does have a dinged up passenger side front (including the parking light lens) and some poorly done body work on the lower rear quarters. The car is also in desperate need of a new top but at least it’s in my shop now and out of the elements. At this point I’m still in the ‘evaluation’ stage with this project as I have several other cars in my stable. I guess a good place to start would be to findout if Oldsmobile folks think this car is worth investing in? I think for a few grand I can turn it into a nice weekend driver. My better half has always wanted a convertible and since this is a “bigger” car it might just be perfectfor her. Anyone have any thoughts or suggestions?
Sorry for the terrible pic but it’s the only one I have right now. Should at least give you an idea of what I’m working with though.
Thanks for allowing me to join this group. I’m sure I will have many questions once I start workingon her. Cheers!

 

Welcome to the site. Sorry about your friend, at least he knows where it is and its being taken care of.

 

Looks like a nice car. Convertibles are always worth saving. As far as whether or not it's worth investing in, there is no way to answer that question as each person has different goals and ideas. If you're looking to fix the car up and sell it at a profit, it won't happen as you'll always spend more to fix it up than you could ever recover when you go to sell the car.

If you're looking to fix the car up so you can enjoy it, take your wife for a ride, and experience some pride of ownership, then of course it's worth investing in, assuming you have the money to invest. Remember also that there is no time limit on this. While you certainly want the car in running and driving condition as soon as possible, so you'll likely look at brakes, tec. right away, complete cosmetic restoration can take as long as your time and budget permit.

While engine and drivetrain parts are easy to get for these cars, body, trim, and interior parts are not reproduced in the aftermarket for the big Oldsmobiles and never have been. If you need a bumper or a fender or door panel or a floor pan, it will have to come from another '68 full-size Olds and most likely a '68 Delta or Delmont.


I have a relatively close cousin to your car, a '67 Delta 88 convertible. The big cars will never be as popular as the Cutlasses, but they're still cool.

 

Welcome to the site, and nice car. People on this site are very knowledgeable and helpful. My wife and I have a 68 Delmont convertible and it is a blast. I'm in my mid sixties, so the Delmont is a time machine. Driving it brings me back to that era. I do have some spare parts should the need arise.

 

Thanks for the kind welcome guys! Truly appreciate it. Hope to get some better pictures this weekend and get them posted. Going to start pricing parts and then decide which direction to go.


Grandpas, thank you very much for the offer! The only really glaring need right now is a replacement passenger side front turn signal/parking light lens. After some research I found this is a one year only lens so I assume it will be hard to find.


Thanks again all!

 

Welcome to the site. I'm a Bradley U grad and still have farming interests in the area.

There are several Oldsmobile owners in the area there. Enjoy that 88!