An old Olds n00b intro from NY
#1
An old Olds n00b intro from NY
Hey gang… n00b from NY here… lower NY, Putnam County. Close enough to NYC to be paying high taxes, but far enough to keep my doors unlocked at night. Plastic is on the bar, so grab a cold one on me while I lay my intro down.
My first ever car was a ’68 Cutlass 4 door. It was 1980 and I was about to start my junior year in high school. I worked all summer in the gas station and spent my lifes savings on the car - all $300 of it. It only had 77K miles, but the rot holes in the trunk were big enough for a 2-liter bottle of soda to fall through. The front bench seat was shredded. The exhaust was tied up with coat hangers. It had three different brands of tires and one oddball size as well. Being 16 and knowing all there was to know about cars and life in general, I put my weekly gas jockey paycheck where it was needed the most. First, I installed a Craig 8-track player, a 100-watt Pyramid equalizer, and some no-name speakers in the rear deck. Next I did an oil change, taking care to refill with Cam 2 20W-50 Racing Oil… you know… to make it go faster. I was now ready to canvass the streets for drag races and chicks. I didn’t get too many chicks, but that old Cutty had some jump to it… I remember shutting down a late-70’s ‘vette, and I embarrassed a friend of mine who swore his ’72 Satellite retired police car would take me. That Cutlass was the ultimate piece of crap, but I was 16 and it was mine. 6 or 8 months later I decided the Earl Schieb paint job and 2 extra doors were the reasons I wasn’t landing any chicks. I sold the Olds when I found a ’72 Impala for under a grand. I was moving up on the food chain!
It’s now the middle of my senior year. My mother’s ’73 Custom Cruiser had only 50-something thousand miles on it and was a creampuff, but the local mechanic told Dad it needed a transmission. Mom lobbied successfully and got a new 1982 Honda Accord. Dad tossed me the keys to the 3-ton wagon, said “It’s yours. Fix it or junk it, but get it out of the garage.” My buddy Pat’s father was one hell of a mechanic. I stopped by his house and found him pulling weeds. I told him I just inherited the wagon and the transmission was stuck in first. He muttered “Modulator”, never looking at me or the car. I had no idea what he meant and knew that asking for clarification would only point out my ignorance. I said “Yeah, probably…”, and went straight to the local auto parts store with no idea what a modulator was, what it cost, or what it did.
Imagine my relief when I saw the $30 part on the counter, a simple external single-bolt and vacuum hose replacement. Imagine my glee when the Turbo 400 shifted in to second and third as designed. Imagine my pride when I drove that beautiful Custom Cruiser home that afternoon to show my father I had fixed it for $30. But imagine the humiliation of a 17-year old driving a dorky, 8-passenger station wagon with “Mom” written all over it. I had a difficult decision to make. The Impala was much cooler than the CC, and but the Olds had less than half the miles of the Chevy, plus air conditioning and power everything. The interior stilled looked and smelled fresh, and imagine the possibilities of folding down the rear seats and utilizing the back as a bed?
I transferred my stereo equipment over, flipped the air cleaner cover, and sold the Impala. I found that the 455 could barely manage a brake stand in the rain but would roast the rear tires in reverse. I perfected my technique and drew accolades from my peers by bootlegging the Cruiser in front of the high school. My antics came with a price. The tires went bald. The front end got real loose. It started to leak transmission fluid and the brakes started grinding. With no money for repairs I just kept on driving it, adding fluid when I could score some. The transmission eventually locked up. I had Mom’s wagon for a little over a year, and I had managed to kill it.
That was my last Olds. I bought a ’77 T-Bird with chrome wire wheels. FINALLY, I had a real chick car. But I went away to college, got my own place, got married, and eventually started buying dorky 4-doors again. ’91 Taurus, ’95 Integra, and a whole slew of Subaru’s. Now crowding 50, my current cars are a 2011 Outback 3.6R Limited and a 2013 GMC Sierra Denali 2500 Duramax Crew Cab. I also have a 2012 Harley Davidson FLHTCUI and a restored ’83 Rabbit GTI. The Rabbit pays homage to my first new car – an ’84 GTI – and it’s a great driver that gets lots of attention at cruise night. Lately though, my attention had shifted to long, low convertibles. Plymouth Belvederes, 60’s Impalas, and just about any Caddy seems to draw my eye.
I was riding through Chicago on a cross-country motorcycle trip last summer. A member of my group has an uncle who owns a restoration shop. We stopped in and I was immediately floored by a ’67 Cutlass Supreme Convertible. It was an original survivor and had working A/C and was absolutely perfect in every respect. I spent nearly an hour walking around it, ignoring some of the other icons in the place. The car was for sale, and for a very reasonable price. I gave it some consideration but I know almost nothing about the breed. I quickly surmised that if this car was being offered here I could easily find something equivalent much closer to home. So far I have been wrong.
Here is a link to the actual car I saw in Chicago, now sold: http://www.thelastdetail.com/1967-ol...reme-c-550.htm
This, folks, is why I’m here. I’m seriously considering moving on from my beloved ’83 GTI, and I want to educate myself about the ‘66/67 drop top Cutty’s as much as I can so I know what I’m looking at. I’ve seen a couple locally, but nothing serious. Yet. Summer is around the corner and you never know what will come to cruise night, so I need to be prepared.
I’m afraid I don’t have much to add with regard to old Oldsmobiles, unless you guys want to hear about how my ’73 Custom Cruiser got sideways at 110 MPH one night when I found the limit of its suspension. I’ll just offer you guys another pop on my tab and look for a place to fit in whilst I pore over the classifieds and perhaps ask a few dumb questions.
Thanks for reading… see you in the forums.
Cary
Here's my '83 GTI
100_0734.jpg
This is the gang outside The Last Detail. All the way in the back is the '67 CS I probably should have bought.
2012-08-04_11-07-30_746.jpg
Self portrait on the Pacific Coast Highway, Oregon/Cali border.
2012-07-25_18-20-58_156.jpg
Mine is the white one in the middle.
2012-07-25_18-16-24_328.jpg
My first ever car was a ’68 Cutlass 4 door. It was 1980 and I was about to start my junior year in high school. I worked all summer in the gas station and spent my lifes savings on the car - all $300 of it. It only had 77K miles, but the rot holes in the trunk were big enough for a 2-liter bottle of soda to fall through. The front bench seat was shredded. The exhaust was tied up with coat hangers. It had three different brands of tires and one oddball size as well. Being 16 and knowing all there was to know about cars and life in general, I put my weekly gas jockey paycheck where it was needed the most. First, I installed a Craig 8-track player, a 100-watt Pyramid equalizer, and some no-name speakers in the rear deck. Next I did an oil change, taking care to refill with Cam 2 20W-50 Racing Oil… you know… to make it go faster. I was now ready to canvass the streets for drag races and chicks. I didn’t get too many chicks, but that old Cutty had some jump to it… I remember shutting down a late-70’s ‘vette, and I embarrassed a friend of mine who swore his ’72 Satellite retired police car would take me. That Cutlass was the ultimate piece of crap, but I was 16 and it was mine. 6 or 8 months later I decided the Earl Schieb paint job and 2 extra doors were the reasons I wasn’t landing any chicks. I sold the Olds when I found a ’72 Impala for under a grand. I was moving up on the food chain!
It’s now the middle of my senior year. My mother’s ’73 Custom Cruiser had only 50-something thousand miles on it and was a creampuff, but the local mechanic told Dad it needed a transmission. Mom lobbied successfully and got a new 1982 Honda Accord. Dad tossed me the keys to the 3-ton wagon, said “It’s yours. Fix it or junk it, but get it out of the garage.” My buddy Pat’s father was one hell of a mechanic. I stopped by his house and found him pulling weeds. I told him I just inherited the wagon and the transmission was stuck in first. He muttered “Modulator”, never looking at me or the car. I had no idea what he meant and knew that asking for clarification would only point out my ignorance. I said “Yeah, probably…”, and went straight to the local auto parts store with no idea what a modulator was, what it cost, or what it did.
Imagine my relief when I saw the $30 part on the counter, a simple external single-bolt and vacuum hose replacement. Imagine my glee when the Turbo 400 shifted in to second and third as designed. Imagine my pride when I drove that beautiful Custom Cruiser home that afternoon to show my father I had fixed it for $30. But imagine the humiliation of a 17-year old driving a dorky, 8-passenger station wagon with “Mom” written all over it. I had a difficult decision to make. The Impala was much cooler than the CC, and but the Olds had less than half the miles of the Chevy, plus air conditioning and power everything. The interior stilled looked and smelled fresh, and imagine the possibilities of folding down the rear seats and utilizing the back as a bed?
I transferred my stereo equipment over, flipped the air cleaner cover, and sold the Impala. I found that the 455 could barely manage a brake stand in the rain but would roast the rear tires in reverse. I perfected my technique and drew accolades from my peers by bootlegging the Cruiser in front of the high school. My antics came with a price. The tires went bald. The front end got real loose. It started to leak transmission fluid and the brakes started grinding. With no money for repairs I just kept on driving it, adding fluid when I could score some. The transmission eventually locked up. I had Mom’s wagon for a little over a year, and I had managed to kill it.
That was my last Olds. I bought a ’77 T-Bird with chrome wire wheels. FINALLY, I had a real chick car. But I went away to college, got my own place, got married, and eventually started buying dorky 4-doors again. ’91 Taurus, ’95 Integra, and a whole slew of Subaru’s. Now crowding 50, my current cars are a 2011 Outback 3.6R Limited and a 2013 GMC Sierra Denali 2500 Duramax Crew Cab. I also have a 2012 Harley Davidson FLHTCUI and a restored ’83 Rabbit GTI. The Rabbit pays homage to my first new car – an ’84 GTI – and it’s a great driver that gets lots of attention at cruise night. Lately though, my attention had shifted to long, low convertibles. Plymouth Belvederes, 60’s Impalas, and just about any Caddy seems to draw my eye.
I was riding through Chicago on a cross-country motorcycle trip last summer. A member of my group has an uncle who owns a restoration shop. We stopped in and I was immediately floored by a ’67 Cutlass Supreme Convertible. It was an original survivor and had working A/C and was absolutely perfect in every respect. I spent nearly an hour walking around it, ignoring some of the other icons in the place. The car was for sale, and for a very reasonable price. I gave it some consideration but I know almost nothing about the breed. I quickly surmised that if this car was being offered here I could easily find something equivalent much closer to home. So far I have been wrong.
Here is a link to the actual car I saw in Chicago, now sold: http://www.thelastdetail.com/1967-ol...reme-c-550.htm
This, folks, is why I’m here. I’m seriously considering moving on from my beloved ’83 GTI, and I want to educate myself about the ‘66/67 drop top Cutty’s as much as I can so I know what I’m looking at. I’ve seen a couple locally, but nothing serious. Yet. Summer is around the corner and you never know what will come to cruise night, so I need to be prepared.
I’m afraid I don’t have much to add with regard to old Oldsmobiles, unless you guys want to hear about how my ’73 Custom Cruiser got sideways at 110 MPH one night when I found the limit of its suspension. I’ll just offer you guys another pop on my tab and look for a place to fit in whilst I pore over the classifieds and perhaps ask a few dumb questions.
Thanks for reading… see you in the forums.
Cary
Here's my '83 GTI
100_0734.jpg
This is the gang outside The Last Detail. All the way in the back is the '67 CS I probably should have bought.
2012-08-04_11-07-30_746.jpg
Self portrait on the Pacific Coast Highway, Oregon/Cali border.
2012-07-25_18-20-58_156.jpg
Mine is the white one in the middle.
2012-07-25_18-16-24_328.jpg
Last edited by Rockhead261; April 1st, 2013 at 08:02 AM.
#4
Welcome.
I don't know how you could have passed up that Cutlass - I'd have put the Harley down as a deposit for it in a heartbeat.
I had an '81 Scirocco once - great car. High mileage, Euro GT cam, open exhaust. You could really throw it around.
- Eric
I don't know how you could have passed up that Cutlass - I'd have put the Harley down as a deposit for it in a heartbeat.
I had an '81 Scirocco once - great car. High mileage, Euro GT cam, open exhaust. You could really throw it around.
- Eric
#6
I thought about the car for hours after we left. In all honesty I had no idea what I was looking at and didn't know what the car was worth. I now realize I SHOULD have left my bike as a deposit - I can walk into a dealership right now and buy another one just like it, but I doubt I'll find a drop top CS like that again.
![Frown](https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums/images/smilies/frown.gif)
#7
Welcome to the site and thanks for "the dumb kid" experiences we all went thru! That 67 was a nice car but I do think the price was excessive. I would think for 15K you could get a really nice Cutlass conv.
#8
Welcome Cary. Love the anthology! That '67 is awesome. My favorite year I had the exact car, same color but white top and parchment interior. Wasn't nearly as nice as that one, but I loved it! I want to find another one in that color! Being I couldn't find a replacement, I "settled" on a '67 Delta vert instead....
#9
![Big Grin](https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
#10
Last edited by Oldsmaniac; April 2nd, 2013 at 05:00 PM. Reason: more info
#11
Hey gang… n00b from NY here… lower NY, Putnam County. Close enough to NYC to be paying high taxes, but far enough to keep my doors unlocked at night. Plastic is on the bar, so grab a cold one on me while I lay my intro down.
My first ever car was a ’68 Cutlass 4 door. It was 1980 and I was about to start my junior year in high school. I worked all summer in the gas station and spent my lifes savings on the car - all $300 of it. It only had 77K miles, but the rot holes in the trunk were big enough for a 2-liter bottle of soda to fall through. The front bench seat was shredded. The exhaust was tied up with coat hangers. It had three different brands of tires and one oddball size as well. Being 16 and knowing all there was to know about cars and life in general, I put my weekly gas jockey paycheck where it was needed the most. First, I installed a Craig 8-track player, a 100-watt Pyramid equalizer, and some no-name speakers in the rear deck. Next I did an oil change, taking care to refill with Cam 2 20W-50 Racing Oil… you know… to make it go faster. I was now ready to canvass the streets for drag races and chicks. I didn’t get too many chicks, but that old Cutty had some jump to it… I remember shutting down a late-70’s ‘vette, and I embarrassed a friend of mine who swore his ’72 Satellite retired police car would take me. That Cutlass was the ultimate piece of crap, but I was 16 and it was mine. 6 or 8 months later I decided the Earl Schieb paint job and 2 extra doors were the reasons I wasn’t landing any chicks. I sold the Olds when I found a ’72 Impala for under a grand. I was moving up on the food chain!
It’s now the middle of my senior year. My mother’s ’73 Custom Cruiser had only 50-something thousand miles on it and was a creampuff, but the local mechanic told Dad it needed a transmission. Mom lobbied successfully and got a new 1982 Honda Accord. Dad tossed me the keys to the 3-ton wagon, said “It’s yours. Fix it or junk it, but get it out of the garage.” My buddy Pat’s father was one hell of a mechanic. I stopped by his house and found him pulling weeds. I told him I just inherited the wagon and the transmission was stuck in first. He muttered “Modulator”, never looking at me or the car. I had no idea what he meant and knew that asking for clarification would only point out my ignorance. I said “Yeah, probably…”, and went straight to the local auto parts store with no idea what a modulator was, what it cost, or what it did.
Imagine my relief when I saw the $30 part on the counter, a simple external single-bolt and vacuum hose replacement. Imagine my glee when the Turbo 400 shifted in to second and third as designed. Imagine my pride when I drove that beautiful Custom Cruiser home that afternoon to show my father I had fixed it for $30. But imagine the humiliation of a 17-year old driving a dorky, 8-passenger station wagon with “Mom” written all over it. I had a difficult decision to make. The Impala was much cooler than the CC, and but the Olds had less than half the miles of the Chevy, plus air conditioning and power everything. The interior stilled looked and smelled fresh, and imagine the possibilities of folding down the rear seats and utilizing the back as a bed?
I transferred my stereo equipment over, flipped the air cleaner cover, and sold the Impala. I found that the 455 could barely manage a brake stand in the rain but would roast the rear tires in reverse. I perfected my technique and drew accolades from my peers by bootlegging the Cruiser in front of the high school. My antics came with a price. The tires went bald. The front end got real loose. It started to leak transmission fluid and the brakes started grinding. With no money for repairs I just kept on driving it, adding fluid when I could score some. The transmission eventually locked up. I had Mom’s wagon for a little over a year, and I had managed to kill it.
That was my last Olds. I bought a ’77 T-Bird with chrome wire wheels. FINALLY, I had a real chick car. But I went away to college, got my own place, got married, and eventually started buying dorky 4-doors again. ’91 Taurus, ’95 Integra, and a whole slew of Subaru’s. Now crowding 50, my current cars are a 2011 Outback 3.6R Limited and a 2013 GMC Sierra Denali 2500 Duramax Crew Cab. I also have a 2012 Harley Davidson FLHTCUI and a restored ’83 Rabbit GTI. The Rabbit pays homage to my first new car – an ’84 GTI – and it’s a great driver that gets lots of attention at cruise night. Lately though, my attention had shifted to long, low convertibles. Plymouth Belvederes, 60’s Impalas, and just about any Caddy seems to draw my eye.
I was riding through Chicago on a cross-country motorcycle trip last summer. A member of my group has an uncle who owns a restoration shop. We stopped in and I was immediately floored by a ’67 Cutlass Supreme Convertible. It was an original survivor and had working A/C and was absolutely perfect in every respect. I spent nearly an hour walking around it, ignoring some of the other icons in the place. The car was for sale, and for a very reasonable price. I gave it some consideration but I know almost nothing about the breed. I quickly surmised that if this car was being offered here I could easily find something equivalent much closer to home. So far I have been wrong.
Here is a link to the actual car I saw in Chicago, now sold: http://www.thelastdetail.com/1967-ol...reme-c-550.htm
This, folks, is why I’m here. I’m seriously considering moving on from my beloved ’83 GTI, and I want to educate myself about the ‘66/67 drop top Cutty’s as much as I can so I know what I’m looking at. I’ve seen a couple locally, but nothing serious. Yet. Summer is around the corner and you never know what will come to cruise night, so I need to be prepared.
I’m afraid I don’t have much to add with regard to old Oldsmobiles, unless you guys want to hear about how my ’73 Custom Cruiser got sideways at 110 MPH one night when I found the limit of its suspension. I’ll just offer you guys another pop on my tab and look for a place to fit in whilst I pore over the classifieds and perhaps ask a few dumb questions.
Thanks for reading… see you in the forums.
Cary
Here's my '83 GTI
Attachment 171081
This is the gang outside The Last Detail. All the way in the back is the '67 CS I probably should have bought.
Attachment 171082
Self portrait on the Pacific Coast Highway, Oregon/Cali border.
Attachment 171083
Mine is the white one in the middle.
Attachment 171084
My first ever car was a ’68 Cutlass 4 door. It was 1980 and I was about to start my junior year in high school. I worked all summer in the gas station and spent my lifes savings on the car - all $300 of it. It only had 77K miles, but the rot holes in the trunk were big enough for a 2-liter bottle of soda to fall through. The front bench seat was shredded. The exhaust was tied up with coat hangers. It had three different brands of tires and one oddball size as well. Being 16 and knowing all there was to know about cars and life in general, I put my weekly gas jockey paycheck where it was needed the most. First, I installed a Craig 8-track player, a 100-watt Pyramid equalizer, and some no-name speakers in the rear deck. Next I did an oil change, taking care to refill with Cam 2 20W-50 Racing Oil… you know… to make it go faster. I was now ready to canvass the streets for drag races and chicks. I didn’t get too many chicks, but that old Cutty had some jump to it… I remember shutting down a late-70’s ‘vette, and I embarrassed a friend of mine who swore his ’72 Satellite retired police car would take me. That Cutlass was the ultimate piece of crap, but I was 16 and it was mine. 6 or 8 months later I decided the Earl Schieb paint job and 2 extra doors were the reasons I wasn’t landing any chicks. I sold the Olds when I found a ’72 Impala for under a grand. I was moving up on the food chain!
It’s now the middle of my senior year. My mother’s ’73 Custom Cruiser had only 50-something thousand miles on it and was a creampuff, but the local mechanic told Dad it needed a transmission. Mom lobbied successfully and got a new 1982 Honda Accord. Dad tossed me the keys to the 3-ton wagon, said “It’s yours. Fix it or junk it, but get it out of the garage.” My buddy Pat’s father was one hell of a mechanic. I stopped by his house and found him pulling weeds. I told him I just inherited the wagon and the transmission was stuck in first. He muttered “Modulator”, never looking at me or the car. I had no idea what he meant and knew that asking for clarification would only point out my ignorance. I said “Yeah, probably…”, and went straight to the local auto parts store with no idea what a modulator was, what it cost, or what it did.
Imagine my relief when I saw the $30 part on the counter, a simple external single-bolt and vacuum hose replacement. Imagine my glee when the Turbo 400 shifted in to second and third as designed. Imagine my pride when I drove that beautiful Custom Cruiser home that afternoon to show my father I had fixed it for $30. But imagine the humiliation of a 17-year old driving a dorky, 8-passenger station wagon with “Mom” written all over it. I had a difficult decision to make. The Impala was much cooler than the CC, and but the Olds had less than half the miles of the Chevy, plus air conditioning and power everything. The interior stilled looked and smelled fresh, and imagine the possibilities of folding down the rear seats and utilizing the back as a bed?
I transferred my stereo equipment over, flipped the air cleaner cover, and sold the Impala. I found that the 455 could barely manage a brake stand in the rain but would roast the rear tires in reverse. I perfected my technique and drew accolades from my peers by bootlegging the Cruiser in front of the high school. My antics came with a price. The tires went bald. The front end got real loose. It started to leak transmission fluid and the brakes started grinding. With no money for repairs I just kept on driving it, adding fluid when I could score some. The transmission eventually locked up. I had Mom’s wagon for a little over a year, and I had managed to kill it.
That was my last Olds. I bought a ’77 T-Bird with chrome wire wheels. FINALLY, I had a real chick car. But I went away to college, got my own place, got married, and eventually started buying dorky 4-doors again. ’91 Taurus, ’95 Integra, and a whole slew of Subaru’s. Now crowding 50, my current cars are a 2011 Outback 3.6R Limited and a 2013 GMC Sierra Denali 2500 Duramax Crew Cab. I also have a 2012 Harley Davidson FLHTCUI and a restored ’83 Rabbit GTI. The Rabbit pays homage to my first new car – an ’84 GTI – and it’s a great driver that gets lots of attention at cruise night. Lately though, my attention had shifted to long, low convertibles. Plymouth Belvederes, 60’s Impalas, and just about any Caddy seems to draw my eye.
I was riding through Chicago on a cross-country motorcycle trip last summer. A member of my group has an uncle who owns a restoration shop. We stopped in and I was immediately floored by a ’67 Cutlass Supreme Convertible. It was an original survivor and had working A/C and was absolutely perfect in every respect. I spent nearly an hour walking around it, ignoring some of the other icons in the place. The car was for sale, and for a very reasonable price. I gave it some consideration but I know almost nothing about the breed. I quickly surmised that if this car was being offered here I could easily find something equivalent much closer to home. So far I have been wrong.
Here is a link to the actual car I saw in Chicago, now sold: http://www.thelastdetail.com/1967-ol...reme-c-550.htm
This, folks, is why I’m here. I’m seriously considering moving on from my beloved ’83 GTI, and I want to educate myself about the ‘66/67 drop top Cutty’s as much as I can so I know what I’m looking at. I’ve seen a couple locally, but nothing serious. Yet. Summer is around the corner and you never know what will come to cruise night, so I need to be prepared.
I’m afraid I don’t have much to add with regard to old Oldsmobiles, unless you guys want to hear about how my ’73 Custom Cruiser got sideways at 110 MPH one night when I found the limit of its suspension. I’ll just offer you guys another pop on my tab and look for a place to fit in whilst I pore over the classifieds and perhaps ask a few dumb questions.
Thanks for reading… see you in the forums.
Cary
Here's my '83 GTI
Attachment 171081
This is the gang outside The Last Detail. All the way in the back is the '67 CS I probably should have bought.
Attachment 171082
Self portrait on the Pacific Coast Highway, Oregon/Cali border.
Attachment 171083
Mine is the white one in the middle.
Attachment 171084
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