Hi! I sold my 68 GTO after 26 years because I need a fresh change . I picked up this 69 Canadian built Meadow Green bench/column numbers matching 442. Pretty much a stocker . Can’t wait to dig in and learn as much as possible about Oldsmobile after being a Pontiac owner for so many years .

 

Welcome to the site. Congrats, very nice car.

 

Welcome! That sure is a lot of green! Great looking 442!

 

Great looking car!
What part of the city are you from?

 

I’m in the Rockaways. Car is stored in Brooklyn away from Salt air as much as possible

 

Very nice! Welcome from a fellow ‘69 owner on Long Island.

 

Welcome to the group... Nice looking 69....

 

Welcome! That car looks like a dandy, Can you share a driving impression as compared to the GTO?

 

Sure will . The GTO and 442 led very different lives and are set up very differently. The 442 was pampered and kept pretty much 100 percent stock . The GTO was unrestored other than paint and body work from the 80’s but had several different street performance set ups over the years . I only put about 50 miles on the 442 since purchased but it behaved extremely well on a super hot summer day in traffic where the GTO would be 100 percent out of the game temp

wise .
The “feel”’of the 442 interior even with the bench seat was by far superior to the GTO . The GTO was set up with at least 75 more horsepower than the 442 but definitely doesn’t behave as well on the street as the 442 especially with the 442’s highway friendly gearing . I’m not into the modified performance any more . I drove a few different brands of GM A body’s over the years where I feel the Chevelle and GTO feel alike and the 442 and Buick GS have similar drivability characteristics. I need some more 442 seat time but 100 percent love the feel of it . The doors, trunk and hood shut with confidence and authority unlike the GTO but as I mentioned they both led very different lives . 442 has drums all around as GTO has factory discs. I felt no difference in stopping as of yet . I really fell in love with this 442 and like the Green thing feel about it . NYC is no fun with a 4 speed so I’m real happy about the automatic . New to forums so don’t know if this is too long . Pic of the GTO that I sold . I Let it go for 18,600 which I felt was very fair for both parties

 

Very clean car! Nice. I from Rosedale from back in the day. Worked at JFK.

 

Awesome! There was a lot of street action on Cross Bay Blvd by JFK back in the day . Way before my time though.

 

awesome! Do you happen to be a member of the Long Island Oldsmobile Club ? Was thinking of joining

 

Drove my brothers 85 Vette flat out from Farmers Blvd to the Nassau county line, on Rockaway Blvd. A lot of wild drag racing, east of you on Ocean parkway. Back in the day. After midnight, my early training to street drag race. Nameoke Ave was the place to get weed. When I was a young man. .Good to have another NY Olds guy.on here.

 

Nice, interestingly I began car life with Oldsmobile, turned to Pontiacs, now back to Oldsmobile 45 years later. Nice, my girlfriend in high school had that same green combo on a 69 cutlass but hers was a factory 4 speed bench car. My brother ended up buying it from her.

 

Welcome! Very nice.I hope to a find car that is more stock like yours is. I think I’m done with modified cars.

 

I happen to be selling a 68 442 bench seat automatic car, stock original beautiful car. Its listed on this site in cars for sale 1968 post coupe.if any interest

 

Welcome. Cool Olds!

The Pontiac is awesome too.

 

Thank you for the comparisons between the GTO and the 442. I thought you might like the Olds a little more. They do manage the road with flair. I have a buddy who is into GTOs. He drives a 70 convertible. Fast but lots of road noise and lacking manners. I'm sure some of that is because of it's a convertible.

There are many guys on this site that can help with questions, don't be shy to ask.

tc

 

Welcome fellow New Yorker. I'm from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. It's a good thing your car is in Brooklyn. You don't want to get another Hurricane Sandy. I seen the devastation in the Rockaways.

 

I lived in Bay Ridge for years and grew up in Dyker Heights . Car is located/stored in Dyker . I’m sure I’ll bump into you one day .

 

Sounds good. Just don't crash into me

 

Do they still cruise up and down 86th Street in Bensonhurst?

 

nah .. I wish
kinda been dead there since the 80s

 

That’s long gone. It’s a Chinatown now. Too many people and too many traffic. It’s over crowded. I don’t drive over there during the day time. You will pull your hair out.

 

That's how old I am. Still greatest food in NYC.

 

Nice 69 I like the color combo also. Funny how many of us old Bay Ridge, Bensonhurst Guys are still out there driving Old's. I grew up there and moved out in the mid 70's and your right things have really changed.
Bought my 70 442 new after I was discharged from Army active duty and I still have it, been in my family now for over 52 years or so. During High School days (pre - my 442 ownership) I have some great memories of 86th street and a drive in called Mitchell's that we used to frequent and use as the turnaround to cruise back down 86th street. We would also frequent a place we called First Avenue for drag racing that was near the Brooklyn Queens Expressway (BQE), that was a real hot spot back in the 60's! My older friends also used to take their cars to National Speedway on Long Island and win trophy's and get that sticker you put on the rear drivers side window. Back in the day we used to campaign a 65 GTO that was worked on by the famed "Nunzi" (Romano) who is noted till today for his performance work on Pontiac's and his famed 1962 421 Catalina the "Tin Indian". That's when my desire to get a performance really grew, even though most guys had Pontiac's, Chevelle's and Mopar's. After I drove my first 442 I knew that's what I would get, just had to wait until Uncle Sam was done with me. Thanks for allowing me to reminisce, WOW those were really the good days!
Good luck with your 442, I really think you are going to enjoy it. 😊👍

 

It’s great hearing all of the old NYC stories. Must have been a blast to live there at that time.
I lived in Manhattan and Williamsburg for 18 years…it was very hard to be a car guy with no space to store a car.
So I moved to Florida like every good New Yorker eventually does!

 

That’s me second from left with Nunzi in the middle down at Englishtown about 2015. He is retired now and works on his own sick projects. These are my Pontiac friends from Brooklyn that I thought were going to shun me with the Olds switch .

Sick Pic of his “Immortal Indian “ that day .

Mitchell’s menu from my old Dyker Height’s neighborhood before my time . I heard plenty of street action stories about that place . It became a Weston’s than a Nathan’s for years which was recently demolished to build a school or apartments. Vacant lot now .

 

I agree … tough environment for car people . Plan on a southern move once my daughter is older .

 

Nice '69 and welcome to the Oldsmobile club! Like you, I had a GTO ('70 model) that I enjoyed very much, along with my two 4-4-2 convertibles and a '71 Corvette. For me, it came to downsizing time and I was fortunately able to keep the GTO in the family by "selling" it to a niece and a price she couldn't refuse! But I still needed to downsize one more car. It just seemed to me to be best to keep the Oldsmobiles so the Corvette went down the road after owning it 38 years. You've got a real nice 4-4-2 and it looks like whoever restored it kept it nearly all stock which is also what I like. If you have questions, this is the place to ask. This site has helped me over and over again with issues I've had to resolve with my cars. Enjoy your new ride!

Randy C.
'68 4-4-2 convertible (has been in the family since new; Best Of Class at the 2011 OCA Nationals in Reno NV)
'69 4-4-2 convertible (a nice driver)

 

69 Green Machine - Yes I still remember it well. Thanks for posting the picture of you and the gang along with Nunzi, hope he is well. I know you understand what I was reminiscing about in my previous reply - and I know its hard to believe so many years later and still talking about those times! It is the same Nunzi and his 62 in the picture, only back then we knew the car as the "Tin Indian" he still has the original address of his shop on that car. Small world isn't it. How did you get a Menu from Mitchell's?
Keep us posted on your new ride the 69 - 442.
Thanks so much,
70 Olds442Guy 👍

 

 

I've been told a lot of stories about Mitchell's. There was a girl that drives a Vette and on the side of the car it read, "If you can beat me, you can eat me". I go down to Fountain Ave in Starrett City and race my Cutlass there. When the police comes, everybody scatters like roaches seeing light.
I use to work for Nunzi for 3 years back in 1993-1996. I lived about 15 minutes away from him.

 

thanks for the warm welcome and I’ll keep ya posted . A friend sent me a pic of the Mitchell’s menu

 

cool stuff and about that Vette ! Lol
Cool you worked for Nunzi ! His old time friend Bob Jones is doing well too but doesn’t run that 69 Firebird anymore. Bob still owns it though

 

Hi Ely442, Yes stories about the girl and the Vette are very true, back in the day I saw that car many times on 86th Street! Nice pictures of your 2 Cutlasses, Is the coupe a W31 stock or modified? Amazing that you worked with Nunzi, bet you have some good stories to tell. Nice to hear from another Brooklyn guy, I also lived not far from his shop some 40 or so years ago! 👍

 

I know Bob Jones. He use to be a police officer at the 5th Precinct Chinatown. When I left Nunzi, he was in the process of working on his Firebird.

 

Both of my cars are just regular Cutlass. The hardtop has a 455 and the convertible is just a stock 350.
Nunzi is Italian from Calabrese. They are known to be very stubborn people from other Italians that told me and use to live in Brooklyn. He wasn't all that fun to work with. But I did enjoy working on his customers cars that are all classics. Nunzi refused to work on any computerized cars. I seen all his cars from his 62 Catalina, 63 Tempest, 62 Catalina with the rear bubble back window that has a rear window visor and his 74 Trans Am SD455, 4 speed. He has this customer name Robert and his grand father use to own Katz Deli in Manhattan. Robert has about 7 cars parked inside Nunzi's shop. Nunzi has a large shelf that is nothing but cylinder heads from all make and models. I even seen his Ram Air 5 heads that is ported out so big, you can stick your hands inside. Only Nunzi works on the motors and porting his heads. Long time ago, Nunzi use to send his heads to Joe Mondello (when he was still alive) to port out customers Pontaic heads.

 

​​​​​Welcome aboard my fellow NYC native.

Very cool, for those not familiar with NYC it's a legendary delicatessen, still there and still delicious !

 

Do any of you guys remember Herbst Bros. Oldsmobile in the Far Rockaways?
This is my last name as well...but I could never find a relation.
I think the building might still be there.