Hey guys!

I figured i'd take some time to introduce myself. My name is Russ i'm 24 from Anchorage,AK and a member of some other car/truck forums. My grandparents have owned our 1972 Oldsmobile Delta 88 convertible since 1990. The car came from Montana and was sold to my grandpa from his brothers used car dealership in Williston, North Dakota about a year before his brother passed away. The car as the story goes was owned by a farmer and used sparingly over the years and did not see much winter use. My Grandparents kept the car stored in Williston, ND and drove it when they would go back and visit family every year, since buying it in 1990 with 78,000 original miles it has only seen around 400 miles a year in the last 23 years.

In 1997 the car was taken to a good body and paint shop in ND. the floor pans where replaced, the car was repainted the gold color you see in the current pictures as it used to be a green color. a new white top was installed at the same time the rest of the work was done.

After my grandmother's mother passed away earlier this summer they did not plan to go back to North Dakota as much as they had in the past and i convinced them to ship the car to Alaska so our family could enjoy it more often. After waiting FOREVER the car finally showed up at the end of September and we have put over 500 miles on it since.

The specs
88,5xx original miles
Transmission rebuilt (October 2013)
350 engine
power windows
Air conditioning
new shocks
newer tires
otherwise just needs some small TLC but its a WONDERFUL driver! Cruises right down the highway like a big boat

We have a few other classic cars also...heres some pictures since we got the car to Alaska.
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Here is a few pictures from 2011 back in North Dakota
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Anyway that's my story, i hope to learn more about these awesome cars and fix a few of the small nick-nacks to make this car even better!

 

Welcome !!

Pic #5 is awesome . You should enter some if those pics and see if it makes it into the all olds calendar !

 

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...ad.php?t=68454

 

welcome!

Man o man those pics bring back memories- I grew up in Anchorage,left in '90. I keep wanting to go back up again and haven't quite made it yet. Someday. :-)

 

Welcome aboard

X 2 for sending the pic to Bigjer for the calander

 

Welcome to CO, nice car. I spent a few years in Anchorage, fun times.

 

Welcome, very nice cars. Thanks for sharing.

 

Welcome to CO.
Nice vert. It was good
you were able to keep it in the family.
Those countyside shots are great.

 

Welcome to the site! I agree with the others, nice photos of the car with the background planned. I was also struck by the contrast from the plains of North Dakota to the mountains of Alaska... dramatic differences.


John

 

Thanks guys! i'll look into getting some pictures submitted.

Yeah being born and raised in Anchorage it was always a stark contrast when i would go back to ND. Flat does not even being to describe it haha i will not miss trying to sit on the dark green vinyl seats when its 100F out and the top is down...talk about burning! the car will see alot more miles up here and i plan to drive it alot in the summer.

 

Welcome to CO! Nice looking ride and great pictures.

 

Both of those are nice cars. It is great you have kept the car in the family. A convertible in Alaska has to be interesting. How many days a year are you able to put the top down. My 54 was actually taken to Alaska by the original owner. He was an attorney with Chevron and spent a couple years up there. I don't think he drove the car and very little if at all.

 

Welcome to the site Russ! That's a sharp looking Delta you got there, very cool! I agree with the others, those pics are really nice...and WOW, that ND is FLAT!

You still have that Cougar? Any info on that baby?

 

Convertibles up here great! depending on the summer. this summer we had some amazing HOT weather that made it wonderful. but we will ride with the top down if its above 50F and not raining gotta enjoy what you have when you can.

part of the reason i wanted to bring the Olds up for so long is i loved taking the '56 Bel-Air out but its a manual with no power steering or brakes. plus its my grandpas baby and he gets concerned about parking it in busy parking lots or taking it out late night. the Olds is much more of a easy every day driver and hes not as overly concerned about it as its not a $50k+ car.

we have a few classics that we drive, some of the others are..

1969 Mercury Cougar 390/C6 w/77k miles it was bought new in Anchorage in '69 its original except paint and wheels. Bought in '81 by my grandparents for my uncle. he could not handle the car so they took it away and my grandpa took it to shows and tinkered with it over the years. its Due for another re-paint/refresh next year.

1956 Chevrolet Bel-Air 265 w/power pack 3 on the tree, restored mid 80s and we bought it in 1997. its a very nice and clean car and we have put 35k miles on it since getting it. my grandparents had a '56 just like it when they got married in '59 and he wanted another one ever since he sold that one, this is his baby!

1976 Chevrolet Corvette L82 t-top 4 speed with 40k original miles, my dad bought this car in 1978 when he was 18 in North Dakota and drove it back to Alaska. Its had many different paint jobs over the years and alot of modifications and its pretty fast these days. he used to like to autocross it but since his knee has gotten worse he just cruises around trying not to get speeding tickets.

some pictures of the other cars from this summer.
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Welcome, nice cars and pics. I was born in Anchorage, but the parents moved to Michigan when I was 4-5 months old, (it was still a U.S. territory) I have a ton of relatives up there.

 

X 2 !! That is a great shot!

Welcome to the forum and enjoy that beautiful Oldsmobile!

 

Thank you guys again, I've got some questions on a few little issues the car has i'll bring up as i get to them.

Today though was the last day for the Olds this year. I put it in one of our storage containers for the winter. We are having a VERY odd year and there is no snow on the ground yet.

I got a picture of my Grandmas two babies together today before putting her away.
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put her away and pulled the battery cable...
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well after 5 months and a VERY mild winter i decided to pull the Olds out yesterday.

hooked the battery up and she fired right up! i thought things were going really well.
I drove it up to my grandparents house and thats when things went down hill, fast! as i went to leave it started missing really bad, back firing actually blew the whole muffler out before refusing to run. we had fuel but i suspected the 42 year old stock coil of going bad.

today we went down and got a new coil, fuel filter and some vacuum hose to replace some that fell apart in my hand. after putting the new parts on she runs great! i put 15 miles on it and filled it up with fuel. when i got home figured out the brake lights are not working. looks like the turn signal switch has went bad after hours of testing wires and tearing the dash apart. i did fix a few small other wiring issues after i took the car apart and found them. once i get the signal switch replaced it will be going in for new exhaust and a good look over from our mechanic that we trust.

yesterday and today
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Welcome aboard......I love the mud flaps...you just don't see those anymore. Killer


Man check out those plains,,,,not a tree in sight. That is not seen here in Texas much. Not around here anyway. Lot's of contrasts in terrain yes, plains not so much however I rode my bike once from Cleburne to Longview via Hillsboro//Longview/Corsicana and the Corsicana/Athens leg was mucho farm land but nothing like that. Beautiful pics man...beautiful.