My question is: With special order colors, could you order any GM color or only colors that were specified for Oldsmobile. I'm try to figure what color my car is. It doesn't seem to be Sherwood green(48) or Ming Jade (46). Those are the 2 colors that are close to it that I see in the paint book. I have done spray outs on both colors neither one matches. I am matching it to the color behind the door panel, rear wheel well, and underside of the trunk, which all seem to be the same color. I found another color chart labeled 1970 GM colors. It has a color that's not kisted on the Oldsmobile chart that looks very close, called Bright Green metallic (47). Could this be the color? I will do a spray out of this color later today.

 

Cowl tag

 

Under the door panel

Inner rear wheel well

Color book labeled 1970 GM colors

 

Labeled 1970 Oldsmobile colors

 

The "- -" is special order paint.


Looks like the lime color.

 

looks like a pontiac and chevy color.buddy had a 70 le mans that color and i had a 70 caprice that color.

 

Olds had two different "special order" paint options. The "normal" four special order colors (Agean Aqua, Rally Red, Nugget Gold, and Sebring Yellow) were not really that special, but did get the - - paint code. There was also RPO WM6 for "Special Paint Charge (Non-Olds).

 

Joe,

So the car could have been painted any GM color of your choice? The reason I as, I will explore other color options. Would the paint info be on the broadcast card? I may have it I haven't checked yet.
I also had a color eye on the paint but it doesn't read lacquer paint very well.

 

I'm guessing that's what the special charge for non-Olds paint would have been. Not sure if that paint would have shown up on the broadcast card or not.

 

Pretty sure only standard Olds colors would show up on the broadcast card. The paint bypass code would be on the build sheet, which you won't find on a Lansing car. I'm just curious about why you want green? It's not considered to be a highly desired color, and with the - special paint dash, you could change it to just about anything you want that's not an Olds color palette for 1970 and no one would know, except you.

Just an FYI, I believe you could get any GM color on that bypass. One of our members has a 72 Cutlass Supreme his father ordered and it was factory painted with a Cadillac color.

 

In a world of monochromatic white and silver cars, green is becoming more popular for street rods and customs.

 

I like the Chevy II, but that's about it. That color borders on 72 color Radiant Green which I DO like. I agree that too many black and white colors exist, but my point was more directed at a choice other than original, since he has that option with the special paint "-" to create something else. In the long run though, it's his choice not ours. Some folks just want to stay with original and that's ok with me. My car is not original color - I chose a Corvette color because I like the look better than Olds 72 code 14.

 

Anyone else find the single dash odd?


I have seen many -- cowl tags but never a single -.


Thoughts?

 

First dash is lower body color, second is upper. This car is a convertible. The "upper" color is the "A" for the top. I've seen this before on converts and vinyl top cars.

 

^ This. We're just so used to seeing the " - - " on cars that had painted upper/lower.

 

Allan, the interior is in original mint condition and I cant think of a better color to go with it besides what's already on the car.

I didn't know the - left my color options open. I have never been a big fan of greens but lately they're growing on me.

I like the green on the picture of that truck Joe posted.

 

If it were mine

 

Might just be my eyes but that looks like it was struck with a 46 first. Can just make out the outlines of the numerals

 

Top one or bottom? There is a wide variety of earth tone colors that complement green very nicely. I understand your point, but I find too much green overwhelming. I can't tell from the pictures, but it appears that most cars with green exterior have contrasting interior. Hence, my comment that a green interior could easily have a stunning offset exterior color so as to not be so chromatically green.

 

Good eyes. I had not zoomed in on the cowl tag before. Definitely a restrike. The rivets look original, however. Of course, 46 would have been the Toro-only Ming Jade Poly. Perhaps that was stamped first, then they realized it was special order on an A-body (and thus subject to additional charge)? Sure looks like it was hammered flat before the "-" was stamped.

 

I've seen Sebring Yellow cars with "- -" and I've also seen them with 51 51, so who knows?

 

Ming Jade Paint cross references

Joe's theory sounds as good as any.

 

I've also seen 19 19 on 1972 Cutlass S, but with a build sheet (Freemont) that shows it as a special paint bypass. As you know GM A bodies didn't offer black on their color palettes for 1972, so why it had 19 instead of -- I have no idea. Maybe it was specific for each plant?? Or maybe a punch operator got bored? Naw, that would NEVER happen

 

I just noticed that on the cowl tag also. Looks like 46

 

that's ming Jade 46
I have a W31 special ordered in ming jade and it sure looks the part.
I don't know the paint companies you used for spray outs but keep in mind that that manufactures formular could be way off. I have run into this to often.
Additionally any GM color could be ordered on any GM car. I had a 77 442 special ordered in 69 chevy Daytona Yellow and it said just that on the build sheet as well as it's paint code to prove it. Data tag on this car had a crazy group of numbers in the area for the paint code that wasn't the norm for anything. But once the build sheet was found it kind of made sense.
Also a few years back there was a documented 1970 Buick GS painted in chrysler Plum crazy. Back then anything was possible it would seem

 

Absolutely it was stamped 46 then restamped -.

Very interesting.

 

Now that we have that settled. Who has a paint code for the Ming Jade. 46 is not recognized in todays paint systems. The reformulation from PPG is way off. I have tweaked it a little but if someone has been through this before, I will greatly appreciate it

 

See the link in post 22

 

BASF(R-M, Glasurit) has a dead on match. I used it on my car, taken OEM color as reference. Did not have to tweek or alter was a good formular

 

I know that I am coming to this party a little late, however, if you were willing to pay the upcharge, and deal with the waiting, GM divisions would paint a car just about any color that you specified, provided, that they could get the proper paint.
In 1967 I had a special ordered Pontiac, and it was specified on the order sheet that the car was to be painted 1966 Cadillac Firemist Green. It is an absolutely beautiful color, especially in bright sunlight. There was a delay, and it was expensive, however, it turned heads wherever you went with that car.

 

RPO WM6, as mentioned in post #7 in this thread.

 

I think this may be Ming Jade

 

It looks more like radiant green (code 36) I was under the impression Ming Jade is a darker hue of green.

 

My car was originally ordered in Dodge Plum Crazy through a special paint program according to the owner of the dealership that sold the car originally. He said that he could get any color he wanted for $50.00 extra, his cost. He also said this program allowed him to bypass his usual allotment of 442s. A mechanic and also a service manager who also worked at the dealership told me the same thing. My cowl tag has the single - since it's a convertible. Like previously mentioned, seems like anything was possible back then.

 

I think saying "anything was possible" is not quite accurate.

GM had provisions for non-production paint and made it available for an extra charge. It was not a regular-production thing but something that was special-ordered. Here's a Pontiac order sheet that shows how they did it:

http://www.gt-37.org/gallery/main.ph...serialNumber=2

 

Very interesting, makes sense that they would want to track those orders separately I suppose.

 

Well, I'm only inferring from what I can gather.

Clearly ordering a non-RPO color, from GM or Brand X, was not something outside the infrastructure as, let's say, a 1968 Camaro Z/28 convertible.

 

Interesting thread as it covers some areas I was curious about. I am currently working on a '70 442 convertible in Viking Blue. The cowl tag has 26 A on it for paint/top. I have the build sheet (Fremont car) and it lists both the bypass code mentioned above as well as a separate typed description of the color.


In a separate area it also list the steel wheels to be painted in code 19 Platinum. I thought all steel wheel cars were either black or body color? Would this also be a special paint option?

 

Code 19 is Black.

 

I can tell you that Pontiac used only a few select colors or black