Thanks... I was not aware of that fact. As I said before, I am not an expert on the Oldsmobile brand.

 

What is that little button in the center of the windshield wipers for?? Most reasonable people would acknowledge that is for the non existent windshield washers.

 

The seller has great expectations , as to what this car is worth.
He is looking for a fool with money . Don't be that fool .
Keep shopping , better deals can be found.

 

I can get the car for $26,500. What do you think?

 

You asked for it.

CCMR lists this car in #3 condition at $14,650 and in #2 condition at $21,375.

Haggerty lists all 1960 98s (without distinguishing body styles) in #3 condition at $12,100 and in #2 condition at $17,900.

NADA (which tends to run unrealistically high) lists this car at $23,900 at "Average Retail" (they don't do the number condition grading).


The car in the pictures looks like it is in excellent original condition underneath.
That completely excludes the possibility that it could be called a "#1" car, and brings its condition down, in my opinion, to a bit below a "#2," like maybe a "#2.25." Without seeing the actual car in person, it is hard to say more, but, in general, once you are actually looking at a car, many flaws that you wouldn't have noticed become obvious, so it is likely that they exist.

I would say it's worth somewhere between $18,000 and $20,000.

I would be interested in others' opinions on this (knowing that this discussion always turns into a brawl ).

- Eric

 

I think if it's the car of your dreams and a hard to find one at that it's not a bad thing to pay a little more than retail if you want it bad enough and if it is in verified premium condition. That being said, this car would be a nightmare to find parts for in North America. I definitely wouldn't want to own one in Malta. There are many cars that you can easily service or repair with either OEM or re-produced parts and still be unique, especially in ���� (Malta).

 

I come to agree with you Eric. Although the car looks nice the price is still high. Honestly I'm loosing interest especially to the fact that parts are not so easy to find. Thanks Eric especially for all the find out you made !!!

 

It seems that everyone here is on the same track. Most of you are saying that parts are not easy to find and price ($26,500) is still high. Still undecided thou :-(

 

It is your money, and I would put $3000 at least into a reserve to fix and repair anything else that you find wrong with the car, once it arrives. The exhaust system looks solid, but it also looks original, and there is no telling how long that is going to last, unless someone physically examines it. Yesterday, while looking at the latest bunch of pictures that you have posted, I see a wire, that is wrapped up around the frame, and doesn't appear to be hooked up to anything. Then there is the missing vacuum line to the heater. Might be a small item, that can turn into a nightmare, if there are other vacuum lines that are cut or missing. Finally, there are 2 screws located under the door light switch in the forward door jam, that to me look totally out of place. It looks like they drilled 3 holes in the cowl, and only used 2 of them. Sure would love to have someone explain what these 2 screws are holding on the other side. I have never seen anything like this on any car before, and I don't believe that they are factory installed screws. This is the type of situation that you will be in, trying to determine where cut wires belong, and what is or isn't working the way that it should. Personally, I would pass on this car for that dollar amount. I am realistic enough to know that you are not going to find a 100% original car in 100% perfect condition, but for 39,000 miles, I would expect that all the original parts were still on the car, and that the car wouldn't have been molested. I pointed out a few items in a PM to you, along with my public statements. If you are in love with the car, and can afford the cost, transportation, and the other expenses involved with this car after it arrives, then by all means, buy it. If on the other hand, you just want a really nice 1960's American car that you can drive and enjoy, there are many others out there for similar or less money, in better condition. Don't just at the first one that catches your attention, because you might find that there are others out there that are better, and less expensive.

 

Hi Nakis,

Lots of Maltese over here in Australia, I bet you know someone who lives in St. Albans! Anyway, I think I can help you out more than most on your dilemma. I daily drive my '55 olds.

This means I need to keep parts as things do wear out - such as brakes etc.

Probably like yourself, Olds stuff is pretty much non existent here. I have collected a fair bit of stuff for my car over the years. I have it all boxed up and each box is numbered and I have a list , that lists what is in each box. so if I need a wheel cylinder kit, or a spark plug or valve cover gasket, I know where to find them.

As mentioned eBay is essential, I have bought a lot of trim off eBay. I hope I never need it, but if I do end up in a prang I want to be able to fix the car asap.

I suggest the biggest thing is finding a shipper to Malta ( guess you have one if you're looking at the car) that will work with you to bring other things in. I get container shipments of large stuff about twice a year.

Small stuff I use USPS flat rate boxes where I can when working with the seller. for larger stuff I send to my shipper in CA and it goes in the pile and when the next container is full out it comes via boat. Can take a while but this is stuff I'm in no hurry for.

Rock Auto is good for gaskets and general stuff like that. I have found though, that for international shipments you need to be careful.

RA likes to list the 'shipping center' as A B or C I have found that adjusting the amount of what I want can sometimes drop one shipping centre or increase from 1 shipping center to 2 ( extra shipping cost) so if you use RA play around with the amount you are getting shipped and even the supplier as you may find that say brake shoes from Wagner will add another shipping centre but the ones from Dorman will come from the place you already have stuff coming from. By doing this I have found that I can cut down the boxes coming from 3 to 2 most times or even 1 in some instances and save myself over $100US.

I found once that adding 8 sprak plugs to the shopping cart gave me a 'C' shipping centre and the cost of shipping went up $140US. So I didn't go ahead with that.

If you have a good shipper, you can probably get stuff sent to them and they put it in the trunk of the car to come out as 'spares'

Its difficult buying from OS but something we have to do as we have no option.

My suggestion regardless of what you purchase, is get the basics of consumables at the same time. such as

Gasket set
wheel cylinder kits
MC kit
shoes
radiator hoses
thermostats
carb rebuild kit
spark plugs if not readily available
plug leads
points
condensor
dizzy cap
fan belts



other things that I would make sure I have as spares but not right now

engine mounts
gearbox mount
steering stuff = tie rod ends
shackle rubbers
sway bar links
water pump
thermostat housing

individual gaskets such as thermostat housing, valve cover, water pump


good luck with what ever purchase you make.

I like that car its pretty nice.

 

Thanks Junkman. I have noticed the wire on the frame but didn't notice the two screws under the door switch and the and the vacuum line. I asked the the seller about the three of them but he only answered about the vacuum. He said that this is most likely the reason the heater is not working. Thanks for the PM. I have searched the internet for parts. I found some of the most basically needed parts but not so obvious compared to Chevy, Cadillac and Mustang parts. As you correctly said I would expect a better condition for a 39,000 mile car. Saying the truth the body condition is making me love the car. I don't think there has been any rust issue on the car so far. Will need some more time to decide.

 

I was trying to explaining in a PM to nakis68 what a automatic trunk release is, and what it looks like. Since a picture is worth a 1000 words, and I have already expended almost that many, and my verbal description of what it looks like, isn't enough, might someone have a picture of the automatic trunk lock mechanism that they could post. A picture of a 1960 would be great, however, since they all work similarly, either an electric or vacuum release picture from any year will suffice. thanks

 

And here is an eBay listing with a few more pictures:





- Eric

 

Thanks for the pictures and your time MDchanic. Now it's much more clear what junkman was explaining. Never heard of this mechanism before.

 

You're welcome.

- Eric

 

What I find most amazing about this car, is that it was ordered with most of the options, but not air conditioning. I know that A/C wasn't that popular in 1960, however, in California, where they get hot weather, most of the people buying a luxury car like this Olds, many times would opt for air conditioning.

 

[QUOTE=Junkman;1013111] Finally, there are 2 screws located under the door light switch in the forward door jam, that to me look totally out of place. It looks like they drilled 3 holes in the cowl, and only used 2 of them. Sure would love to have someone explain what these 2 screws are holding on the other side. I have never seen anything like this on any car before, and I don't believe that they are factory installed screws.

The seller is saying that the screws are from the factory. I guess he is correct. Before this car I was interested in a '59 Olds 98 Coupe. I have a picture from that car and the two screws (bolts & nuts) are on that car as well. The difference is that the '60 Olds has the third hole !!!Still don't know their purpose.

 

I would like to thank you all up here who sent your feedback. You where very helpful with your text and pictures. We (my father and I) decided to put this car aside and do more search for something else. Price is still high considering is is not even in an excellent condition. We are getting interested in a '59 Chevy Impala or a '59/'60 Caddilac. Probably we will go for the Chevy. Side note : I still like this Olds :-)