When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
My name is Jerry and I am new to this forum. About 1 month ago, I purchased a 1975 Oldsmobile Delta 88 convertible. This car has the 455 motor, power windows/locks and even cruise control. Everything pretty much works, however the air conditioning needs to be recharged. I haven't done anything to it yet except drive it. My kids (twin 7 year old boys) love to go cruising. It will need a few things replaced eventually (and I will likely seek the advice of you guys) but for the most part - it is very clean. I found the car in northern Michigan, and now it is in the Detroit area. For a car that spent its whole life in Michigan, it has absolutely zero rust, and the bottom is clean. I am the 4th owner, and the car has approximately 114,000 miles. I've attached some pictures.
455 is unusual by 75 as that was right after the 1973-74 OPEC oil embargo, and people were staying away from big engines. Not that a 350 is a great deal better on gas.
bigdooly on here is parting several 75 D88s so may have stuff you need. Otherwise NAPA will have many of the mechanical and electrical pieces.
My name is Jerry and I am new to this forum. About 1 month ago, I purchased a 1975 Oldsmobile Delta 88 convertible. This car has the 455 motor, power windows/locks and even cruise control. Everything pretty much works, however the air conditioning needs to be recharged. I haven't done anything to it yet except drive it. My kids (twin 7 year old boys) love to go cruising. It will need a few things replaced eventually (and I will likely seek the advice of you guys) but for the most part - it is very clean. I found the car in northern Michigan, and now it is in the Detroit area. For a car that spent its whole life in Michigan, it has absolutely zero rust, and the bottom is clean. I am the 4th owner, and the car has approximately 114,000 miles. I've attached some pictures.
Welcome. At that mileage, there are a few preventative maintenance items you should start thinking about. Certainly have the front suspension and steering linkage inspected for worn parts.
Olds motors used nylon teeth on the cam gear. These teeth typically start to wear out after 80,000 miles or so. Initially this causes timing fluctuation and performance issues, but eventually the teeth wear down to the point that the timing chain either skips a tooth or jumps off. Either will leave you stranded. Consider replacement of the timing set.
Inspect the rubber hoses, especially the fuel hoses from the tank to the hard lines on the frame and the brake hoses. Also, look at the brake hard lines for rust and potential weak or thin areas that could blow out under pressure. In my experience, such a failure typically happens when you hit the brakes in a panic situation, so at the worst possible time. (Do not ask me how I know this... )
Very nice car. I had a '75 Delta 88 convertible myself back in the late 1990s. It also had the 455 engine. I sold it in 2001.
One thing I wonder about on your car is the side stripe. On your car, that stripe is thin, runs low on the body, and ends just behind the front wheel.
In the '75 Olds literature, that stripe was thicker, higher up on the car, and ran the entire length of the car. I know that very often, when these cars are repainted, that side trim is left off as it is either damaged in removal or in just too poor a shape to be worth putting back on.
Note this trim piece in this image out of the '75 Olds brochure. Again, it runs the full-length of the car. Was your car possibly repainted at some point along the way, and a different side strip attached?
Here's a picture of my '75 taken right after I got it home (I drove it home from Florida to Ohio) in March of 1994. It had been repainted in the past, and the side stripe was not replaced.
I later replaced the strip on each side with an aftermarket set bought from J. C. Whitney. Not a perfect match to what the factory put on, but I thought it looked pretty good. I thought the car certainly needed something there to break up that mass of red sheet metal.
As a fan of the battleship Oldsmobiles, welcome to the site! You'll find good information here from friendly, willing to help people who want to see you enjoy your car as often as possible. I wouldn't be too concerned about the A/C at this point of the season (you can work on it over the winter months) but I would follow the immediate advice on the timing set and brakes.
You are correct - I was told that the car was repainted about 15 years ago. When I did my research before I bought it, I realized the stripe was not original (and not in the correct place)
Nice car, and it looks unusually good for the mileage.
One thing I've noticed is that you can find a surprisingly large number of rest-free convertibles when you go way north, because a convertible was a summer car, and in an area with long, bad winters, was often stored away before the snow fell, and not taken out again until after the weather had warmed up, and probably not taken out in the summer if rain was expected.
There are a lot of cars like this stashed in the garages of summer places all through the north.
You are correct - I was told that the car was repainted about 15 years ago. When I did my research before I bought it, I realized the stripe was not original (and not in the correct place)
They did a nice job. It does look good, and only your hairdresser knows the truth!
September 20th, 2016, 10:40 AM
)
