G.L. Tfat

Hi Everyone,

I am the recent owner of a 1955 Super 88 Sedan, and I am sure that I will have many questions. My first one is around the rear bumper. The current rear bumper is quite rusted and has very little chrome left.

Instead of spending a fortune on re-chroming, I am hoping to buy a bumper.

Are the bumpers from 55 Super 88 Sedan interchangeable with any other model or year?

Thanks

Rocketowner

Welcome to Classic Olds.A rear bumper from any '55 Olds will exchange,don't have to be a sedan.I notice that this is your first post,so you should post in the '"Newble" section, introduce yourself and your car,and post a picture of your ride.We all love pictures. Larry

Rocketowner

What State do you live in.? I know there's a 1955 Olds complete parts car listed on Nashville Craigslist that they are asking $1250 ,and it has mostly good parts. They don't show picture a picture from the rear but the drivers side of rear bumper looks good. You could probably easily sell the parts that I can see and keep the parts you might need, and come out well. Larry

G.L. Tfat

Hi Larry, thanks for the welcome and info. I am assuming that a bumper from 54 or 56 won't fit my 55?

Unfortunately I am British Columbia Canada- I've always wanted to visit Nashville, but I'd probably have to do it by plane, so I don't think that parts car is the one for me.

I started the thread in the newbie section but I guess my question was too specific they moved it over to here.

Here are some photos:


The picture of the car online before I bought it. Sure looks nice...

And... the car in real life...

Rocketowner

The bumper is much better than I was expecting to see.If you will aggressively attack it with a wet Brillo Pad for about 10 -15 minutes I think you will be truly amazed at how much of that rust will disappear . I believe the bumper will clean up completely different with exception of ( maybe the small spot on the top passenger side of bumper), and even it will fool you! The bumper guards and the bar that bolts between might not come out to please you but if not , they could still be Rechromed.
While I have you in the mood to work, use the same procedure on the front bumper , grill,all chrome and stainless, and even the hubcaps. Don't get too carried away and start using it on the paint, I can also give you another formula for that! Wait until you see the results,then you can thank me. Good luck, Larry

redoldsman

I think a 54 bumper will fit but it is a different bumper. I am not sure about a 56. Attached is a picture of the rear bumper on my 54.

Rocketowner

Yes Glen,I think that '54 Oldsmobile back bumper will bolt on the '55, and that a '56 would ,but the do have cosmetic differences. Also, the '54 rear bumper guards would "probably" bolt onto the '55 bumper in case his bumper bar cleans up to his approval. The '54 don't have the bar between the bumper guards which housed the tag light, but the '54 guards contain their tag lights.
I doubt that 99 percent of the people would ever know the difference. Larry

Tedd Thompson

That bumper though rusted would clean up fine(not show quality by any means but a OK driver). I don't know what you think a fortune is but a good used bumper might be close to what it will cost to have that one re chromed. It's getting harder to find mint or even very good used bumpers anymore.... Tedd

redoldsman

Larry, I think you are correct in that few people would ever notice. It would be somebody like me, you or Tedd. I have 57 Pontiac headlight rims on my 54 because I always thought the 54 looked bug eyed which was corrected on the 55. After numerous shows, I have had one person ask me about it.

Olds64

Very cool car!

I agree with the others that you should be able to clean that rear bumper nicely.

Rocketowner

Check out Toronta Spray Chrome on the web.I have seen a few examples of a similar process at a few car shows and the look is amazingly close to real chrome.I don't know how much cheaper it would be ,but it might be worth checking into. But before you spend a lot of money , give my "box of Brillo Pads and a small amount of elbow action a try." Larry

G.L. Tfat

Hey- you guys are great! Thanks for all of the helpful tips!

Before we leave the topic of bumpers from different years... would a 53 fit? There is a 53 bumper for $250 (Canadian- which is what- like $30 American? j/k). And I definitely am not worried about anyone noticing a different bumper or show quality- just want a driver I'm not embarrassed of!

I will follow up with some more pictures, but definitely on the front grill there was some foil tape used which- some credit to the previous owner, really matches chrome colour and can actually trick you for a minute... but there is lots of flaking and stuff going on with both the rear and front which makes me wonder if some kind of 'product' has been applied in the past?

I will definitely give the Brillo Pads a good try!

There is also some surface rust on some of the paint, especially above the side chrome on both sides of the car- what is your recommendation to deal with that?

And... I realize this question might offend many- maybe even get me blocked and black listed forever... thoughts on eventually going to flat black with a white roof?

Attached is an example, I think its a 54. And next is a photo of my son 'driving' the car- so that you don't hate me.

Thanks- Gerry
54 I found in google images- thoughts?


My 2 year old son 'driving' the 55 Olds. Proof that I am not evil- even if I asked about flat black.

Olds64

Gerry, the black car with the white top looks bad@$$!

If you want to do the same with your car then definitely go for it.

Rocketowner

My guess is that the '53 bumper installs the same as a '54, it looks very much the same.Heres a image of a '55 with apparently a dark Blue top,which you might consider too blend with the interior.
Hey the choice is yours,paint it to suit you now and when your son is actually driving age ,let him choose. Larry

Tedd Thompson

I'm not a fan of flat black unless it is a hot rod. but it's your car ,no banning from me.

Good looking driver. How old do you have to be to drive in Canada these days?....Tedd

G.L. Tfat

Nice pic with the blue top!

My little guy is pretty close to driving age... a few more lessons and we should be good to go! Haha- He is one of the few people who seems to like the car, he calls the Olds "nice car"- which makes his dad very happy and makes his mom shake her head. Smart kid.

Here is another question...

When I drive the car long enough to have the engine warm up, I start getting warm air blowing into the cab, from what I can tell with the heat and fan controls- nothing should be on- any guesses on what might be going on?

Rocketowner

Are the cable controls on each side of the steering column pushed in ? The cable that keeps
the water from entering the heater could not be working,but should not be "blowing" unless the fan is on.
Keep working on his interest in the "Classic cars" ,we need to keep this sport going.I actually learned to drive lining up cars on my dad's used car lot when I was ten. Larry

Tedd Thompson

If freeing up the control cables doesn't work it could very well be the Ranco valve is frozen or broken. It's the valve that turns on or shuts off the hot water to the heater when the controls are operated. To get to it you have to remove the interior heater vent box. Ranco valves aren't very cheap anymore and they will wan't your old one as a core so don't throw it away. A cheap fix can be had by splicing in a regular gate valve on the firewall heater hose and manually shutting the heater on and off when you need it. Not very aesthetic but many old cars are running around so equipped ... Tedd

G.L. Tfat

Thanks! I'll check those out- it's great to have your guys knowledge!
nasty patch and surface rust above chrome... advice?


the back bumper up close, super flaky


will brillo pads clean this up?


Front bumper/grille foil tape and flaking



Here's a couple of pics

Rocketowner

No,the Brillo pads won't fix all of that.If they would ,they would sell easily for $500 for a box of 10,instead of $1.89. I still think they would make an amazing difference on the rear bumper bar itself,but not on the guards and the top bar.
It will help the looks of the hood rocket,trunk emblem etc..
My suggestion is to remove the grill bar, or the rear bumper , sand it down to bare metal, prime it, and paint it with the brightest silver paint you can find, then finish with clear coat .That should stop any further rust ,and will look better for now. If it improves it enough ,then go on to the other parts. Larry

Olds64

Gerry, for that patch of rust on the rear door above the trim I suggest:

1) Remove the trim.

2) Grind the rust and paint off at least an inch around the rust spot.


3) Treat the bare metal with naval jelly which should get any left over rust.


4) Clean and prime the bare metal.

I'm sure you can get those products locally too.

Tedd Thompson

That bumper is beyond brillow, it didn't look that bad in the first picture but the close up really shows the chrome delamination and most of the chrome trim looks pretty badly pitted also.A good chrome shop could bring those back to life but it won't be cheap.

I have seen a few 55 rods that have painted bumpers and they look pretty cool. You might consider that option. It would take a lot of hand work to prep for paint but very doable... Just a thought... Tedd

Rocketowner

If you want to see a '56 Olds with silver Painted bumpers look on oldcaronline and search for minimum model '55 ,maximum '56 Oldsmobile. The '55 on the top line was mine.Stroll down till you find a '56 Red and white sedan. It has silver painted bumpers and sold for $10,000. Larry

G.L. Tfat

It doesn't look half bad! Interesting that they did what looks like a pretty complete restoration on a great looking car and painted the bumpers. That style of paint bumpers on something a bit more rough and rustic like my car would probably be even more fitting.

http://www.oldcaronline.com/1956-Old...e-ID734906.htm

Olds64

That's looks awesome!

Definitely better than the monochrome look like the yellow on black 55 Super 88.

Tugla

Where abouts in B.C are you. I'm up above 49th also.