I am currently working on a '49 Olds 88 2dr club sedan.. I am doing a total off the chassis restoration and upgrading the engine to a newly rebuilt 403 with a 200R4 transmission... I am keeping the rear suspension because of it's excellent design. To date I have not been able to find new rubber bushings for the swing arms, etc..
Any help to find the bushing for the rear end would be greatly appreciated.
Bill

 

Blucar, have you tried Fusick ph 860-623-1589 they have what I think your looking for , part# 411392....Tedd


PS let us know if this isn't your part and someone who knows 49 's can chime in

 

Tedd,.. Thank you very much for your info about 'Fusick'... I accessed their online catalog and found exactly what I needed for the rear suspension on page 58... Part #AHI410, RAS510 &BN7..
Scanning through the catalog I found several items I am going to be needing to complete the restoration of the car...
Love the old car forums... Everyone is so helpful...
Bill

 

For those of you who are not familur with the '49-50 Old's rear suspension, in the following you will find a brief class 101 covering the suspension on that series of Old's.
The rear suspension on the '49-50 Old's is described by many people as being 'NASCAR' type suspension..
The suspension utilizes coil springs, swing arms connected into the rear of the frame X member, a PANHARD tract bar to control body sway and a torsion bar to control body roll.. All of the above are mounted in rubber bushings..
The shocks are lever hydraulic, double action, mounted to the rear of the brake backing plates..
The '49-50 Old's rear suspension is very similar to the suspension used on the Chevy pickups, '63-68 with the exception of the rubber bushings.
The '49-50 Old's 88's are considered by many people to be Detroit's first production 'Hot Rod'... The 303 CID engine coupled with the 4 spd Hydromatic trans was a very hard car to beat.... The weak 265 CID '55 Chevy's did not stand a chance against the Old's on the highway or the tract. The '55 Chrysler 300's were a car to reckon with, however, in reality they were heavy lumber wagons compared to the Old's 88's...
The nature of the rear suspension tended to 'launch' the car, in a sling-shot manner.

 

I am also working on a 49 Olds, a coupe. Mine will be closer to original with the exception of the Victory Red color and a Muncie M20 behind a completely rebuilt 303 which came of the dyno yesterday. The car is in for paint and then for interior makeover. Your info on the 49/50s is very very helpful. If you are looking for window or door gaskets, I found that Steele Rubber is a god source. Ross Racing Engines in Niles Ohio specializes in Olds Engines. Dick T

 

As I mentioned in my 49-50 Olds rebuild topic, I opted for a more modern front suspension, FatMan, because of the safety issues that the older suspensions can create.
While doing my home work, prior to starting work on the car, I found that the 303 Olds engine is a huge anchor, weight wise. Getting rid of the 303 and 4spd hydro saved me 500 lbs.
My 78 403 Olds engine is much more cost effective fuel and engineering wise, plus it will be putting out 550 HP.
I have no intention of racing the car, I just like plenty of reserve power with modern reliability....Bill

 

There is/was a horribly rough '49 Olds convertible for sale near me recently. Complete drive train is there as is the conv. top frame & parts, p.windows & most trim. Again, the car is pretty much a total rust bucket, but I didn't know if there would be any parts you guys could use. If the car is still available, I can get it for like $500.00 total, or close to that.
Scott

 

Bill,
After rereading some of your earlier postings I see some commonality in our journeys. I sold my 49 Olds 76 Coupe, from which we yanked the 6 cyl. and installed a 303 and a LaSalle trans, when I was drafted in 1964. This car was a great daily driver.
Dick

 

The '49-50 Olds 88's were as I believe I mentioned in my 49-50 Olds topic, Detroit's first factory hot rod... You could buy the car on Friday and race it on Saturday... When I had my original '88 in '55, the majority of my friends were opting for the iconic '55-56 Chevy's. I never saw a tri-5 Chevy that could keep up with a 88 Olds. I lived in Nevada in the mid 50's.... It was a very common event to run my Olds at a 100 mph + for mile after mile across the Nevada desert.
In 1960-61 I had a neighbor that had a '50 Olds coupe with a 303 and a LaSalle trans. The car was painted Omaha orange. It had been his daily driver until he got married.. His new wife did not like the car very much so they got rid of it.... Bill

 

Oldspackrat,

Thanks for your offer of parts.

Dick

 

Everyone here always forgets the last of the first series Rocket 88's- The 1951 88A.
I just sold this beautiful restored 88A last year after owning it for 18 years.
blucar, I've enjoyed watching your restoration progress here on Classic Olds.

 

You might want to grab it if you have space and time to strip it for parts. I would think $300 for a rusty parts car would be a more fair price. The complete convertible package incl. pump, controls, hyd. cylinders, and top mechanism plus the fasteners for the header bar could bring enough to double a $300 buy price if they are in any decent condition. Convertible doors and the wing window mechanisms are rare and if those on the car you mentioned are in any kind of condition a "fair" door with the wing window hardware/brightware is at least a $250 -350 value. To me a fair door would likely have some dents and the bottom pretty rusted out but fixable. If I remember correctly convertible doors are the same as hardtop doors.

I've just gone through finding and having convertible parts made for my '47 60 series convertible and just to give you an idea of costs, the aftermarket hydraulic mechanism alone was over $700 incl. cylinders, pump and lines. I paid another $300 to have a wooden rear bow made for the top. I paid about $400 for decent used fasteners to hold the front of the top to the windshield posts. I found a better passenger door for $300 and got a rechromeable wing window assembly for $150.
Jerry