1941 Oldsmobile 8 Inquiry - Please Help If you Know

[Guest BJM]

I have located an interesting project car to me. It is a 1941 Oldsmobile Club Coupe with 8 cylinder. Several years ago I located a "98" series 1941 Oldsmobile 2 door club coupe. I say "98" because I asked the OCA technical expert about this car and he said technically Olds did not use 98 as a series designation in 1941.

This one is advertised as an 8 cylinder car and looks massive in the photos, only $1950 obo.

I do not have the pre-war Standard Catalog, only the post war one. I was wondering what models of 1941 Oldsmobile had the 8 cylinder motor? Maybe by default, it's a "98" or the longest wheelbase Olds in 1941. I see no identifiers on the body.

If so, can someone provide production figures for all 1941 Oldsmobile 2 door club coupes with 8 cyl motors?

This looks fun, a bit rusty and ragged but straight and complete and I love that 1941 GM club coupe with the angled B pillar.

[Guest BobOlds]

The Cars of Oldsmobile book by Casteele lists a Custom Cruiser 98 club coupe model number 413967. This model number might not be correct since it is the same model number listed for the rare Custom Cruiser convertibel phaeton.

Weight 3,430# Sold new for $1,020, factory oil filter for $5 more.

Production 1,263 units

[Starfire61]

I'm no authority on these, but here's some additional info from Casteele's book. There does appear to be some repetition among the model numbers, which may indeed be erroneous.

The 6 & 8-cylinder engines were available in all three series for 1941.

The 68 series offered both a club coupe & a business coupe, both of which supposedly shared model #413527. These cars had a 119-inch wheelbase. Production on the business coupe was 188, while 2684 club coupes were built.

It's unclear whether a club coupe was built in the 70 series. Casteele's book states that such a car was not listed in contemporary literature, but mentions that production records indicate that 353 were built in the 76 series, & 51 in the 78 series. Model # was 413627 in both series. 70 series cars shared the same 125-inch wheelbase as the 90 series.

There was another 2-door made in the 70 series called the club sedan. It had the same angled B-pillar as the club coupe, but had a fastback as opposed to the coupe's notchback. This bodystyle was only used in the 70 series, but was fairly popular. The 78 club sedan in standard trim was model #413627 & 8260 were produced. In deluxe trim, the car carried model #413627-D, & another 5338 were built.

Bobolds already provided the info on the 90 series.

Could you post a few pics? These cars aren't seen very often.

Chuck

[Guest BJM]

http://www.countryclassiccars.com/spcars_17.htm

To me this looks long wheelbase, and look at the massive front clip (length) Great interior (gauges, steering wheel, etc)

Impressive car. Most folks won't take on such a project but it has plusses. The low price relative to rarity, the completeness and the overall lack of major dents. Expect rust though.

Chuck - I hesitated to post because I did not want another collector with interest to grab it before I could, but all's fair. Solid prewar Oldsmobiles are scarce. 1941 is generally regarded as a collectible year for GM and others.

[Starfire61]

Don't worry, I have enough cars for now....

I think that car's a 68... it doesn't look long enough to be a 90 series!

I've been thumbing thru the pics in Casteele's book trying to compare the 60 series & 90 series club coupes. I can't tell whether the extra length on the 90 series is found in the nose, doors, rear quarter, or all three. I don't have the appropriate literature to determine for certain what sheet metal is shared among them, but it's pretty clear that the 90 series club coupe has a much lankier look than this car.

Furthermore, the 70 & 90 series cars both had broad, horizontal trim bands trailing each wheel arch. Those on the rear fenders wrap around the back of the car & meet the tail lights. These bands were not used on the 60 series cars. Looking at the car you're considering, I see no mounting holes, no ghosting, or any evidence that such trim was ever on the car.

I found a few images online of a 90 series club coupe & posted them here. Due to the angle, it's hard to judge the length difference, but you can see the trim bands quite well.

60 series or not, it's still an attractive car. Might still be worth a look if you're interested... Aren't you in Iowa? How far is Staunton from you?

Chuck

[Guest pfloro]

I absolutely love it... AND it has Hydramatic to boot...!

Good luck with this purchase. Looking forward to seeing the restoration progress.

Paul

[Guest BJM]

Thanks all so it would appear this is one of 2684 68 series club coupes. Of course, a top of the line long wheelbase car would be more desirable but my 1st thought was: an 8 cyl in a 68? I believe most production of a 68 series would have been in the 6 cylinder, given it's bottom of the line status as a budget Oldsmobile purchase. 2. This would make it somewhat of a "muscle" Olds (large engine in smaller body) and 3. Were there different sizes of the Straight 8?

My post war Standard Catalog shows the Olds 8 cylinder as 257 cid in 1946 and 1947. No other offerings. 257 cid for a straight 8 as a line leader is pretty small. Chrysler has 323 and Buick had 320.

IF it is 257, no matter, as gas prices will rise again and these aren't meant to be speed burners. In that case, a buyer gains a Straight 8 over the 6 for a few bucks more, maybe the split of 6's versus 8's in the 68 series is lop sided.

I love the old 8's - Buicks, Cadillacs (V8) Oldsmobiles. They were a way to seperate the grocery getter Chevy's, Mopars and others. So I always look for an 8 cylinder car.

I have heard some comments regarding this dealer. While abidding by the AACA's policy, I can say I have heard some "rumors" about them and I am well aware of their reputation. However, in my world, where I buy projects and restore them, one looks for completeness, and in my case - no dents to the body section (I am not a body man - but fenders and such can be replaced)

I can do everything else or have it farmed out. So this car looks complete - no major sags to one side or the other.

If a dealer has a bad reputation, it really doesn't matter on a $1950 project car. I am fairly close by and I need to go look at a coupleof other cars so with gas prices at $1.48 per gallon, a trip might be in order.

This same site has a 55 Olds 98 2 door hardtop that is way way overpriced. So it pays to keep price in mind. I will keep all updated. Thanks again for the input from the Olds crowd.

[Oldsfan]

Good job, Chuck! You're coming along well on the pre-war stuff.

A note about those fender moldings (some people call them wash boards...)

They were on all 90 series cars. On the 70 series cars, those moldings were only available as part of the optional Deluxe equipment package. But, late in the year, due to war related material shortages, the wash boards were left off of Deluxe cars. This is also around the time the grilles below the headlamps were painted instead of chromed, and the lower part of the instrument panel was painted instead of chromed. Wash boards were not used on the 60 series cars at all.

And, on the 90 series, three of the 4 models were available with a 6 or an 8. The only model that came only as an 8 was the convertible phaeton. It was deemed too heavy for the 6.

'41 is the first year the term 98 was used. In '40 they were known Series 90 Custom 8 Cruisers (I have been set straight on that by more than one person...). For '41 they were known as 96 Custom Cruisers and 98 Custom Cruisers.

The coupe in question is interesting in that it has the painted grilles under the headlights, but still has the chromed lower dash panel.

Paul

[bubba]

Bryan,

In 1976 I bought a 1941 Olds Model 68 coupe with a stick. It was my first "old" car and it taught me a valuable lesson.

The car that you are looking at is indeed a 68. The only way to tell if it's an eight is to look under the hood or it should say eight on the trunk. A 68 is not a common car and with a hydromatic it's even rarer.

I had a budget of $1,500 to spend on a car. I looked at a few disasters before I found a car that was all together and running but needed a universal joint. It looked ten times better than the one you are looking at and it was $500 so without knowing any better I bought it. The major problem was that both rockers were rotted and it went into the driver's floor.

I got the universal joint and put it in myself and found that the engine had no power. Being new at this, I trusted an engine shop who said that it needed a rebuild. I bought all the parts from a local store that still had them and the rebuild cost me twice the estimate blowing my budget to bits but I had a running car and boy did I run it.

In a time before SUVs I was the tallest thing on the road and I could see over all the cars. I drove it to college and liked showing the engine to my friends who had never heard of a straight 8. While I enjoyed the car, I collected every piece of NOS chrome including the bumpers and four NOS fenders. Even then this was not an easy task and it cost lots of cash. I can't even imagine what this would cost today if you could find the stuff.

I could not do welding or body work and the cost to fix the rockers was high and then I still had to paint it and do the interior. I drove it and my 1973 Chevy which was a modern car then until I bought a new car in 1981. I sold the Olds at a big loss. Although I did have fun driving the car I never got the satisfaction that comes with restoring one.

The lesson that I learned from the Olds is to buy a car in the best condition that you can afford. For what I ended up spending on the car I could have bought a restored one.

You might want to look at what a restored one of these runs. I bet that it's only in the teens. The car you are looking at needs everything and it has the replacement grill on it. Judging from the condition of the bottom of the doors, I would bet that the rockers are shot.

If I haven't put some doubt in your mind then you must really want this car. Here is a 66 with Hydromatic that I saw at show last fall. Someday that car could look like this.

bubba

[Guest BJM]

Curse you Bubba! Just kidding, but when you post beautiful photos like that it pulls me in d-e-e-p-e-r. What I like about these Olds is the kickup on the ends of the bumpers front and rear, the "jewelry ribbon that runs from the grille area over and that pre war club coupe bodystyle where the trunk area stretches out - looks good on any of the pre war cars and started in about 1936, was replaced by the fastback look.

[bubba]

Bryan,

If you have the "stomach" for it, I sent you a personal message.

bubba

[Starfire61]

Here's a clean-looking club coupe from Illinois that's currently in Hemmings online for $11K & change:

http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/oldsmobile/unspecified/758279.html

This one's a 66 with a manual trans, so it's unfortunately not as unique as the car you're looking at in Staunton. Compared to the 2684 68 club coupes, Olds built 23796 with the 6-cylinder.

On the other hand, it doesn't look like it needs much to be enjoyed. Bubba's right- you'd probably be better off in the long run by paying more $ upfront for a better car. Even doing most of the work yourself, you'd likely exceed the asking price of this 66 by restoring the 68.

Of course, decisions like these are seldom based on any financial sensibilities. If the thrill of finding an unusual car & doing a restoration is more enticing than buying a car that's more or less ready to go, then that 68 may be right up your alley. Good luck, & please keep us posted.

Chuck

[Oldsfan]

In my opinion, that 68/Hydramatic needs saved. Of the 2700 68 coupes built, how many do you suppose were Hydramatic equipped? Of those so equipped, how many do you think have survived?

If you don't save it, some creep is going to get his hands on it and street rod it, probably with a crate 350/THM350.

AND...

That 68 is a 68 Deluxe. It has the plastic hood ornament, deluxe instrument cluster and deluxe steering wheel. It should also have the deluxe clock and glove box door, and automatic glove box light.

Paul

[Starfire61]

Hey Paul-

If Bryan doesn't buy it, I'll bet it would look great sitting next to your Starfire!

Fly into Chicago & we'll drive to Staunton & check it out....

All kidding aside, you're right- there couldn't be many remaining, & it'd be a shame to see some yokel turn it into a street rod.

Chuck

[Oldsfan]

Hey Chuck

You know it fits almost all of my criteria -

It's a '41

It's not black

It's not a 4-door

It's an 8 cylinder

It's a Hydramatic

Problem is, it's not a 90 series, or a 70 series Deluxe.

Oh, and it needs too much work for me.

Besides, I would never dream of skating Bryan.

Paul

[Guest BJM]

Thanks Paul!

I am going to go for it but Bubba makes a good point about checking the rockers. I will make sure it doesn't look like swiss cheese under the doors.

I have seen a 90 series 41 Olds club coupe. very nice. But passed on it - the fellow wanted $4500 for a car in similar condition as this 60's series. And really the only difference I can tell is wheelbase. This is a well equipped 41 Olds.

Most of all I am thankful for the discussion. I have occasionally looked on evilbay for 36 to 41 era Olds but have not seen much and of course every buyer on ebay wants to get paid YESTERDAY and has restrictive terms.

[Oldsfan]

I wanted to look at a '41 98 coupe locally about a year ago. It was during fall Hershey week. It wasn't really what I wanted. It was black and not a Hydramatic. There's always something that doesn't meet my requirements. But it was for sale for a while and the price came down to something reasonable. When I called, it was sold, which is probably for the better anyway. I have some friends with a real nice, original '41 78 Deluxe, but it's a black sedan.

Paul

[Starfire61]

Bryan- Idaho's rather far from Iowa, but here's a Hydramatic-equipped 78 club sedan that's currently up for auction on fee-pay. I think the buy-it-now is rather ambitious, but it looks like a very solid example.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Oldsmobil...1QQcmdZViewItem

Going by what Paul said in his earlier post, the lack of the washboard trim combined with the painted headlight grilles suggests that this could be a wartime austerity deluxe model.

I particularly like the fastback combined with the long wheelbase, & apparently the 70 series was the only model to use this particular bodystyle.

Here are the pics from the auction-

Chuck

[Guest imported_Julian]

I have a 42 76 series dynamic for sale.. orig 238 with hydramatic etc etc..runs and drives..??

[Guest BJM]

Julian,

I know, I have followed your posts on that car for 2 years. I am sure it is nice, but this is situational in that I am looking for a 2 door coupe (not fastback, 8 cyl car)

I think you should try ebay personally. Good luck, plus I've never seen photos of your car posted, that always helps.

[Guest divebomber42]

'41-'48 Oldsmobile 66 & 68 series rode on the 119", GM "A" body shared with the Chevrolet, Pontiac and Buick

'41-"48 Oldsmobile 76 & 78 rode on the 122" GM "B" body shared with Pontiac, Cadillac, and Buick

'41-'48 Oldsmobile 98 rode on the 125" GM "C" body shared with Pontiac, Cadillac, and Buick