rocketraider

Tim, all I've ever seen were black. Contact the National Antique Olds Club www.antiqueolds.org , naoc@mindspring.com . Explain what you need and ask Clay Mollman to put you in touch with the 1953 model year adviser.

Dave, I'm mighty afraid our good friends at Foosick have cleaned out almost every dealer backroom on the East Coast. Ken Reese got what they didn't get to first. I got a truckload of good stuff from the local Olds dealer before they closed and sold the franchise about ten years ago. I knew the used car manager, and he knew the Swansons were getting ready to call it quits so he called me. It was a cash under the table deal with him. Made it easier that for many years they had put all their obsolete stock into an old body shop building that was right down on the riverbank- amazing nothing ever got wet, and I was hyper-aware of slithery things but fortunately never saw any. Since many Olds franchisees are being forced to close, you might get some good deals on an old stock buyout. It's money in their pocket and inventory they don't have to dispose of. You may or may not find 60s big car stuff. I think what you'll find now is 80s.

Hey Wayne-o -- Seems like a trucker of all people would know I-81 is full of crazy drivers! But the craziest had to be the woman on I-85 between Charlotte and Salisbury who was passing on the median or shoulder half the time. Running 85+ in a K-car. Very few times I have actually been afraid in traffic, but that ditz scared me.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I liked Roy Schieder's(SIC?) "ride" in his Pontiac Lemans chasing the bad guys in teh "Seven Ups". Took off a few car doors, fenders, and then crashed in the back of a parked semi. <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> He was smart as he ducked just before impact!!!!!!! Hope I'm that smart if that even happens to me. Wayne </div></div> It was actually a Ventura II (Pontiac Nova). Pontiac had some good product placement in that movie. I thought that Grand Ville the bad guys had was a hoot! Never thought a big car would move and handle like that.

Bought a 1970s anthology of horror short stories a while back- guess what's in it? Richard Matheson's original "Duel" short story. I've watched a movie called "Black Cadillac" several times recently on one of the satellite channels. It's another good car-based horror story. Features a 57 Fleetwood terrorizing a bunch of college boys in a Saab- in a snowstorm no less. Also check out "Crossing the Bridge". The Buick Club of Minnesota furnished a bunch of cars for that movie including the 1965 Electra "War Wagon" that was central to its plot.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Rocketraider, you are only 1/2 hour away (from Carlisle) from the civil war museum located in Harrisburg. It is worth while in my opinion. </div></div> We also need to stop by the Museum of Civil War Medicine in Frederick MD sometime on a Carlisle trip. We travel up US 29 and 15 and it's on the way. Booey on I-81. It's a road full of crazy people from MD on down into VA. Gimme a federal or state highway any day. True, Carlisle is limited by its real estate, but it's easier to navigate than Charlotte. You get off in the turn radii of the Charlotte infield and you can never be sure which aisle you just came out of and which one is next <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />. We're well aware of Carlisle weather! Went up one year and it was 70 and sunny here. When we arrived about noon Thursday there was 6" of snow on the showgrounds! But the next morning, they were spreading straw on the mud and by 10 am it was like the snow had never been there- Carlisle was WAO! Seems I remember about the only vendor open that snowy Thursday was the Bumper Boyz...

We'll make sure to stop and visit a few minutes! Three of us Southside Vajenyans are leaving here around 0800 next Wednesday. We stay in Gettysburg to avoid the avaricious Carlisle hotel rates, so we're going to do our annual Gettysburg Battlefield pilgrimage Wednesday afternoon and then we'll be at the swap meet Thurs-Sat. Work did us out of the Spring show last year, and Spring Charlotte this year, so we are all about to bust to get loose in a swap meet <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />!

Doubt you'd see that much increase off 1971 vintage heads as they were the first year for reduced compression. Look for a set of #5, #6 or #7 heads. Used 68-72. You'll have to get the head bolt holes reamed for the 403's 1/2" head bolts. Visit www.442.com or www.realoldspower.com for good Olds engine advice and parts. Those guys have been there, done that.

My 1976 parts book shows all A-body cars used 11" drums on the rear. For the Omega (X-body) it shows either 11" or 9.5" drums. Starfires (H-body) used 9.5" drums. The 76 shop manual indicates Starfires and Omega 1st types used 9.5" rear brakes, all others exc 88 w/heavy duty brakes used 11". Omega 2nd types with 5-speed used 11" drums. What series car is it? 442 were built on the Cutlass platform. Do you possibly have an Omega that has had 442 badging put on? Or has the rear axle been changed out- some Chevy A-bodies were still using 9.5" drums in the mid-70s.

All 1965-67 Oldsmobiles except Toronado use the same downshift/stator angle switch. OE part # is grp 4.057 p/n 1993355. Buick also used the switch-pitch transmission but I think their switches are different.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Does anyone know if there are any 54 thru 56 Buicks there? </div></div> There WERE. Don't know of the crusher's got 'em yet or not. Dave, if it's any consolation I don't ever remember seing a 1967 Ninety Eight 2-door in there. There was a Delta Holiday Sedan, and a 65 Jetstar I that someone really should have restored- it was driven in there. We used to go twice a year, early spring and fall. Booey.

It's a calibrated resistance wire in the wiring harness. There's two wires to the coil + terminal. The PINK one is the resistor wire, the yellow/black stripe is the cranking voltage wire. It's only hot when the ignition switch is in START so you can't use it to power the HEI.

Good Lord. If you'd said Richard's, it wouldn't have surprised me since he's been threatening to close for at least ten years. But Jim Bingham... Jim always had better stuff than Richard. We were there one day and a guy brought his treasure in to settle up, and Jim said, "Bout twenty dollars'll do it.". The guy says, "Jim, you're gonna twenty dollar me to death on this car!" And he had a PILE of stuff. Always found them to be fairly priced and willing to work with you. I sure hate to hear this.

You've got a couple of options. Either A GM HEI or an aftermarket conversion like Pertronix, Jacobs or Mallory Unilite will work well in this car. You might get into some air cleaner clearance issues with HEI. If you decide to use a factory HEI, one for a 75-76 455 or a 77-79 403 will be good as its advance curve will be enough to give decent power and gas mileage, but not so aggressive that you'll have detonation problems. You'll need to bypass the original coil resistance wire and wire the HEI to a switched 12v power source. There should be one in the 66 fuse block somewhere; the "power antenna" or "power window" plug-in is a good choice if it's not already used, and you can piggyback into these plugs if needed. If NO other source can be found, splice the HEI power wire into the YELLOW wire on the windshield wiper motor underhood. That is always a last resort as I think it looks amateurish and tacky. The aftermarkets I mentioned are all good units and will mount underneath the existing distributor cap in place of the points. You might want to get the matched coil for each to get the best performance out of them. The Jacobs and Pertronix are designed to run off 12v and would need to be wired same as HEI. Unilites should be wired to the existing coil resistance wire. Set base timing for all these at 8-10 degrees and open the spark plug gaps up to about .045".

It's inside the gizmus that the oil filter mounts on. That's actually part of the 3.8 oil pump.

Try changing oil first, using an AC Delco filter and straight 30 weight oil. If that doesn't help, then I'd say the oil pump or its relief spring is weak. The good thing is that it's a fairly simple changeout on the Buick 3.8. It can be done without removing the oil pan.

Well- it has all the stuff and the right assembly plant. The Rallye engine was the same as 1970 Supreme so any 1970 350 block could theoretically be transplanted into it for a "year correct" match. www.442.com for engine codes and ID numbers. I'm not sure but I think W45 may be stamped into the Rallye 350 cowl tags. PM me for an e-mail address who will know for sure.

Link from here to the Hornet's Nest Region website and there should be a contact phone number for the Speedway. Ask for Harriett Carter and she should be able to give you a BCA contact person. If the Buick Club is anything like the Olds Club, their allotted spaces are sold out with a waiting list. Doesn't hurt to ask though. The Bravada is great for winter and gets 21 mpg, but it's too small for more than two people to travel. We took it to Fall Carlisle last October and it was just cramped. We're probably going to take the old faithful Cruiser wagon (275k miles and everything still works down to the clock) to Spring. Besides, the Bravada's A/C is dead right now and I don't know if I'll get a chance to charge it before we go. I had to get the radiator repaired last fall and I swear I think the radiator shop discharged it (they also do A/C work) because it was working up to that time.

Let's back up. Is the attachment a scan of your actual data plate? Because looking at it, I see some discrepancies- "safty" misspelled and the font doesn't look exactly like what GM was using then. Possible someone had a data plate made, there are companies that do it. I still think the 932 is legitimate based on what I see in the parts books.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">TRIM CODE 932 was not used in 1971 But was used in 1970 as the Strato Bucket seat. </div></div> Where are you getting your information? My 74 edition parts book lists code 932 green vinyl as available for 1971 4487 which is 442 Holiday coupe. You've got to remember that GM had a mess of "delete" or "no-charge" options back then. You could have either buckets or bench seat in Cutlasses at no difference in cost, though the D55 console was extra even with buckets. It's possible that someone converted a bench seat car to buckets since, face it, bench seat musclecars don't sell in the fast buck market. The bucket seat mounting rails have been available aftermarket repro for years. I wouldn't sweat this. You've got a data plate that backs up what the car came with, and the factory literature and documentation is the final authority as far as I'm concerned. No matter what some of the self-styled musclecar experts say.

You have to be registered with a participating club who will furnish show passes to get the free admission. You won't get in free without the credentials. I can't make it to Spring show so I don't have the showfield map, but Buicks are usually on pit road. Sometimes they're near the garages. I'm told LMS has tore the infield all to pieces this year with demolition and construction, so I can't give you any good reference points.

Mikel, Gerard Russo at Auto-Air up in Portland ME might be able to help you, but I can't remember the phone or address. He and his son own a couple of 1st series Toronados. You can try residential 411 for North Sebago ME to get his home phone. What exactly is the hell-hound doing? Comfortron problems are generally either the programmer or transducer. And then there's the issue of finding the parts to fix it... though Olds Comfortron stuff seems to be readily available on ebay.

Dave, since you are dealing with old, brittle plastic, I'd just splice the new switch pad's pigtails into the existing wiring harness. I think you'll come out better and less hassle doing that than trying to put the original wires in the new pad. Use non-insulated butt crimps to join the wires, and then use heat-shrink to cover the splices (all available at Radio Shack, and a good blowdryer will make enough heat to shrink it if you don't have a heat gun). The splices aren't as bulky doing it that way and you can then tape-wrap the harness for added protection. Try to stagger the location of the splices if possible so they don't end up in one spot, and look like a gall wasp laid eggs in it after it's wrapped.

A location will help us.

On NC 49 between Charlotte and Yanceyville yesterday afternoon, returning from Mid Atlantic Olds Club monthly meeting... A pile of Oldsmobiles 1942-91 at club meeting/cookout 1956 Ford Crown Vic 1958 Buick Super 4d sedan (for sale in someone's front yard) 1969 GTO ragtop 1933 Ford 4d coach 1955 BelAir ragtop 1959 Ford Galaxie Passed by Bingham's and Richard's junkyards too. Lots of interesting "scenery"!