1936 Chrysler Airstream vs 1935 Oldsmobile L35....

[philipj]

I understand I may get a bunch of answers or none at all, it could go either way... In any case, I wonder if anyone has had experience or ownership of a 1936 Chrysler Airstream and a 1935 Oldsmobile L35. My first thought would be the huge benefit of the overdrive transmission, but does this benefit mean that I can cruise @ 60-65 all day long, as opposed to 45-50 in the Olds? Not to mention the fuel economy of the 6 vs the 8...

 

Both are equally attractive, 1935 through 38 are my favorite years for most vehicles... Going back to the Chrysler, I noticed a cutout on top of the roof... Are they still covered in fabric for the 1936 model, and is the Borg Warner T86 1A a problematic gearbox? 

 

Edited February 10, 2023 by philipj (see edit history)

[keiser31]

1936 Chrysler products were the first for Chrysler to have a metal roof insert panel. 1935 was vinyl and 1937 was all metal with no insert.

[philipj]

Thank you very much for the information. Very interesting, as advanced as Chrysler was in many other areas, I am surprised that they kept that design; as opposed to the turret top of the 1935 Oldsmobile...

[keiser31]

25 minutes ago, philipj said:

Thank you very much for the information. Very interesting, as advanced as Chrysler was in many other areas, I am surprised that they kept that design; as opposed to the turret top of the 1935 Oldsmobile...

The 1935 Oldsmobile probably has a wood skeleton under the metal. The Chrysler has all metal.

[philipj]

It is my understanding that only the doors were framed in wood for 1935, but I had no idea that there was extensive wood throughout the body for that year... Is the 1936 model the same?

[Rusty_OToole]

At this point I would be more concerned with the condition of the individual car. If you find them both equally appealing then it would make sense to go with the one that is in the best shape.

[philipj]

Thank you, makes perfect sense, very well thought out... I thought you might object to wood being used in this year model and that being a downside.

[Bloo]

5 hours ago, philipj said:

Thank you very much for the information. Very interesting, as advanced as Chrysler was in many other areas, I am surprised that they kept that design; as opposed to the turret top of the 1935 Oldsmobile...

 

The one piece top was brand new GM technology. It's first year was 1935, and not across the line. They advertised the heck out of the "turret top", and to this day many people think they are all steel bodies. They aren't. They're wooden bodies with a one-piece steel top. Chrysler on the other hand probably(?) really did have an all steel body, but with a conventional roof. In 1936 they put a steel insert in the hole, and they were driving a Plymouth around with a WW1 tank tied to the roof in their advertising. Chrysler was using Budd as a body builder a lot, and Budd invented all steel bodies. Dodge had all steel bodies in the 20s, but didn't stick with it for all models.

 

5 hours ago, philipj said:

It is my understanding that only the doors were framed in wood for 1935, but I had no idea that there was extensive wood throughout the body for that year... Is the 1936 model the same?

 

GM got all steel bodies on all the smaller bodied cars in 1937, and the rest in 1938.

 

6 hours ago, philipj said:

My first thought would be the huge benefit of the overdrive transmission, but does this benefit mean that I can cruise @ 60-65 all day long, as opposed to 45-50 in the Olds?

 

I would not plan on driving 60-65 all day long. In my opinion if you are going to stick to freeways, a mid 30s car is a really bad choice. That said there would be a huge advantage in my mind to having a car that can do 60-65 for short periods without undue stress on the engine. For that reason a car with overdrive would win with me. As far as I know it was optional on Chrysler, so they probably don't all have it. It was not optional on GM cars. The Olds probably(?) is geared to have it's happy spot at 45-50 like most cars of the time. Almost nobody drove 60-65 in those days. Speed limits were low and roads bad.

 

11 minutes ago, philipj said:

<snip> wood being used in this year model and that being a downside.

 

In my opinion it is a downside because it is so expensive and difficult to fix if it is bad. Look it over really good for wood damage. Condition is everything. Eyes wide open.

 

6 hours ago, philipj said:

is the Borg Warner T86 1A a problematic gearbox?

 

As far as I know, no. Generally speaking it's a good transmission. However, you might plan on having to tear it down at some point, and then be happy if you don't. Chances are any transmission that old might need tearing down. It's really basic Borg Warner style internals, and when you get inside you will recognize a lot if you have worked on more modern transmissions. @Professor had to tear down his fairly early in his ownership of a 36 Airstream. The transmission stuff starts on page 28.

 

https://forums.aaca.org/topic/344725-1936-chrysler-airstream-c-8-convertible-restoration/page/27/

 

The Olds will have a variant of the Buick Special (5 bolt) transmission. My 36 Pontiac also uses a variant of this transmission and I had to tear it down when it wore through a couple of synchronizer detent springs and dropped a couple of pieces of metal in the oil. I believe the miles to be fairly low. My exploits and some views of what those transmissions look like inside are here:

 

https://forums.aaca.org/topic/375070-36-pontiac-surprise-gearbox-overhaul-like-buick-40/

 

Both cars look nice. Let us know what you pick. 👍

 

 

[Rusty_OToole]

It was in 1934 that the steel mills first made sheet metal wide enough to make a car roof in one piece. GM was the first to take advantage of this with their "turret top" models. Others followed  as they acquired larger stamping presses.

 

The Cord had a one piece roof made of 7 parts welded together and the seams smoothed over with lead body solder, a costly and labor intensive way of making a car body only suitable for an expensive car made in small numbers.

[philipj]

Thank you all this is very informative... Bloo, excellent write-up on the 38 Pontiac transmission!... You may guess why I am asking all these questions, yes I am contemplating a 35 Olds L35 and I see some things that may need attention (manifolds) Suddenly I am not 100% since I see that finding a good set is equivalent to finding the wholly grail!

 

The rest of the car was restored 5-10 years ago, so I do not want to get into panic about everything... I am asking the right questions about different things and as far as I can see, the "wooden body" is good, doors open and close right, it shifts smoothly and does not smoke... Has good paint, interior, tires and brakes... Visually, the only things I see needing attention are intake/exhaust manifolds, vacuum, fuel lines...

 

Minor stuff, except the manifolds!...

 

Is there anyone casting reproduction manifolds for these cars? I understand that 36-36 Olds are the same as 34-36 LaSalle and that is it! What about the other straight eights from the period and 50's Pontiacs for example... Can they be fitted?

 

Edited February 12, 2023 by philipj (see edit history)

[58L-Y8]

For reference on how the mid-'30's Fisher B-Bodies were built, here are three interior images of a rough 1936 Cadillac 60 that shared the same body with Oldsmobile, Buick and LaSalle and possibly Pontiac.

[philipj]

That is a fair amount of wood, indeed...Big difference from a 38 Buick!..;)

[Bloo]

8 hours ago, 58L-Y8 said:

For reference on how the mid-'30's Fisher B-Bodies were built, here are three interior images of a rough 1936 Cadillac 60 that shared the same body with Oldsmobile, Buick and LaSalle and possibly Pontiac.

 

Thanks for posting those. The Pontiacs are all A-bodies, and I believe the Oldsmobiles are too, but that makes no difference here. The wood structure of my A-body 1936 Pontiac looks exactly like these pictures. Since the Oldsmobile in question is a 1935, the front doors are hung reversed. They are hanging from the B pillar (door post), and it is made of wood. You can't see that here because of the steel wrap, but you could if you were looking from the inside out. I had a conversation a few years ago with a 1935 Pontiac owner about his adventures replacing the wood in the door post. When Fisher built it, they made the post and then formed the steel around it. He had to make and fit his new post from more than one layer of wood, and glue it all together inside the steel skin.

 

EDIT: OOPS, the Olds Eight (L) is a B body according to at least one online source. Either way, it is going to look like 58L-Y8's pictures.

 

EDIT 2: Wow, there are a lot of Oldsmobile "F" (6 cylinder cars) mis-identified as Oldsmobile "L" (8 cylinder cars) online.

 

Edited February 12, 2023 by Bloo (see edit history)

[Bloo]

8 hours ago, philipj said:

I understand that 36-36 Olds are the same as 34-36 LaSalle and that is it! What about the other straight eights from the period and 50's Pontiacs for example... Can they be fitted?

 

I would have bet against it until a minute ago. Some Pontiac Eights have an up-swept exhaust manifold that looks about like that. I am still doubtful, but I guess it's worth checking if one could be machined to fit. Start by counting the ports and checking the length. It looks like the LaSalle manifold goes down from all the pics I have seen. My guess the LaSalle one would bolt to the block though. The LaSalle and the Oldsmobile engine are VERY related, unlike the Pontiac. The posting below from 2019 raises more questions than it answers for me. I would not expect anything from 1938 Oldsmobile to directly interchange from a 1935 Oldsmobile. It's a different engine. Nevertheless maybe? It doesn't look too different from yours.

 

 

 

Edited February 12, 2023 by Bloo (see edit history)

[Uptowndodge]

My choice out of the two hands down would be the Chrysler for the simple reasons 1. No wood 2. Overdrive 3. Hydraulic breaks and in my eyes a better looking car but I’m a 36 Mopar guy. 

[Dave Mellor NJ]

Interesting that you mention these cars. They both similarly have two vertical chrome strips on their trunks about 1/4 of the way in from the sides

[Uptowndodge]

On 2/10/2023 at 9:54 AM, keiser31 said:

The 1935 Oldsmobile probably has a wood skeleton under the metal. The Chrysler has all metal.

That’s a major reason to me good call Keiser