[Night Wolf]

I know I posted this before... but I was just thinking about my Oldsmobile, and that I miss it, so I watched the video I made... makes me miss it even more... so I figured I would share it again.

Its in NY now, 131k miles.... I was thiking about selling it, but for the whole $500 I would get, its simply not worth it to me. The car has a couple issues not that need to be taken care of, since I pretty much neglected anything besides oil changes this year, knowing that it was gonna sit in NY for awhile... actually the only issue with it now is the front left wheel bearing/hub I think needs to be replaced... makes a noise when I turn, all 4 struts are worn pretty bad (has rear air leveling system that still works)... other then that, the front left bolt that holds the driver seat to the floor.... thr mounting point rotted right thru... thats the big issue on that car, rust... hopefully with the welding and metal fabrication skills I learn becoming an aircraft mechanic, I'll be able to fix my Oldsmobile and drive her for many more years.... well, the seat is easy enough, its the bottom of the A-pillars thats all rotted out... so I gotta decide if its worth fixing, or just drive it around as is until it will drive no more.

I bought her 12/26/03, it was "the $500 winter car" that I liked so much I kept on the road all the time. The 3800 V6 is an amazing engine, I swear that thing will never die. That car is sisters with my '93 DeVille... DeVille is C body, the Olds is D (IIRC) either way, practically the same car, and they have the same 18 gallon tank... except I would get over 400 miles to a tank of gas with the Olds, and that wasn't only highway driving I swear, that 3800 got 22mpg around town and 32mpg on the highway up until the day I parked her, took regular gas too! you don't need to drive a new Honda to get good gas mileage... and with 165hp/220ft-lbs torque, it had plenty of power too, had no issue running the AC or anything..... it ran a 16.9 @78mph in the 1/4.... not bad for a 17 year old 131k mile family sedan It also has the firm ride and handling package, and I added that strut bar, that car was so nimbled and handled so nice in the turns, it also had the "performance gearing" which was 2.97... pretty neat. Trans was the 440T4, or a 4T60.

damnit I miss that car, and the '79 DeVille... for 2 years I had access to all 3 of my cars, now I only have the '93 Coupe...grrrrr......

Here is the video, its 10mins long, but IMO pretty darn cool.

http://inoventionseast.com/Oldsmobile/Oldsmobile1.wmv

 

[terrible one]

Awesome car and video Rick! Looks like a bit of an adventure you had that December

 

[Night Wolf]

lol, yeah... I have done alot of work to that car, but that was all in the month of December, the car had around 124k miles on it that time... thats the point when someone gives up on a car such as this though.... since then, the only issue I had was over the summer when I had to replace the starter... all normal maintenace items, so I am not arguing.

But yeah, it was one after another, I would be driving them BAM! it was just like gosh, what is next?

and the throttle cable... when do throttle cables ever snap!?!? lol, I was turning and I put it to the floor, then I hear pop, my foot really goes to the floor and the engine idles... now I am on a main road, 55mph doing about 25mph... so I quickly reach other and turn cruise control on then hold accelerate.... I was able to pull into a motel parking lot. I was going to drive home like that, but no matter what way I went I would have had to stop (I woulda ran a stop sign or 2 if needed... but there were lots of lights and stuff) and once you stop, I coudln't start, to the car slept at the motel parking lot over night

then the steering wheel.... gosh what a PITA that was!.... ah well, its all fun memories though, atleast now, I know how to fix things like the steering wheel, so it woudln't be *that* bad

 

[Spyder]

Rope to throttle...that's great...I've done bailing wire before, through the firewall, with a loop to stick my finger through...works great!

 

[Night Wolf]

lol, yup.... thru the hood spacer and arm out the window...

it was weird... pull your left arm to accelerate...lol

But the way it was deisnged I coudln't run wide open, I would have to pull it really hard, which I didn't want to do... but it was plenty enough throttle to get be home

gosh.. I miss driving that car... with that car it isn't like I want it restored int he future.. I just always want it to be there for me so I can just drive it... which is why I should just say frig the rust/rot, fix the seat and drive it til' the wheels fall off. The car owes me nothing at all, but it is such a great car, I really like it.

 

[eldorado99]

I hope I can find such dedication in myself towards my '84 Ford LTD, but it just ain't there, although it was my very first car, so there is some minor attachment, but it is such a stubborn car sometimes.

 

[Night Wolf]

One of the last pictures I have of her....

nothing like last minute repairs on the Coupe before a 1,400 mile road trip the rear air leveling system had a bad leak, car woudl bottom out, tire would rub... I actually took the part from the Oldsmobile because I had to leave (The Oldsmobile lives on!) but the o-rings fromt he Caddy will be replaced, then put back on the car and the other part will go back on the Olds. Thats my father working on the Coupe. the '79 you can see is in the garage, that was when we put the modified 472 intake manifold on it, the carb just got rebuilt, now it is waiting a few final things.

Damn, this car was so nice... its hard to explain it, it had a very loveable personality, even my friend that swears by WV and loves manual was like "wow, this is a really cool car" after he drove it for about 3 minutes. Most everything worked on it, it was great for long trips.... amazing on gas, I could use it as a *car* and not worry, and SO reliable, I really like the 3800 V6, such an amazing engine.

The one wish I had before I stopped driving her was to turn over to 131k, and it did! 116,316-131,008

Its funny when I first bought the car, it had 116k on it, I thought that was high miles... well here the '93 Coupe is less then 5,000 miles from hitting that number, but I now realize 116k is nothing, the 131k it has on it now is just broken in reall that engine is going to outlast the car and then keep going

Plus, I feel the need to keep this car, and keep driving as a way of sticking it to GM for dumping Oldsmobile. Everytime I see the rocket in the steering wheel, on the grille or on the trunk it puts a smile on my face.... long live Oldsmobile!

 

[powerglide]

Ohh yeah I remember back in the day we were debating if you should take the Caddy or the Olds down to FL with you.....I guess you decided to take the Caddy after all! Good call

Its always hard lettin go of past cars.....I sometimes wish I had never sold ANY of my previous cars.....(Yeah right)...I especially miss my M-Sport 525i!

 

[Night Wolf]

lol, yup.....

I chose the DeVille for a few reasons... that car is me, there is no way I can go an important step in my life slip by without that car! plus, I spend alot of money, and even more time on the sound system (TOTALLY worked over) and I wanted that with me. Plus... the Caddy holds more status then the Olds, sad to say... although I never use the car as a status symbol.

The thing I liked most about the Olds was, it looked good after the body work and repaint... it got AMAZING gas mileage, was reliable, I could use it as a car and not be anal with every little thing.... and it really started to get into a race to see how many miles I could put on the damn thing... it just woudln't stop.

Although I didn't let her go She is very much still in my ownership, sitting at my fathers right now. I am still debating if I should try and fix the rot/rust issues (under body) on the car or just say to hell with it and drive it until it finally dies.... even though the car is nothing special, it means alot to me... and its hard to explain since it ment nothing to me when I first got it.

I had 3 cars at 16, and now at 18, I still have all 3... which is why I kinda want to keep them in a way, I have 2 nick names for these 3 cars "The Crew" and "The 3 Musketeers" I really woudln't mind keeping them forever either. My father kept all but his first car, which he regrets so much for selling (to his friend, who tore apart the freshly rebuilt engine, then junked the mint '62 Bonnieville Coupe) So I dunno, even if the Olds does start to get bad with the rust, I think I may end up keeping it, with the thought that some day, I will fix it.

It is now off the road. The '79 Sedan is also at my fathers, and still on the road (classic car insurance) that car will be coming down to FL this coming Spring.

I mean, for the whole $500 I would get for the Oldsmobile, I may as well keep the thing, it really does mean alot to me.... but it will be needing some work if I want it in perfect shape, otherwise I could just drive it as is (gotta fix the seat tho)

 

[powerglide]

Good lord man! Thats a HUGE file (38 MB?).....rest assured I downloaded it and watched most of it.....man you REALLY love that thing don't you? (hell of video/slide show you got there)