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In this Discussion
- Dirty Hairy October 2008
- Oldcar_Mechanic October 2008
- phil40_1 September 2008
1972 Olds 442 options help
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Howdy all. NFG here. Cool forum. Thx for any help in advance.
I have a question, but first my story, if you will.
When I was a kid, my folks gave me a sweet 1972 Olds 442 when I turned 16 in 1983. They bought it in '74 and Dad slowly built it up over the years. Believe me, I worked for it cutting firewood from 6:am to noon every Saturday morning of my adolescent and teen life, and cutting 2 acres of grass twice a week. Dad loves that damn fertilizer!
Anyway, being just basically a not very bright kid, I partied that car into the ground and eventually it merged with a damn tough telephone pole. It was a draw, but both lost in the exchange. I got a couple of nice scars, which cool chicks like, but lost my prized ride in '88.
As I've gotten older I've grown to appreciate every thing about that car like I should have then, and like some of you I would guess, I attach it to my ever-fleeting youth, remembering all of the great times that happened in/on/around/within walking distance of that car. It was a total chick magnet. Anyway...blah blah blah married w/ kids, yeah.
Here's the deal. I have some money now and I'm looking to replace the car, but cannot find an exact match.
It resembles this car, but differs in some ways....
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-Trucks___OLDSMOBILE-CUTLASS-442-1972_W0QQitemZ160286539361QQddnZCarsQ20Q26Q20TrucksQQddiZ2282QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item160286539361&_trkparms=39%3A1|65%3A-1|240%3A1318&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245
How it differs...
Ours came with a bench seat and column shifter (dad later changed this to the pleather buckets/floor shift).
It did have the ram air fiberglass induction hood like the model above, with the round corner binders.
Automatic tranny.
It came with a 350 Rocket engine, and a Quadrajet 4 brl carb (which Dad added a shift kit, cam, headers, and a Holly 750 dbl pumper.)
It also had same front honeycomb grill.
It had all the 442 emblems inside and out.
The dash was the same, except in wood grain/black.
It's original color was a holy bright terror (my color name, not theirs) GREEN, with white stripes on the ram air induction hood. I was pimpin' before I even knew what that was (and I still don't really). It was god awful, but dad changed that too. It ended up being satin black stripes on glossy black. I wish I could show you a picture, but I'm afraid I'm all out of those as well.
It did not have the 455, the rear spoiler, AC, or rear bumper cut outs for the tailpipes.
My dad always told me it was kinda rare, having around 2000 of em made. I've searched and can't figure it out.
W25, W30, F-85, many others...crimony, I'm lost.
Any ideas?
(sorry for the long post) -
I'm not a real expert on 442's, but i believe in 1972 the 442 was no longer a stand alone vehicle, it was only an option package(w29) attached to a cutlass model. The rest is very confusing at best.
I do know that a lot of GM vehicles in 1972 were very hard to get(due to the big strike) and as such are considered "rare" by today's standards.
Wish i could be more help, Phil. -
Thats a good start. Thx Phil.
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Personally i'm not sure what you are asking. If you are looking for a similar car to what you had, then I would suggest Hemmings, oldride.com, autotrader, craigslist and others.
If you are asking about the options:
Phil is correct. The 442 was an option and no longer a model unto it's self. It was also pretty much out of muscle as they started the downsize in the 1970 model year.
I don't believe that I have ever seen one with a bench seat and column shift but according to my book it was AP5 option for a bench seat with center arm rest, A52 for the convetional bench and A65 for the notch back bench.
442 Option was W29, Appearance and handling package.
W25 was the forced air induction hood. The one in the picture shows the special air cleaner that is needed so that the foam around the top will seal to the hood underside.
The 350 - 4 BBl (L-32) was the standard engine in the 442.
Wood grain dash was BC1
1972 only had two greens and they both were on the darker side. Maybe before you bought the car someone painted it a different color.
Rear bumper cutouts and trumpet extensions were with the 455 engine.
W30 Option - 455 engine, aluminum intake with raised O-L-D-S W-455 across the top, heavy duty radiator, W-30 emblems, Ram Air hood scoop.
F-85 was a model for the Cutlass, not the Cutlass S nor the Cutlass Supreme
Hope some of this helps
Ron -
Excellent post Ron. That just taught me 10x more than I ever knew. Many thx!
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You're very welcome. Glad it helps you.
I don't think you will find the exact match but you should be able to find something that is very close to what you want.
Other then Hemmings and craigslist you could try http://72.22.90.30/phpBB2/index.php?sid=bea2e974957163a1ebc32d603a8e68ab
Also you may want to join the Olds Club of America. They will send you the magazine JWO (Journey with Olds) and you never know what you find for sale there.
Best of luck with your endeavor and I hope that you find what you seek.
Ron
