1974 Oldsmobile

Discussion in 'Station Wagon Auctions, Craigs List and Other Stat' started by jwdtenn, Sep 24, 2019.

  1. jwdtenn

    jwdtenn Well-Known Member

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  2. sinc76

    sinc76 Well-Known Member

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    What a tank. Guessing it made it up here from Mexico. Wonder if GM added more ponies to the 455's installed in ambulances.
     
  3. Stern70

    Stern70 Well-Known Member

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    What blows my mind is how they built these out of sadans not wagons. I first found that out when I got a 71 Pontiac hearse with coil springs in it.
     
  4. annap01gt

    annap01gt Blue Safari

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    This may be a stupid question but does the window area on this ambulance look taller than a normal wagon to anyone else ? If it is taller maybe that is why they started with a cheaper sedan. Hard to believe they would have spent the money on custom glass but the proportions look off to me.
     
  5. mrvans

    mrvans Well-Known Member

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    The roof height is raised to meet standards required for an ambulance. The donor car started out as a sedan because it was cheaper than a wagon. The Custom Cruiser would have been a clam shell, all of which should have been scrapped if converted into an ambulance.
     
  6. annap01gt

    annap01gt Blue Safari

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    Thanks, I lived thru the era of this type of ambulance. Saw them many times but guess I never really paid attention.
     
  7. jaunty75

    jaunty75 Middling Member

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    Why does it have to come from Mexico? These are commonly collected vehicles today. There's a whole universe of "professional car" collectors (hearses, ambulances, limousines) out there, and not infrequently you see one of them at a show. There's even a club for them.

    http://www.theprofessionalcarsociety.org/

    I don't think so. Cotner-Bevington, the company that did the conversions between 1959 and 1975, just took a standard Olds 98 and modified it to be an ambulance. So there was extra bracing and frame strengthening and such, but I doubt anything was done to the engine.

    http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/c/cotner_bevington/cotner_bevington.htm

    Here's a 1972 Cotner-Bevington Olds ambulance I saw at an Olds show a few years back. Frankly, it looks half ambulance, half hearse, so I'm not sure what's going on with it.

    SANY0023 - cropped and enlarged.JPG

    SANY0022 - cropped and enlarged.JPG

    SANY0043 - cropped and enlarged.JPG
     
  8. moparandfomoco

    moparandfomoco Well-Known Member

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    I think the whole "Ambulancia" is a dead give away. Probably originated in a small town in Mexico and someone here in San Diego was lucky enough to snap it up.

    I remember being a kid and one of the local ambulance services back in PA had a 71-72 and a 74 or so Oldses in their fleet.

    Everytime I go to Hershey, theres a dude with NY tags who drives a '69 or so Olds Cotner-Bevington limo/funeral/formal sedan thing. It has high windows like these ambo's/hearses. Now, I haven't been to Hershey for four years, but I have been seeing the car for years when I used to go more often, so I hope in two weeks I see it again!

    I think they're kinda cool. Really unusual.
     
  9. MotoMike

    MotoMike Well-Known Member

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    The 455 had plenty of torque to move these around.
     
  10. cammerjeff

    cammerjeff Longroofs Rule!

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    Just because it was once in service in Mexico, does not mean it was converted in Mexico. I suspect that when the Ambulance regulations changed in the Stated during the Mid 1970's, Mexico would have been a logical Market to sell slightly used Ambulance's that no longer could be used in the local area.
     
  11. sinc76

    sinc76 Well-Known Member

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  12. 60Mercman

    60Mercman Well-Known Member

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