new here with a '73 Custom Cruiser

Here's the place to order the correct NOS vinyl for your front seat. SMS is pricy, but it is the only game in town, and they are great to deal with. You will be happy with them, and you will get your seat to looking showroom new.

http://www.smsautofabrics.com/results.php?make=Oldsmobile&year=1973&qu[]=V&rpp=12

It is on the sixth page, the third choice down on that page, Code 19, first sample pic, an Elk grain.

David

 

Welcome to the wagon forum . That is quite the story of this wagon, glkad to see you are not only taking up the challenge but doing it with a passion to finish what was started. Also glad to see you getting some help on this side.

 

Jaunty, you are so right that it has to be done correctly and brought back to its former glory, in memory of the original owner. He obviously cherished this car as his baby and was sparing no expense or time to restore it. I'm sure the family is pleased that someone like you, who appreciates it, got it. It looks in beautiful shape and you're not that far away from having it all done. Best of luck with your great find.

 

Continued thanks for all the welcomes!

OK, here's another quick question. Where is the body information tag on this car? I thought these were all pretty much mounted on the firewall on the driver's side beneath or near the wiper motor. But I haven't found it yet on this car. Anyplace else it would be? Any chance it would be in a place where it might have been removed to make way for the repainting? I'm wondering if it could have been in the door pillar or hinge area, all of which were repainted, and then they never bothered to put it back. I haven't looked really thoroughly yet, but so far I haven't found it. Thanks.

 

I just realized what you meant! I thought you were talking about the wiring to the tailgate motor, which I think is also three-wire.

 

Thank you!

 

it should be right in front of the glove box on the firewall, just under the glass above the right wiper

 

Thanks. I'll take a look tonight.

 

Just to give you guys a little more to envy , here's some of the major milestones/repairs in the life of the car as found in the service records.

4/19/73 - original title issued

6/74, 10,300 miles - minor collision repair to rear end, involves bumper, tailgate, lights, cost is $266.75

4/77, 36,000 miles - first major overhaul of rear brakes

4/78, 41,000 miles - first major overhaul of front brakes

5/78, 41,300 miles - first new battery

6/81, 58,700 miles - new idler arm

9/81, 62,100 miles - new gas tank

6/82, 64,700 miles - new water pump

11/82, 66,700 miles -repair of major collision damage to either right or left front (not specified which). Required two new doors (gotten used), new windshield, new fender, and many other parts. Cost to fix was $3266.67.

8/84, 76,900 miles - new radiator. Car is now 11 years old

8/85, 80,400 miles - replaced outer tie-rod ends

7/87, 85,600 miles - first carburetor rebuild

11/93, 93,000 miles - master cylinder replaced. Car is now 20 years old

10/94, 95,000 miles - new spark plug wires

12/94, 95,300 miles - four new tires, Goodyear Regatta. These are not replacements of the originals, of course, as many new tires were purchased over the years. But these are the tires currently on the car.

2/95, 95,600 miles - second carburetor rebuild

7/96, 100,000 miles - completely new exhaust system front-to-back. Many parts replaced over the years, but this was the most recent dealing with the exhaust system

10/99, about 101,000 miles - car goes to glass shop to replace one side rear window. Single word in comment section of invoice: vandalism. Cost to fix: $95.40

-- no service entries between the one above and the one below

10/19/04, about 101,000 miles - car towed from home to body shop for complete repaint as well as to fix apparent minor collision damage. Perhaps this is what prompted him to get it painted, since it was in the body shop, anyway. Cost of the collision repair--$935.85. Cost of the total repaint--$5,000. When I saw this, my heart nearly stopped. This fellow spared no expense on this car.

3/3/05 - after 4.5 months at the body shop, car is towed from the body shop to a service garage for more major repairs, including complete renewal of the front brakes, repack wheel bearings, rear brakes cleaned and adjusted, new stabilizer links, and another new battery - total cost--$678.81

3/4/05, 102,588 miles - new alternator installed

This is the last service entry in the records. When I bought the car on 1/22/10, it had 11 more miles on it than the 3/4/05 entry, and yet another new battery had been installed to get it running.



Mileage milestones:

25,000 miles in February 1976 (34 months, average of 735 miles per month)

50,000 miles in September 1979 (43 months later, average of 581 miles per month for the second 25,000 miles; 649 miles per month average since new)

75,000 miles in July 1984 (58 months later, average of 431 miles per month for the third 25,000 miles; 555 miles per month average since new)

100,000 miles in August 1996 (145 months later, average of 172 miles per month for fourth 25,000 miles; average of 357 per month since new)

I think I have all that math right!



Several things struck me.

1. A new gas tank after only 8 years and 62,000 miles? Seems too soon.

2. Two carburetor rebuilds, with the second only about 7,000 miles ago. I lifted the air cleaner and took a quick peek. Looks like you could eat off of it. I'm not planning to touch it expect for maybe a few squirts of gumout, except for any adjustments needed for a tune-up. I hope not much.

3. Interesting collision damage history. At least three separate, insurance-involved collision repairs, including a huge one in 1982. Nearly $3300 was a lot of money back then.

4. Car is on its third windshield.

5. Tires have only about 7,000 miles on them, but they're now over 15 years old. Replace, anyway?

6. Car seems to have just sat for five years between 10/99 and 10/04.

 

holy crap...and i thought i had the 'luck' for finding the Original cars
.....4 pages in 1 day???....(i think they like you)...

its all been said but WTH....excellent intro...hella find...great karma move..
...pleasure to meet you
I think you'll find you are amongst friends

to the place that stops us from working on our cars

 

Thanks, Rev!


OK, a couple of updates/questions after the discussion of earlier today.


First, I know why I can't find the body data plate. It's not there. I found where it should be based on jeffreyalman's description, but all that's there is a blank space with two screw holes. I'm curious as to why it was removed, and I'm guessing that it had to do with the major repaint five years ago. They removed it for some reason and then perhaps just forgot to put it back. Oh well, it's likely long gone. For all the documentation that did come with the car, it's kind of a funny thing to not have. But given that I have the original window sticker, which lists all the options, paint color and codes, and everything else, is there anything that would have been on that plate that wouldn't be on the sticker or on those two cards that I showed earlier?


Second, with regard to the tailgate motor, here's a close-up of the area. As I've said, the rear interior had been removed by the first owner, so I can see everything.



I'm guessing that those three big black bolts hold the motor on, and that if I remove them, the motor will come off, and the tailgate will fall into the floor. I'm also guessing that, until I figure out the problem, I can also remove the motor, or at least move it away from the big cog that it meshes with, pull the tailgate into the fully up position, and then put the motor back so that it holds the gate fully up instead of just part-way up. This way the car will be fully closed up, which makes it better when out for a drive.

I thought, though, that while I have the motor off, I could bench test it. Can I just hook up a 12-volt supply and see if it moves?


Third, here's a photo of a screw near the motor which I suspect might be a bad ground.



It looks like that sill was just painted with the screw in place as the overspray has gotten on the nearby wires, and it doesn't look, at least to me, like a very good electrical connection. I'll certainly take it off and clean it up electrically. But from this photo you can see the thoroughness of the paint and maybe get some indication as to why the interior trim was removed. Doing so allowed getting at this area with the new paint.


Fourth, can somebody tell what this is? It's right next to the tailgate on the right side. I apologize for the slightly out of focus photo, but you can see it. It's some kind of hose connection point. The hose out of one end goes up into the roof along the rear window trim. The other end (green) just empties into the bottom of the spare tire wheel well (lower photo).





Given that it just empties into the bottom of the wheel well, is it just a drain hose of some kind? If so, what does it drain? Also, if so, why the manifold-like thing in the upper photo?


Thanks, guys!

 

Great find, Jaunty. Welcome to the forum. You'll fit in real nice, here.

I am, by no means, a clamshell expert. At first, I was going to answer your last question by saying it's a rear washer pump. But then I remembered the clamshells don't have a wiper, so why would they have a washer? Somebody will have an answer on this one - just not me.

 

that drain looks like the cable for the window on the upper part. did you try the key at the back?

 

Thank you!

 

I wondered if it had something to do with the window as it looks like it's right behind where the exterior key is.

I did try the key, turning it all the way in both directions. The window moves up and down fine. No response at all from the tailgate.