The W-31 for 1970 had very similar styling to the W-30 trim but the engine was a more economical 350 cubic inch with 325 HP. But even between Porsche and BMW, the comparison is somewhat skewed. Does not have the original carb. With the most numb handling, predictable performance, suspension with no connection to the road and without raising an eyebrow of passers-by due to its ubiquitous jellybean style. This difference in philosophy between the two manufacturers can be directly felt first on the reliability of the vehicles. Equipment includes a fiberglass dual-inlet hood, sport mirrors, black accent stripes, and W-31 badging. Average new car price was $3,000. This month, we've stumbled onto a very special Oldsmobile that was meant to throw the insurance man a curve. Put a powerful V-8 engine in a two door sport coupe and you have the makings of a classic American muscle car. The W-31 actually started out in 1968 and was the Cutlass-based Ram Rod 350. Let's face it. I have owned W30 442s and several Hurst Olds through the years, and most recently a 70 4 speed Rallye 350. Of the above production, these models were equipped with the W-30 32-bbl engine. The 68 Ram-Rod used the standard 4-Barrel Distributor. V-8 and its 4.057-inch cylinder bores. Find new and used 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass classic cars for sale near you by classic car dealers and private sellers on Classics on Autotrader. My inspection would be an all-day affair, so the fee would be in the neighborhood of $1,000. It was designed as a sportier high end F-85. Most of the car is together without much mods or rust!! :) :) :). The seller advises that it has rust but the floors and trunk are very solid. There is a lot more than 49,000 miles on it. By 1970, the insurance industry was losing money and began a clampdown. Who the hell wants that? Copyright 2023, Antique Automobile Club of America. The engine balancer is big and as rare as hen's teeth. I wonder if it still has the original carb and distributor are still in place? Perhaps another slogan would have been more effective. There are 17 Oldsmobile Cutlass for sale across all model years (1961 to 1999) and variants, 8 are 3rd Gen and none are model year 1970 . By 1970, the W-31s final production year, the body styles included either a Cutlass S (Holiday or Sports Coupe) or the F-85 Sports Coupe. You've really got to know what you're looking at. 1969 Oldsmobile 442s, except for the Hurst had the 400 cubic inch engine, not the 455. It was pointed out that the largest market for Oldsmobiles was the population whose parents had in fact owned Oldsmobiles. Is a restored a car harder to authenticate? The interior is a mix. These models were equipped with the W-31 350 package. It should be noted that only the 69 and 70 used a special W-31 coded Distributor. June 17, 2010 in Technical, I am trying to determine if my 1970 350 is a w31 engine, It has #6 heads with 1.62 exhaust valves and it has a large harmonic ballancer,can some one tell me how to know for sure. Many would say that the brand picked up an image of being old and stuffy. The muscle car's future looked grim. It's vital that you take a look at the firewall to see that it hasn't been fooled with. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. Production was very low. By 1970, the W-31's final production year, the body styles included either a Cutlass S (Holiday or Sports Coupe) or the F-85 Sports Coupe. The seller acquired the car in April 2021, and subsequent work is said to have included installation of a Bluetooth-capable stereo, performing an alignment, servicing of the power steering system, and replacement of the shocks and tires. He is standing next to Stefano Bimbi's 1970 W-30 four-speed convertible, which was featured on the cover of the Nov. '15 issue. Unfortunately, everything that makes it a W-31 can be bolted to any 350 Olds motor, so without a build sheet and matching VIN derivative on the block, there is no way to know with absolute certainty. I would knock several digits off the price just for this being a non-runner. Other notable components included a lightweight aluminum intake manifold, the W25 fiberglass ram-air hood, anti-spin differential with 3.42:1 gears (3.73:1 available), and heavy duty cooling. The Ramrod 350 Cutlass appeared in 1968 and became the W31 in 1969. Cars are made in every corner of the globe, but when it comes to Porsche, home is definitely where the heart is. Additional items accompanying the car include a Protect-O-Plate, owners manuals, and a vehicle history summary from the reported original owner, photos of which are provided in the gallery. The factory chalk marks aren't usually there anymore. Starting around 1967, automobile insurance companies started premium surcharges on cars with outsized horsepower or low curb weight to power ratios. These are some of the most sought after muscle cars, by collectors and enthusiasts alike. These fenders had a flat ridge running all the way down to where they meet the hood. Engine upgrades included the use of what's become known as the 308 camshaft, which was actually the unit's duration; the camshaft also touted .474-inch lift and an intake/exhaust valve overlap of 82 degrees. My database is quickly growing on these cars, and it should make for an informative book. A W-31 is not the same as a big-block W-30, but it's still a real W-Machine with a fiberglass hood with functional ram air feeding a 325hp 350 purposely built by Oldsmobile for enthusiasts. The front passenger fender looks to be a repaint. These Cutlass models were equipped with the Rallye 350 package. The manufacturer estimates that about 200 Taycan cars cannot be built per day. In 1970, Oldsmobile Division came out with an aluminum W-31 intake similar to the one used on the W-30s and made by the same foundry. Oldsmobile muscle car fanatics, you will want to take a very close look at this amazing Olds W-Machine! We would share knowledge about these cars with each other.". The next two numbers afterwards should decode . if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'barnfinds_com-large-leaderboard-2','ezslot_4',148,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-barnfinds_com-large-leaderboard-2-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'barnfinds_com-large-leaderboard-2','ezslot_5',148,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-barnfinds_com-large-leaderboard-2-0_1'); .large-leaderboard-2-multi-148{border:none !important;display:block !important;float:none !important;line-height:0px;margin-bottom:7px !important;margin-left:auto !important;margin-right:auto !important;margin-top:7px !important;max-width:100% !important;min-height:250px;padding:0;text-align:center !important;}. As the car was originally Rallye Pac equipped it is a shame that the Tic-Toc-Tach is MIA. Its good to see that the W25 air induction scoops/air-cleaner are still present and hopefully functioning. The technical knowledge came from owning and parting out cars and dealing with Oldsmobile collectors. Attempting to connect. FOLLOW MARKET. The engine balancer is big and as rare as hen's teeth. That really helps when you're putting one of these cars back together. If you win the auction, your card will be charged for the service fee and you pay the seller directly for the vehicle. There was no crush zone in it and ran the whole length of the fender. "Another thing I've done is take a lot of pictures. Additional photos are presented in the gallery below showing the suspension, chassis, and driveline, as well as corrosion on portions of the underside. With a 4.0L flat-six engine, the 911 GT3 achieves up to 500 ps with 338 lb-ft of torque and a top speed of. When Jimmy arrived at Andy's garage, instead of walking directly to look under the sheet covering the car, he made a beeline for a washing machine covered with car parts and paperwork. No power brakes on these due to the wild cam profile,,, the minuete I read that as a teenager back in 82 I had to have one, never found one, seen so so few. Copyright 2011 YearOne, Inc. - All Rights Reserved. There were 165 3rd Gen sold in the last 5 years. Both 1969 Hurst Olds had the 455 cu. Auto manufactures, in some instances, started to offer smaller-engined/lower horsepower varieties as a counter move. I would rather have a clean all together 200,000 mile car than one claiming such low mileage with everything worn out. As the Olds' story started to unfold, it became more about the family's history than just a car collector's dream W-Machine. Chevrolet, Pontiac and Buick had been doing this and Olds joined the movement. The 1990s were not good times for Oldsmobile. In general, all high performance cars from the late 1960s through 1971 are popular collector cars. Andy's father, John, bought this W-31 brand new, then parked it in his housethis housein 1984. Nothing screams muscle car more than the 70 line up across all makes, I read somewhere you could be nailed by the insurance just for having a four speed.. so if its going to need restoring I hardly think the claimed mileage even matters. Through a number of conversations I was asked if I knew anyone who was interested in a 1970 Oldsmobile W-31. Good luck! Not only does Minore authenticate classic Oldsmobile muscle cars, but he also works on them, seen here with a 1967 W-30. Admittedly this is a rare car, its documentation and understated nature is an attractive draw, but Im not sure about that price reasonable or a bit outsized? This car has seen some rough riding. Sitting in the passenger seat, peering out over that ram-air hood, I was totally corrupted and have been ever since.". However, after a car has been restored, it's much harder to figure out whether or not it's the real deal. Oldsmobile Division only made 500 of those cars, and all of them were four-speeds. That too has its own part number. I wanted to see how things were put together. These models were equipped with W-29 442 equipment. In a photo taken in 1999, Minore proudly poses with his gold with black stripes 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass W-31. Experience has shown that a minor service including oil, filters, and inspection will cost between $200 and $400, while a major service including transmission services will cost, The automaker claims that the lineup contains quintessential sports cars, but it would appear that there's an identity crisis occurring. MCR: What are the areas you look at when authenticating a car? Your bid has been posted in the comment flow on the listing, and you can see other bids there as they happen. It had ram air, sport mirrors, W-31 side stripes, and W-31 fender badges, but otherwise it looked just like a W-30. Horsepower was reported at 325 at 5400rpm, even though the mill featured a new aluminum intake manifold. Too bad the seller wants top dollar for a project car and cant even change the clutch! Posts: 13 Thanks: 0. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. If the latter is true,then it appears to be very hard miles. The W-31 was filled with day-two parts, such as a vintage MSD box, an ACCEL Super Coil, headers, a high-stall converter, red airbags in the springs, a Sun Tach, and gauge pod. That's part of how they advertised it.". Most likely 149,000. Its not the same thickness as your pic,mine is only Aprox 5/8" thick,it is 7 1/2 inches tall. Stephen spent some of his formative years "banging gears and laying rubber all around town" in his uncle Mark's 1969 Cutlass Supreme. Of the above production, these models were equipped with the W-30 4-bbl engine. Porsche offers the 911 in six trim levels: Carrera, Carrera S, Lamborghini dealerships own the vehicles seen in showrooms and if you want one be prepared to wait six to 12 months. Show of hands, has anyone ever owned or driven a W-31 Cutlass and what was it like? It is laughable that this somewhat unusual Cutlass is being sold on Craigslist. These cars are very rare and attract owners with erudite knowledge of Oldsmobile muscle. In the early 1980s, model-year production totaled more than one million vehicles several times, something only Chevrolet and Ford had achieved. Steve Magnante states that only 1,029 W-31s were built on the F-85 & Cutlass platform. That's a dead giveaway that the fenders have been changed. Email: contact@drivinithome.com. While repairs tend to be more severe than average, the number of those issues is low, so, The extra power of the Turbo S can see it get from, The annual maintenance cost of a 2011 Porsche Panamera is. Approximately 75k miles are shown on the five-digit odometer, about 2,500 of which have been added by the seller. 1970 f85 w31 the car has everything a w31 has except carb intake and harmonic balancer has edelbrock carb and intake on it now and its a automatic trans which was rare only 52 made and its correct for a w31 car has matching number block but has 71 heads on it car needs some . I have pictures of the cars that I actually took apart and took photographs of and can tell within two seconds whether the VIN is right because I have examined so many cars. Properly tuned, a W-31 is fun to drive, but it isnt going to scare anyone. Among those other pursuits is Minore's complete and total infatuation with Oldsmobile's W-Machines, specifically the 1968-1972 models. Stephen's company is called Cas-Am Performance. I ended up buying that car, and that's what got the ball rolling with my research on the W-31s. During the period from 1968-1972 most Olds Cutlass buyers went with the V-8 series standard 350 cubic inch engine. Ive had a bunch of 442s, and had 1 W car, a 69 W30 convert 4 speed, but always wanted a 70 W-31. Post in the forum instead. Kia in collaboration with Lucky Group has taken the initiative of establishing their manufacturing plant in, In general, you should expect to service your Porsche every 10,000 miles or once per year. Power's 2020 ranking of the most reliable brands. The two kept in contact, and in January 2018, Jimmy made an appointment to look at the Oldsmobile. Jimmy wanted to finally see the rare Oldsmobile in person, at which time he could "help educate Andy on what he had.". In spite of the clutch being shot, its not too tough a job to replace. Your daily digest of everything happening on the site. Nope. I would like to learn more about both the earlier and later year cars, as my ultimate objective is, for lack of a better term, to become the Kevin Marti or Galen Govier of Oldsmobile authenticators. I know where there are a number of excellent condition, unrestored 4-4-2 W-30 cars that I can refer to when the occasion arises, which is an excellent source to have. Many Oldsmobile enthusiasts say that the declining sales were in fact caused by the this is not your fathers Oldsmobile campaign. You've always got to be on the lookout for things like that, especially when you're looking at these high end cars. Steve's 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass retains it's stock W31 engine, the period-correct block, with #6 W-31 large valve heads, and a special W-31 only harmonic balancer. This 1970 Cutlass S is a Nugget Gold Metallic hardtop that was first sold at Tapper Chevrolet-Oldsmobile in Montpelier, Idaho, and it reportedly remained with its original owner until 2018 and now shows 75k miles. Still dont know how fast that was. A 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass W-31 recently sold at auction for $90,000. There are Julian codes on the front disc brake calipers, the master cylinder, and the radiator tag. Dabblers or flippers in the muscle car hobby would likely mistake the unique W-31 350 as a common GM V-8 fitted with a four-barrel. With the Urus, the company's $200K SUV that debuted earlier this year, the wait time is, Unlike regular cars, the reliability of supercars is hard to rate due to their limited production. . Have you run across any earth-shaking discoveries in the authentication process? Here is an amazing one-owner, matching numbers, low mileage Oldsmobile 442 Holiday Coupe from 1970, the peak of Oldsmobile performance, available now from the MAXmotive Pittsburgh Showroom. . There really is no book that I can pull out and unequivocally say this is the way it was done. The car will move, but the clutch is shot. He also includes a burb stating that this Olds is a 49K mile example. Lot #65,720. But what, exactly, was this car other than a Cutlass S two-door hardtop with a 350 under the striped hood? 50 years of rust hiding who knows where, may sink a sale, upon close up inspection. Why no drivers side pics? Our featured automobile is the 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass W-31. . The W-31 for the 68 and 69 year had a cast iron intake and #5 Heads. It was both BMW's first and only production V10 engine, and the first petrol V10 engine to be available in a production sedan (saloon). document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Please enable JavaScript to engage in the discussion on this site. Congratulations! It's easy! Can I look at it?' In 1970, Oldsmobile Division stamped out only one style of fender. Factory Tach doesnt appear to be missing, where would it go? The grilles on a 1970 W-31 are very hard to find, but they did come on four-door cars, station wagons, and Cutlass S cars. For those hardcore Oldsmobile W-Series collectors, they will know what a truly special car this is, more specifically, the engine. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Made with for Muscle Cars - Musclecarfacts.com Copyright 2023. Then there's the more obvious. "This is the car that got me interested in the W-31 small-block cars," he said. Sales receded to 920 W-30s for 1971 and just 772 for 1972. Major difference was the AC cars had C heads, Non AC cars had D heads. Tim Murphy (right), a longtime friend of Minore's (and a "1969 fanatic"), helps him remove the air cleaner on Weaver's W-31 to check the date code on the air cleaner and the number on the carburetor. A decent quality paint job without body work can easily cost $10k and up by itself. Based on whats photographically revealed, the interior is certainly salvageable and probably not at great expense or effort. Of the above 442 production, these models were equipped with the W-32 4-bbl engine. A number of Honda Accords have experienced excessive oil consumption. Very rare car in restorable condition. Question of the Week: What's the Best Factory-Turbocharged Car? Assuming the VIN derivative shows it to be a 1970 block, and the #6 heads have the 2.000/1.625 valves, and the cam is the correct 308 degree cam, and it has the W-31-unique balancer, and it has the correct distributor, and the pistons are flattops, then there's a high probability that the motor is an original W-31. The interior is all available!! Later he decided to hold on to the car, which his father ordered new in 1970. I had a 72 Cutlass Supreme, had a 4 barrel carbshe was slow on takeoff, but I had her pegged past 130 on speedometer. 1970 W-31 Production numbers: 1,029 Cutlass S Holiday coupes like this one. The average annual repair cost is $652 which means it has average ownership costs. It was in a pile of paperwork that included the original title, Protect-O-Plate, broadcast card, dealer invoice, and receipts from the 1970s when the motor was rebuilt. Up to that point I didn't know the difference, so I went and inspected the car. California Notice at Collection Oldsmobile built 1,352 of these muscle cars for the 1970 model year: 1,029 as Cutlass S Holiday Coupe two-door hardtops, 116 as Cutlass Sports Coupes (a two-door post), and 207 in the F-85. The transmission VINs need to be correct, and the factory tag needs to be on the right side of the transmission. Your real-time updates could not be connected. He couldn't resist asking if Andy was interested in selling, and was surprised when Andy said yes. You're the high bidder. It seems that many 442s from the era have automatic transmissions, not sure of the breakdown with the W-31. "Unless you have a paper trail, it's next to impossible to say this is a true W-31 factory car," he says. If not, that would also suggest the miles advertised are off by 100k. The Rochester Quadrajet, PN 7040255 and specific to the W-31 automatic and manual transmission cars, is very valuable. When Stephen J. Minore was in high school, his father Joe, a gas station operator, took him aside and gave him some advice. Oldsmobile was a late developer into the muscle car scene and then moved swiftly to create an affordable mid-price intermediate muscle car. However, auto reviewers have given the Lamborghini Huracan an overall reliability rating of. Sign up for our free daily email and youll never miss another find: BF Auction: 1961 Volkswagen Samba Deluxe 23-Window, Pristine 1975 Cadillac Eldorado with 40,000 Genuine Miles. Or subscribe without commenting. Today's cars are more reliable than ever, according to the J.D.