Not sure why this popped up when I put "Corvette parts" into the search box in Facebook Marketplace but who am I to argue with Mark Zuckerberg's wonky algorithms? Something tells me he knows exactly what I would find interesting because sure as hell here I am lovingly blogging if not thinking quasi-serious about calling on this 1973 Oldsmobile 4-4-2. It's for sale near my home here on the west side of Cleveland, Ohio for a not unreasonable asking price of six-thousand dollars. That asking price all but too good to be true considering the seller brags of just thirty-four thousand miles on it's forty-seven year old ticker. Price is negotiable too making this old beast simultaneously alluring and disconcerting. What are they hiding?
Originally denoting four-barrels, four-speeds and two exhaust pipes, by '73 "4-4-2" still denoted that although the engine the four-barrel sat on top of and the optional four-speed backing it up wasn't quite the pot-whopper previous Oldsmobile "Rockets" were. Blame the EPA all you want for that but the reality was even if the "Big Three" had developed emissions gear that didn't impede engine performance, insurance surcharges on anything deemed a performance car would have made them unattractive for a vast number of potential buyers. So, our 4-4-2 here along with similar models from Chevrolet, Buick and Pontiac may have looked the part but they were mostly all "show" instead of "go". Our '73 is powered by the Oldsmobile "Rocket" 350 V-8. If it was the 455 the block and valve cover gaskets would be blue.
I'm smitten with this well-worn black-on-black '73 4-4-2; full disclosure, many find fault with these "colonnades", I happen to like them. A lot. Maybe it's nostalgia mixed with genuine appreciation for these big intermediates that are actually pretty swell riding cars. Throw in one like this with a manual transmission and fat sway bars fore and aft and, well, at least on paper, they're pretty good values. Breathe a little on the motor, shorten the rear end and you've got a real nice runner. Thing is you need to be careful and not dump too much cash into something like this because they're really not worth a whole lot. A '70 Hemi 'Cuda these ain't. Even if this car was in showroom shape it would still be worth a good third less than a comparable 1972 4-4-2. Compared to a '68 or '69 4-4-2 convertible they're worth about twenty-percent of what they're worth.
Of this vintage "4-4-2" that Oldsmobile pushed out through 1977, these '73's with their small rear bumpers are my favorite. The '74 and '75's with their big rear bumpers as well as the '73's fronts are a turn-off. The shovel-nosed NASCAR inspired '76 and '77's are nothing if not bizarre. Still, I wouldn't kick one out of my garage if one happened to magically appear there.
Gotta love these oh-so-'70's "Strato-buckets". They're not to give the driver ease of entry or vice-versa but to allow passengers better egress to the rear bench seat. They're fairly comfortable as '70s' GM seats go although the back doesn't rake (weird) and there's no power adjustment. They're cool but if you're of very average height, like me, you may feel as though you're sitting somewhat in a bathtub . I'm not a fan of that although I do love the seats.
What scares me about this car at any price is that it's a "Cleveland" car and that means rust. Save for it's delightful patina, that I wouldn't change, you have to be concerned about rust on these things. Beef up the engine and what-not all you want and turn it into a genuine rat-rod but what's the point of that if the tin-worm has gotten into it? Trust me, once it starts it's all but impossible to stop it. And repeated attempts at it gets expensive very quickly.
Get it up on a rack see what's going on. If it's clean, which I doubt, it might be worth taking a look-see or two at it. Here's the listing. Good luck.
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