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Drive and Enjoy: 1969 Oldsmobile 442

This 1969 Oldsmobile 442 underwent a restoration around 8-years-ago, and it still looks nice and fresh today. There are a couple of little detail items that could be addressed, but given that these aren’t urgent, they could be attended to at the next owner’s leisure. Barn Finder local_sheriff referred this classic to us, so thank you so much for that. The Oldsmobile is located in Belmont, New Hampshire, and is listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding has now reached $5,288, but the reserve hasn’t been met.

The owner says that the 442 is not a show car, but is a good, driver-quality vehicle. The body looks straight and solid, while the Trophy Blue paint does have a few minor chips and marks. None of these are severe and could be either left as they are, or could be addressed in a bid to return the exterior to a spotless state. The wheels aren’t original, but I think that the style suits the car quite nicely. All of the trim and chrome looks good, while the glass is all new. The owner also says that the frames and floors are solid, meaning that there is little to attend to cosmetically on the 442.

The interior of the Oldsmobile is an interesting proposition because overall, it looks quite good. The owner readily admits that the door trims will need to be replaced, and they are looking pretty shabby. The cover on the driver’s seat is also looking a bit tired, but it isn’t horrendously bad. One odd little detail that I did notice is that the interior light is just hanging down on its wires. I suspect that the car has recently received a new headliner (it looks pretty good) and the light hasn’t been reattached for some reason. It also appears that the carpet might be new. There are a set of aftermarket gauges mounted under the dash, but I don’t mind that if they are going to help the next owner to monitor the health and well-being of the Oldsmobile.

Hiding under the hood is a numbers-matching 400ci V8, backed by a 3-speed Turbo Hydra-Matic transmission and a Posi rear end. You can also throw power steering and power brakes into the equation to make life that little bit easier. With 325hp on tap, the 442 is a strong performer, and everything under the hood looks to be relatively tidy. I do like the fact that you can see that the engine has some age to it and that this fact hasn’t been disguised by rampant use of the dreaded rattle-can. The owner says that the 442 is always properly serviced and that it runs and drives really well.

For someone who is seeking a nice driver rather than a trailer queen, this Oldsmobile 442 looks like a pretty strong contender. It presents nicely, and Trophy Blue is definitely one of the nicer and more eye-catching colors. There are a few little detail items to be attended to, but those could be addressed as time and circumstances allow. It is ready to be driven and enjoyed right now, and with 34 people currently watching the listing, I wouldn’t be surprised if this one will find itself heading to a new home very soon.

Comments

  1. Avatar HydTech

    Nice car, I’ve always liked these. I read the ad on eBay, I noticed he said the door panels needed replacing, but didn’t say anything about the trim on the door panels. Hopefully the door panel trim is ok and can be reused. GLWTS!

    Like 5
    • Avatar bone

      I’ve never heard of door panels being called door trims before ; to me, saying door trim is what I would assume someone was calling the outside door moldings .

      Like 0
  2. Avatar DaveK

    It looks like it already has power brakes. Isn’t that a power booster in the engine picture?

    Like 0
  3. Avatar John M.

    Looks great with the old school Cragar SS wheels on it.

    My verdict,

    “I LIKE IT”

    Like 6
  4. Avatar JOHN Member

    The front buckets are not the original material, or the seats were replaced at one time. It is difficult to see, but it looks like this car has Cutlass grilles painted black. This car has had a lot of trim left off the car… there should be trim along the top of the front fenders, doors, and top of the quarters that essentially runs into the rain gutter trim. It is missing all the wheel opening trim, and all the bright trim around the door frame and quarter windows as well, it does have one piece on the right rear upper window frame, the hood vents have been painted, missing the stainless trim under the edge of the trunk lid…I’m pretty sure the 442 was an option that included this trim. Missing the woodgrain trim on the glovebox door. I’ve had 2 69 442’s and 3 69 Cutlass S models, there are a lot of things here that just appear to be shoddy workmanship, it just makes you wonder about everything.

    Like 4
    • Avatar Poppy

      Can’t believe it’s bid up to over $17K already.

      Like 0
    • Avatar Rick Rothermel

      And, wasn’t the 400 Usually painted red? I had a 69 Supreme, one of my favorite cars ever. Not a wasted line on that whole car.

      Like 0
      • Avatar JOHN Member

        The 69 400 was Bronze, the 69 Hurst Olds with the 455 was red. The 350’s were gold.

        Like 0
  5. Avatar Troy s

    Really a decent looking 442, it’s period correct wheels like these that can really make one of these old muscle machines stand out. Headers, edlebrock valve coves, is that a stock intake manifold or something better.? Wonder what else hides in that 400, cool looking stock air cleaner, open element in ’69?
    She’s a driver, real sharp one too, hope it stays one.

    Like 0
    • Avatar JOHN Member

      I wondered about the engine also… looks like an aluminum intake, also a HEI distributor. I also see a vacuum canister on the fender, so it must have a fairly rowdy cam, but it would then need gears and a higher stall torque converter to make it run halfway decent. The master cylinder and booster was “detailed” with a black rattle can. All that plus all the missing trim etc, just makes me very skeptical about this car.

      Like 1
  6. Avatar TimM

    Good looking car but the trim John pointed out is missing!! I would think that to try to keep the car as authentic as possible you would want to put these parts back on after your restoration!! Most all of these parts are reproduced if they were in bad shape!! However if they were in that bad of shape what did the car look like before it was restored????

    Like 0
    • Avatar Troy s

      I’d call it a “day two” resto mod? Maybe, not to be sarcastic, a day three?
      I recall some hot rodders even removing the door handles, what did they call that, shaving. This isn’t a showroom restoration at all, more of a personalized street cruiser, more like what I remember and still see occasionally strolling around. Just a fun driver.

      Like 1
  7. Avatar Salprint

    I always thought 442 meant 4 speed, 4 Barrel, Dual exhaust. This is automatic, so I guess my information is wrong.

    Like 0
    • Avatar JOHN Member

      Originally (in 1964 when introduced) they were exactly that, 4 speed, four barrel, and dual exhaust. Very few were made, they were Oldsmobile’s response to the GTO, and they were equipped with the 330 engine. In 1965 they they came standard with the 400 cubic inch engine, and an automatic trans was available. It is rumored that 442 then stood for 400 cubic inches, 4 barrel, dual exhaust.

      Like 0

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