When you think about Oldsmobile, other than it being defunct, what comes to mind? I think of OHV V8s (1949), front wheel drive (1966), air bags (1974), and, of course, automatic transmissions via the Hydramatic (1940). GM’s tech leader? I suppose so. And for that reason, I thought it appropriate today to review this Hydramatic-equipped 1941 Oldsmobile. This is the earliest Hydramatic-equipped Oldsmobile that I have covered, and I thank Curvette for the tip. Vancouver, Washington, is where you’ll find this very blue four-door sedan, and it’s available here on craigslist for $15,000.
This Oldsmobile 78 is also known as a “Dynamic 8,” and it’s one of 29K assembled in ’41, and body styles included business coupes, along with two and four-door sedans. How many of these were Hydramatic-equipped would be a telling statistic, but it’s one I couldn’t uncover. This is a large car, riding on a 125″ wheelbase, allowing for a commodious rear seating area. The seller states, “average paint job,” and I’d suggest this metallic blue was not in the Oldsmobile palette for ’41. Regardless, it shows well, the stainless trim is great, and the chrome is fair, but get a load of this car’s front end! That is some of the most prolific use of shiny bits that I’ve ever encountered! Anyway, the body of this car is nice and straight with barely a ding and no sign of rot.
Connected to that second year, four-speed Hydramatic automatic gearbox is a 110 HP, 257 CI, in-line eight-cylinder engine. The seller claims, “runs and drives great.” He further adds, “new brakes, all stock parts are on it, and new wiring with electrical upgrade to 12 volt system and a new upgraded starter. This is a daily driver and mechanically sound.”
The interior appears to be in very fine condition. The front seat bottom upholstery is a bit loose, but it doesn’t show as worn. The headliner is not gravity-bound, and door panels show no indication of water intrusion – so often the issue with cars of this era. The dash is festooned with a chrome-plated center stack, so typical for cars of the forties. It all appears to be original except for engine gauges that have been added to the lower edge of the dash. Gotta love that huge back seat, you could play rugby in there. Also, I like seeing that hang-on-for-dear-life rope attached to the back of the front seat. Or is it that? I’ve had some suggest that it was for draping shawls, or scarves, etc. over it. I dunno about that. I remember as a wee thing my father had a ’51 Oldsmobile 88 so equipped, and I don’t recall anything being draped over it, just my sister’s small hands hanging on to it.
We discuss cars of this era all the time and postulate over who we think the likely shrinking market for such a rig is. Yes, it’s probably limited, but I wonder if being an early Hydramatic-equipped car will help with the cause. What’s your thought on that matter?
Very nice Olds!!! And really nice early Hydramatic example too. The blue really highlights the chrome too. And thats a lot of chrome on the front end too. If my memory serves me right, our 1970 Olds Ninety Eight had a 126 inch wheel base, so this Olds is most certainly big. I think this would be great own. Once again Curvette found a really nice, rare, early 40’s Olds here, and Jim, I’m glad you wrote this up, its a beautiful car, and I sure hope it get enjoyed by its new owner. Great write up!!! Thank you.
Thank you for the kind comments!
JO
Some are puzzled by the use of 4 speeds in the early Hydros while later transmissions would use only 2 (powerglide) or 3 (turbo-hydros). It’s all about the torque converter. The first hydromatics used fluid couplings and so enjoyed no benefit from the torque multiplication provided by a TC and needed 4 speeds to work.
I have always heard the cord on the back of the front seat was to drape a blanket over, because the heat came from under the seat. With a blanket forming an enclosure to trap the heat, the rear seat passengers were kept comfortable.
Yes, I have been told that too.
JO
I’ve heard them referred to as both blanket and robe cords. My 1953 Chevy sedan had one. A search for ‘auto robe cord’ will yield some example images.
Prior to 1962 a heater/defroster was an option for many GM cars. While being standard equipment there was a heater delete option. Around 1970 a Federal mandate required a heater/defroster in all new cars.
Yes. The proper term was “lap robe”. 3/4 size blanket to keep you snug in the back seat. It was a long way from that little heater under the dash, all the way to the back seat. Still remember riding in the back of the family ’53 Cadillac covered with a Pendleton Wool, tartan-patterned lap robe- with fringes, of course. 😉
THAT………would be a GREAT car to drive across Route 66. And I’ll bet it would make it too. Get you a couple of canvass water bags on the front, and a swamp cooler on the passenger side window, and you would be all set.
Good looking Olds and a good shade of blue. GM’s tech leader? I would agree. I read somewhere that both Oldsmobile and Cadillac worked on the turbo hyramatic transmission. The decision was made to install it in the Oldsmobiles due to Oldsmobile was making more cars than Cadillac and that GM didn’t want to tarnish Cadillac’s reputation if the transmission didn’t work as promised. Oldsmobile did become the experimental division for GM. Unfortunately, its a shame that GM was unable to make Oldsmobile more profitable. They produced good looking cars with good reliability.
GM president Roger Smith ruined Olds with his, “badge engineering.” Without customers knowing it, they were installing Chevy engines in Oldsmobiles. That was the beginning of the end of the Rocket.
This is Detroit’s ultimate expression of Art Decco Styling. Is this a survivor, or is it an older restoration? Judging by the paint color, it’s likely an old restoration, but done with a great deal of care and attention to detail. It’s an auto my grandpa would have been proud to own. If I had a dry, habitable garage to keep it in I’d grab this beauty in a New York Second and treat it to a full restoration. It’s a piece of Automobile history that deserves to be preserved. I hope the new owner has that in mind.
That was my first car- mine was black
Almost like the one a family friend bought for $250 in 1969 or
1970. My father was a police officer in the town of Normal, Illinois back then, and he was partnered with a fella named Don
Grimm. Now Don was a real car guy that bought nice classic cars,
fixed them up, and sold a lot of them. Well one day, Dad and Don
were chasing a burglary suspect
that ran into an old lady’s garage
hoping to hide from them. Sadly
for the burglar, it didn’t work out all that well for him. Don chased
him into the garage, and when the guy tried to go out the side door Dad was there waiting for him with a set of cuffs and a Miranda card. In the garage sat a
’41 Olds 2-door sedan which got
Don’s attention while they got the
perp cuffed and stuffed into the back of their cruiser. After their shift was over, Don goes back to the the old woman’s house to do
follow up with her and talk about
the Olds in the garage. She tells him that she and her late husband bought the car new in ’41 and kept it since then. Along with the Olds, there was a sweetheart of a ’68 Rambler American 4-door sedan in mint
condition. Don would tell us later
that the seats on the Rambler were still covered in the factory plastic wrap. A few weeks go by
and Don shows up at our house with the Olds. It was bottle green
with taupe mohair interior. Everything on the car looked new
and shiny outside while the seats
and door cards were in almost
perfect shape. The straight six in
the car ran like a Swiss watch and was whisper quiet. And when Don offered us a ride, you
didn’t have to tell me twice! I was
in the back seat in no time flat!
As we rode along, Don told Dad that he would he was gonna have
to sell his ’47 Mercury DeLuxe eight sedan after the Doc told him that pressing the clutch pedal was aggravating an old injury to his left knee. He offered
the car to Dad at first, but we had
more important things to worry about then– like getting our house ready to take my Grandma
in after she was released from an
institution earlier that year. Dad and I always told ourselves that we’d do a father/son project other than the ’55 Chevy pickup we did a few years earlier but we never got around to it. My summers were spent touring part
time while I was in school and then went full time after that. And Don, he drove the Olds well into the 1980s. He also wound up with the ’68 American I mentioned earlier. I lost contact
with him when I moved to Florida.
Even 55+years on, I still recall that Olds sedan and all the other
cars he brought by the house to
show us. Would’ve made a cool
book: Grimm’s Old Car Tales. RIP
Dad and Don.
You did know the Cadillac was referred to as, “GM’s problem child”, don’t you?
Cadillac firsts: Synchomesh Manual transmission; Auto Dim Headlamps; Air Suspension; Auto Climate Control; Heated Seats (or, Seated Heats); Anti-Theft Systems; Cylinder Deactivation (Ugh); LEDs; OnStar; MagnaRide.
Cadillac might have gotten the moniker from the HT4100 engines that became boat anchors or ended up in scrap piles behind dealerships. Some folks learned about MagnaRide when they were told that shocks were $300.00 each.
Or maybe it started with ’75-’79 Bendix EFI systems that made for driving and repair challenges. I only ever “worked” on one of those. It ended up going back to Cadillac because nobody (not even many dealer techs) knew how to fix them. I think it had a “fire” not long after.
What a great looking classic car while this model will not be for everyone this car shows 100 per cent class and luxury for its time. With the option of the automatic transmission- rare most cars of this era were stick shifts and the straight eight motor one of the most durable engines ever made, body is straight great color all there and a reasonable asking price….. Personally if I didn’t have 3 other collector cars I would jump on this one without hesitation although not a coupe this would make any owner proud to have this sitting in there garage or when they are out cruising…