Thanks to Pat L. for tracking down this smooth ride. This 1974 Oldsmobile Omega is a looker. This Nova kin is listed on eBay with a bid price of just over $1,700, but the reserve isn’t met, eh? Ok, that’s enough of that, this one is in West St. Paul, Manitoba Canada, just a handful of miles north of beautiful Winnipeg. There are still four days left to get your bids in and check on importing this one, if you aren’t in Canada.
1974 was the last year of the first-generation GM X-body cars that were introduced in 1973. The Chevy Nova and Buick Apollo were the others that were introduced in 1973. The Pontiac Ventura came out in 1971 so it’s the granddaddy. Olds, as usual, was meant to be the more posh offering and this car looks great to me. Even though there is a bit of bubbling on the bottoms of the doors, the wheel openings look rock solid. And those wheels look great to me. I’m usually a fan of plain, painted steel rims and plain hub caps but I love the look of these “rims” (rims? who says that anymore?!)
The interior looks good but it will need a bit of work if you plan on bringing this car back to like-new condition. The dash has a couple of cracks in it and the front seat has a couple of tears. For a car with a bit over 46,000 miles it should be in good condition. This car has power steering, power brakes, and cold AC and Oldsmobiles put woodgrain trim on a Nova dashboard for a fancy look. I love this green color from back in the days when interiors weren’t all black, gray, or tan; ugh.
This is Oldsmobile’s Rocket 350 V8 with a four-barrel carb and it should have around 180 hp and 275 ft-lb of torque. This was just a year or two after the heart of the muscle car era and another 100 hp would come in handy for sure. My 20-year old Subaru Outback has almost 180 hp but it sounds like a handful of bolts rattling around in a coffee can compared to the sweet sound of this V8. I can’t imagine what the seller’s reserve is for this great looking Omega. It looks like a nice project to me, but I’d want to stop that rust in its tracks and make sure that it never comes back again, that would be my first priority on this car. Have any of you owned a GM X-body other than a Nova?
‘ever notice NOVA is comprised of the first letters of this X body format,from each division ?
if that’s the case, what about the Cutlass, Skylark, Chevelle & LeMans- what would that be ?
nothing is common…..
The Nova is the granddaddy. Ventura was a face lifted Nova, starting in ’71. Olds Omega and Buick Apollo came in ’73. All are the same car with minor differences in sheet metal and powertrain choices.
And I always thought the GM hierarchy was Chev, Pontiac, Olds, Buick, Cadillac. Can anyone confirm?
almost correct. its Cadillac then buick then oldsmobile then pontiac and finally chevrolet.
My post wasn’t about the hierarchy, it was about which came first in time. The X-body Nova dates from 1962 (but this version of the X started in 1968). Ventura from 1971, Apollo and Omega from 1973. Sorry if that was unclear.
This would be a nice easy winter project.Fix the few minor things that need to be adressed ,like the rust .Spruce up the so ugly that its kool green interior ,and have a custom dual exhaust made.Its got airconditioning so you can use for your daly driver all sumer long .,This 350 has plenty of power and wont be any worse on fuel than that pick up that you drive every day.
I’ve owned a few oldsmobiles with a 350 Rocket. In my opinion it’s one of the best running engines ever produced they just run really well. I don’t know what kind of money this guy wants for this car ,but if you can get it for somewhere around 5K it would be a screamin deal.
Nice change from all the Novas, Mustangs and Camaros.
i had a ’73 4 door an loved that car. that rocket 350 is my favorite of all gm 350’s. i think the olds produced a broader torque curve an we may spend for horse power we drive torque an most confuse the two, torque punches you in the gut and sucks you in you’re seat when you jump on the throttle
All I can say is COOL !!!
Had a 73 Ventura 2dr hatchback. Great car. Simple and dependable.
Or,you could buy this one in Roseburg,Oregon.
I submitted it,but wasn’t accepted.
LOTS of cool stuff on the Roseburg craigslist!
roseburg.craigslist.org/cto/5824169922.html
Had a ’71 Ventura two door, I built that 307 with everything possible, factory four speed was strong, it was painted factory blurple. Traded it for a ’81 Z28, possibly the worst decision I’ve ever made. Well at least as far as cars go. This Omega has a lot of potential, all it takes is interest and cash. That Rocket 350 would be fun to play with.
Cool find for sure
Drove a nice one off a cliff once, by accident, backwards with h the throttle to the floor…a Ventura. Same color. Identical really. That was its last ride. It pancaked at the base of the cliff and folded up. Well,…it was a nice one!
Out of curiosity, what’s going on with the all these downvotes?
My dad had one of these when I was a kid he had a Chevrolet small block 400 in it pretty well built I remember it well it would just move. Later he pulled the motor and sold it ending up putting the motor in his 1976 3/4 ton full time 4 wheel drive GMC Wood hauler. Made that a hard working truck.
I will never forget the unique rough sound the true olds v8s always had.
I had a later one in 1986 , a 77 in deep Sea Green with White interior powered by an odd-fire 231 Buick V6. The thing was immaculate and garage kept. Found myself 4 14×7 Olds Ralleys and jerked the V6 out, dropped in a 455 from a 72 Vista Cruiser. Nice car for the 1000 bucks I had in it, though it was bench seat and column with AC.The AC worked as well. Sold it in 91 for 1800$ after driving it around for nearly 5 years. Should have kept it, that thing would roll. It handled well once I replaced the front end and springs all around. These were cheap and reliable, could be made to go fast for nothing when big motors languished everywhere in the 80s and could be had for the cost of a few cases of beer. I miss those days.
Auction update: this Ventura was a no-sale when the auction ended with a high bid of $4,000