i just purchased a 1987 olds cutlass from the original owner,an old lady...it runs and drives as nice now down the road as im sure it did in 87..my question is everything works on the car except the 4 barrel does not open up under heavy exceleration. the car is all original with just over 88,000 miles on it. thanks for any helpchris
OK, I found this for you, just in case you need to replace, good luck. http://www.nextdayauto.com/1987-oldsmobile-cutlass-supreme-38-dges-carburetor-redline-w0133-1815473.html
Thank you very much for the info, but I was looking for someone who could rebuild this one. I prefer to keep everything original on the car.
Understood, yes, rebuilt is fine as long as it's serviceable, I'm sure you can find someone qualified unless you do it yourself? A replacement for the original part would still keep the car original, correct? After all, the part I found does go to your car? Was kind of surprising to see your question as I imagined that most cars by 1987 were fuel injected. Carburettors are so archaic and susceptible to altitude problems whereas when compared to fuel injection. A real pain as far as I'm concerned. Your 1987 Olds Cutlass must be in remarkably good condition?
Yes it is in really good original condition one owner car. Never driven in the winter and always garage kept. The jack and spare tire had never been taken out of the car its entire life until I purchased it and was on my way to get new tires installed and on my way, I had a blow-out. Tires were dry rotted due to the car sitting. Yes, the carburetor you suggested would still keep my car original, I just figured with the new tires, dual exhaust and sound sound system that I am doing to it now, it would be cheaper to have the carburetor rebuilt if possible other than purchasing a new one. I will have pictures posted on my laptop tomorrow and will post a few. Thank you very much again for the info. Chris
Chris, sure you're welcome. My parents had a 1972 Cutlass Supreme and later had an '85 Cutlass Ciera while reliable and easy on gas was renamed "the gutless " by my wife when we acquired car from my folks. It served us OK, but, certainly not an exciting car. I've had many cars in my 47 years of driving and there are two things I would never want in an automobile, a carburetor and a manual transmission. My last car with a carburetor was a 1980 Honda Accord. It was a three barrel unit, and it began to fail. Well, wouldn't you know it, but, my mechanic who I trusted implicitly told me that I could rebuild it, but, he couldn't guarantee that it ever work as well as a brand new replacement so I was forced to choose between spending $250 on the rebuild or pay $ 750 for a brand new one that had a guarantee of working perfectly and one year or 12,000 miles. I chose the brand new replacement and I never regretted that. My 1980 Honda which had very low mileage, just like your car ran like a brand new car after that and purred like a kitten at idle. In fact, people used to ask me about my car and how did I manage to make it run so well. I was very proud of that car. Now, I'm sure that you want your Oldsmobile to run as equally well, so, while you could rebuild, you might want to consider options. Best of luck with your old classic. I always liked the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, my grandparents had a 1967 with the 400 small block, that car had amazing acceleration just like the 442.
After thinking about it I agree with you 100%. It would be better to spend the money on the new one than to hope for a good one on a rebuild. Although I will eventually and probably have the one that is on there right now rebuilt and just kept up as a spare. Although my car has some oxidation from over the years, I am still trying to find something to help it until I get it repainted. Here are a few pictures. Thanks Chris
The bumper in this picture is just great and is straight. There is just a reflection in photo.
More pictures now posted under my profile....Thanks!
Chris, I think you're making the right decision here and you'll be pleased with the results especially since your car's body appears to be in such great condition. I imagine the interior is just as nice if the car has such low mileage. From my perspective, the age of a car is really unimportant , the function and service is everything, so, if you're car is 28 years old and everything works, you're money ahead in every respect. Look at it this way; a car payment these days is about $400 per month or almost $5,000 per year plus the higher insurance costs, depreciation and higher licence fees, it all adds up. No matter how many "repairs" you have, you're not going to spend $5,000 per year every year on that. Every car requires maintenance, so, you cannot figure oil changes, tires, brakes, etc. into that number. Your car is really in nice condition; after you pass 30 years it starts to fall into a more "classic" category and might see the value increase as years go by. I had my old T-Bird painted a few years ago and paid about $700 for that, it looked like brand new car, no kidding. Having everything working and having a brand new paint job is very cool, people will notice and you'll be the proud owner of a nice ride. Enjoy!
Chris, if you haven't had your old unit rebuilt yet, I would skip it.,You probably won't need that as a spare and could do that later anyway if you wanted to. Also, if you want to have the best sounding stereo, use the money you would have spent on the "rebuild" to get yourself a separate amplifier for your car to plug into a head unit. Alpine is a superior choice.
Mark, LOL. I think you are right about the carb and Alpine is awesome yes. It is always the brand I look for when I am buying. The interior is very close to what it was when it rolled off the line, with the exception of the headliner which I am having redone. I have 12 different pictures posted now if you want, feel free to take a look. Thanks Chris
Chris, thanks for sharing all those pics of your car, yes, it's in nice condition, have you considered painting that "fire engine" red? If you ever do want a new or late model car, here's the best argument for one, fuel economy. On my old TBird which got 17 mpg, even if I had spent $10,000 on that car with special tweaks and so forth, I would never be able to get 50 miles per gallon. So, when you're ready to save money on gas, that's the way to go. Of course, it all depends on how many miles you drive on your car, and your price for gas is one thing you cannot do without and we've seen some prices ranging from a low of $2.25 back up again to $3.50. It adds up quickly over time. By the way, since you purchased this car from a little old lady, you might want to check to see if the transmission fluid was ever flushed out? What sized engine is in your car? Thanks, - Mark
its gonna be a daily driver during the summer mths only and stored for the winter for sure. the build sheet states it gets 24 on the highway i believe and 17 in the city. not really worried about the mpg for my summer ride. it was ordered with the 5.0 which i believe is the 307 due to the oil fill not being in the valve cover but rather in the front on left hand side of engine.yes the tranny was serviced at 80,000 miles rad was flushed out and refilled same day i purchased it.
Yes, 17 mpg in the city was pretty normal for mid sized cars in the 80s. If it's your daily driver only in the summer, that sounds good. You have this motor below; LV2, got this from the Wiki page. Oldsmobile used the popular LV2, a 307-cubic-inch (5.0 L) engine, commonly known by the VIN code "Y", from 1980-1990. It was used by every domestic GM automobile marque. Roller lifters, floating piston wrist pins, and swirl port intake runners were added in 1985. The 307 "Y" produced 148 hp (110 kW) and 250 lb·ft (340 N·m) in 1980-1984 models and 140 hp (100 kW) and 250 lb·ft (340 N·m) in 1985-1990s. All LV2s feature a 4-barrel carburetor. Y-version applications: 1980–1985 Buick Lesabre 1980–1985 Buick Riviera 1986–1987 Buick Regal 1986–1990 Chevrolet Caprice 1980–1985 Oldsmobile Delta 88 1980–1984 Oldsmobile 98 1980–1985 Oldsmobile Toronado 1980–1990 Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser 1980–1981 Oldsmobile Cutlass 1982–1988 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme 1982–1986 Pontiac Parisienne VIN "Y" 1988–1990 Cadillac Brougham VIN "Y" Not a powerhouse, but, it will definitely get the job done. Good thing you changed out the radiator and transmission fluid. Do you mind me asking, what price did you pay for this car?
Chris, I see that you're in Michigan, but, your car looks pretty free of rust, so, the person who you bought that from kept it garaged and clean when they drove it in Winter. I imagine that you paid less than $1,000 for this car?
No actually the car was never driven in the Winter. It was always garage kept in the Winter and protected. I actually paid $3,000 for the car because it was in such great condition. The under body and frame are like brand new.
Yes, must be the very low mileage. What car do you use in the snow?
My 2000 Chevy Z71 Step-Side which is in just as good of shape as this Olds is, in fact this will be the very first Winter this truck will see in its lifetime.
Thanks, hope you've got Ziebart on your Chevy. I'm sure that the main reason that Oldsmobile cost you $3k is not only the low miles, but the rarity of a rust free car in Michigan that was in such nice condition. Should last you a long time and if you hold onto that it may increase in value after it passes the 30 year mark. This was the 90th anniversary of Oldsmobile and the second to the last year of rear wheel drive cars , I think they were discontinued after 1989. Enjoy.
I meant to say 1988 was the last rear wheel drive cars and that changed to front wheel drive models beginning in 1989.
One more thing, as you know well, rear wheel drive cars really suck in the snow, so that was probably the principal reason the Oldsmobile was garaged all Winter. I imagine your Chevy is 4 wheel or all wheel drive?
Yes, my Chevy is part-time 4 wheel drive and full-time 4 wheel drive with the usual high and low range.
Be sure to use fuel stabilizer when you park it for the winter. Modern ethanol fuel is terribly damaging to carburetors especially when they are parked, even for just a few months.
Alright and Thank you very much for the information!!
To MunRon, I recently found 4 American Racing Rims with tires 15"x7'Rims with 41/4 and 41/2 inch lug patterns. The tires are 215/65R/15 Will those work on my 1987 Olds Cutlass if you would happen to know? Thank you very much for any information you can provide. Chris
Sorry, I apologize! The above question is for anyone who might have an idea, not simply for MunRon. Anyone who might have any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Chris
The bolt pattern on your car is 5 x 4 3/4. The wheel/tire size would probably work fine though. When buying aftermarket wheels and tires the best approach is to test fit one on the front and one on the rear if at all possible. That way you can be sure there is clearance for brakes and fender openings. Be sure to test the front wheels by turning them full left and full right while the car is off the jack.
If you want to keep it original rebuild the Rochester carb. Or you can use a edelbrock or Holley Carb for better performance with more power. A good used one should only run you a few hundred. Make sure you do the proper adjustments for fuel consumption to not be to rick on the idle mixture screws.
