Here is a fine example of a 1969 Olds 442 Convertible.
Those were the performance glory years for the Olds 442. The 1969 Olds 442 has great styling and many powerful engine options. 1969 Olds 442’s were offered the sport coupe, hardtop coupe and the convertible.
The 442 name meant four barrel carburetor, 4 speed manual transmission and dual exhausts.
More Performance Offerings from General Motors
While Oldsmobile was a bit late to the muscle car frenzy of the late 60’s, it should be noted that Oldsmobile did have a lengthy background with performance models. In fact, most notably in 1905 when Olds put two of it’s automobiles in a race from New York City to Portland, Oregon. This of course was way before there were improved roads. Then decades later the Olds Rocket V-8 was introduced followed by the J-2 in the late 50’s and the turbo Jetfire in the early 60’s. Based on this history it’s no wonder the powerful Olds engines of the late 1960’s were introduced.
The Oldsmobile 442 came about because of the success of Pontiac’s GTO. The Pontiac GTO actually opened the performance floodgates at General Motors where the Corvette had been the performance star.
The 1969 Olds 442 models appeared very similar to the 1968 models. One difference was a vertical dividing strip in the middle of the grille.
The Hurst / Olds Package
Many of the options available with the Oldsmobile 442 were standard equipment with the Hurst / Olds package. The Hurst / Olds had a 455 cubic inch V-8 rated at 380 HP. This concept was born when George Hurst took his 1968 Olds 442 and took out the 400 cubic inch V-8 and replaced it with a 455. The result was more power and his 455 even weighed less than the 400. The rest is history.
Included with the Hurst / Olds package was a unique paint scheme with pinstriping, fiberglass hood scoop, blacked out grilles, heavy duty suspension, special wheels and tires, racing mirrors, exterior emblems, a glove box emblem. Power brakes were mandatory.
The Hurst / Olds cars were assembled at the Lansing, Michigan Oldsmobile factory and then sent across town to Demmer Engineering where the rest of the Hurst components were put on the car.
1969 Olds 442 Specifications
Standard engine form the 69 Olds 442 was a 400 cubic inch V-8 which delivered 350 with a manual transmission and 325 with an automatic.
Those that chose the W-30 package had a 400 cubic inch V-8 with a Force-Air Engine Induction System feeding into the four barrel carburetor via a sealed air cleaner. This configuration delivered 360 HP.
There was a rare W-32 option for 1969 which followed pretty much the configuration and horsepower of the W-30 but was mated to a turbo 400 automatic. Less than 300 of these examples were built which make this a very rare muscle car.
As mentioned above, the Hurst / Olds had a 455 cubic inch V-8 rated at 380 HP.
Essentially you had three 400 cubic inch V-8’s with a few modifications plus the Hurst / Olds 455 V-8.
Transmissions available were three and four speed manuals and a three speed automatic.
Brakes were four wheel hydraulic drums with a power brake option.
1969 Oldsmobile production totaled 655,000 vehicles. Total Olds 442 production totaled 27,260 vehicles.
See related classic car articles found on the links below…
Reference material used for this article includes…Oldsmobile Muscle Portfolio 1964-1971 by R.M. Clarke...Cutlass and 4-4-2: Muscle Portfolio 1964-1974 by R.M. Clarke..American Muscle Cars: A Full-Throttle History by Darwin Holmstrom and Tom Glatch.
1969 Oldsmobile 442 Collector Popularity
Generally, all muscle cars produced during the latter 1960’s to the early 1970’s are popular collector cars. When you’ve attended classic car shows you’ve undoubtedly seen many fine examples of these. The 1969 Olds 442 earned a reputation for impressive performance.
The current value of a 1969 Oldsmobile 442 in good to excellent condition runs in a range from about $35,000 to $70,000 depending on condition, restoration, originality, specific engine drive trail combination.
(Article and photos copyright Auto Museum Online)