'73 Custom Cruiser

Well, its been a few years since I sold my last wagon, a '72 Colony Park, I've had a few other non-wagons since but alway found myself gravitating back to wagons again. So back over the summer I started doing Dailylister Craigslist searches for a clamshell. After a bunch of months of searching I stumbled upon a little ad in a town called Ontario, Oregon where the family is selling a '73 Olds Custom Cruiser. Being in Delaware there was no way I was going to see the car in person, but I received a bunch of photos and some history on the car. I even had a kind local gentleman on another forum I visit look at the car and give me his assessment. I pulled the trigger, mailed a check and began working on finding a shipper. Today, about four months from when I first saw the ad, the car showed up at my front door. She's an original owner, red on red, 1973 Olds Custom Cruiser with 54K miles. As the story goes, the original owner purchased her new in Ohio. Sometime in 1976 they moved to Oregon to be closer to family. Shortly thereafter the husband passed away and the family members parked the four year old car in the barn. There she sat for 35 years basically untouched. When the surviving family members decided the sell her this summer, they got her running and driving and that's when I came into the picture. So I purchased a really original car with an outstanding interior but with an exterior that shows no love spent on her over the years. I do of course need to do a bunch of mechanical work like go through the brakes, fuel system, carb, shocks, tires but really, that's the fun stuff.

So, I'm back in the fray with a wagon to call my own and just in time to get her back on the road in time for spring.

Chris

 

A few more pics

 

The last few pics

 

WOW Chris, congrats!! You found a true gem there!

I had a very similar experience with a 1970 Caprice Coupe (just sold it two months ago). Found it in TN, had been sitting in a climate-controlled garage for 22 years; original owner had the service records with odometer readings documenting the car's history. Car arrived at my door complete with cob webs under it! I sold it because I'm having withdrawal symptoms with this wagon-bug, lol. Before the coupe I had clamshell too, a '75 Caprice Estate.

Anyway, ENJOY! Thanks for sharing and good luck!

 

Great find, Chris!

I'm glad you found somebody to take a look at it for you. Wish Ontario, OR wasn't at least 50 miles from nowhere......

She looks like a real gem. Kinda nice the sellers took the time and effort to get it running in order to sell it instead trying to get rid of it 'as-is'.

Marshall

 

Awesome find! Bet that thing shines like a new penny after a thorough exterior detailing.

 

VERY nice. Looks like a simple washing would do wonders for its appearance.

I like how the car still has the original Oldsmobile floor mats in the correct color. The front seat looks gorgeous, too.

Good luck with it. I've got one just like it only yellow and with not quite so many options.

 

What's with the sticker with the number on it next to the cruise control switch?

It's kind of funny. My car has only one switch in that spot as well, but it's for the rear window defogger. I don't have cc on mine.

 

Congrats! That is a great looking wagon!

 

looks like a good bath would do a world of good!

 

Nice car. I think I had spoken to the owner about that one last Summer, but I ended up deciding on a Ford. Good luck with it!

 

Guys, thanks for the words. Even though she looks like a mess, I'm thinking she's cleaner now than before the journey to the east coast. Anyhow, we've got some rain in the forecast for this weekend so that will get some of the muck off than I'll take care of the rest. I'm kinda anxious to get her cleaned up than assess what I've got. Regardless though, with original paint she should shine up pretty nice.

Jaunty, I've got a file of paperwork on the car coming in the mail shortly so I'm hoping it will shed some light on the mileage sticker next to the Cruise switch. I can only speculate that it's related to an oil change, and hopefully has nothing to due with noting whether the cruise took a crap!

I did however find an oil change sticker that shows the last lube and oil change was performed just 620 miles ago, back in August of '77. That oil should still be good, right?

 

My guess is that it is a mileage sticker, although it's a funny place to put one. On the other hand, it's darn obvious, and that's probably the point. The owner didn't want to forget when it needed to be changed next.

 

So Mother Nature cooperated and graced the mid Atlantic with a balmy 66 degree day. It gave me a chance to wash down the Custom Cruiser and assess what I'm dealing with. Overall she came up pretty nice. I'm gonna need to steel wool the chrome and trim, buff the paint and do some touch-ups but overall, she's quite presentable. Here's a look after the wash and dry.

Chris

 

In a word, Gorgeous!