Idenification Help

[stockk5]

Hey guys, I am a newbie to the forum and am posting for my dad who has a 1974 Cutlass S I believe. He keeps telling my brother and I that it is a super rare version because of the gold rocket 88 and the 124 dealer sticker under the cutlass emblem on the front fender. He claims the 124 is for the 124 oldsmosbile dealers in new england at the time. Also claiming they never put the gold motors in these just blue making it more rare.. We find it very hard to believe. I actually have all the orginal paperwork from the dealer and the thank you letter for the original owner (he is 2nd owner).

The vin number is 3G37k4M289251.. I have done a lot of searching and i cannot find anything. The car is red with white vinal top, white interior bench seat front and white rear... any information would be extremely helpful!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v425/DHJUNKIE/cutlass124sticker.jpg

[W451973]

Can't help you with the number 124 but you do have a Cutlass S and every Olds 350 up to 1975 was gold. In 75 they started to paint them blue. I have seen 75's with gold motors from the factory. And just to bust the fabled myth, the gold paint on the motors does'nt mean diddlyscooterpie. Nodda, nothing special at all. That sticker is interesting. It's in pretty nice shape for being 37 years old and the paint being faded that bad. Have any more pics of the car ?

[zodiacblue442]

Welcome! As Dennis said, your dad's car is a 1974 Cutlass S. I have never seen that sticker before so I can't be any help there. Dennis also nailed it about the gold engines. All Olds 350's were gold up to early 1975 then they were painted blue. The Olds 455's were painted metallic blue.

The VIN breaks down like this:
3 = Oldsmobile Division
G37 = Cutlass S Body
K = Oldsmobile 350 with 4 barrel carburetor and single exhaust
4 = Model year 1974
M = Lansing, Michigan Final Assembly Plant
289251 = Production Sequence Number (numbering at each plant started at 100001).

It would be neat to see more pics of the car if you can post them.

Cheers!

[stockk5]

Ah thanks guys.. the info on the sticker i got is an old timer at the oldsmobile dealer in the area told him one time it was for the 124 new england dealers... ill post these pics, we just washed it and the paint is a bit faded but we think with a nice wax it can come back to life. Unfortunately the white vinal top is destroyed at the moment. Ill get more pictures tmrow!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v425/DHJUNKIE/olds1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v425/DHJUNKIE/olds2.jpg

[ebayalias]

You have what appears to be a regional edition car. The badging, and the chromed sport mirrors are the tip off. In south Fla, the models were called DBSX's, and they had the decals under the fender emblem as well. Your is the first one I've seen without buckets. Our version was called a Supreme, but was the S body style, and all the interior trim was S style also.

[jwsolds]

Looks like you have one of the special marketing edition cars, hence the chrome mirrors, top treatment, silver rims, etc., nice!

I actually have a pair of metal badges which I believe is the North East Edition. And think the 1, 2, & 4 stands for the Zone. I'm not sure which cars had the badges between '74-'77 but may guess them to be for the '77 version as many of them put them on the top band.

It's a keeper! approx., 13.8% of Cutlass S cars had the Y76 option in 1974 which puts it about 7,091 of them made.

[stockk5]

Looks like you have one of the special marketing edition cars, hence the chrome mirrors, top treatment, silver rims, etc., nice!

I actually have a pair of metal badges which I believe is the North East Edition. And think the 1, 2, & 4 stands for the Zone. I'm not sure which cars had the badges between '74-'77 but may guess them to be for the '77 version as many of them put them on the top band.

It's a keeper! approx., 13.8% of Cutlass S cars had the Y76 option in 1974 which puts it about 7,091 of them made.

oh damn! thanks so much for the information! Y76 option? is that the trim package option?

[zodiacblue442]

oh damn! thanks so much for the information! Y76 option? is that the trim package option?

Option code Y76 is the code for the Regional Cars. I guess you could say it was a trim package. They were packages put on cars for different regions of the country. The Y76 package was offered from 74 through 77. Based on the Cutlass S (G37) body, the cars got landau vinyl tops, smaller quarter windows (similar in shape to quarter windows on a Cutlass Supreme), Supreme front ends and taillights, argent gray (silver) Super Stock II wheels, chrome sport mirrors, and special badging. Sometimes the badging was in the form of an emblem, other times it was a sticker.

Production varied slightly from year to year, but the Y76 was roughly 15% or so of each year's overall Cutlasss S production. Seems like the 75 through 77 Y76 cars are more common than the 74's. I've seen alot of Cutlasses over the years and I don't recall ever seeing a 74 Regional Car before. Your's definitely is. It's a pretty rare car and looks like it's in great original condition! :cool:

[stockk5]

wow this is great information! thank you guys so much, i wish it was still in as nice shape as the pictures make it out to be, its quite fadded paint and vinal top all wrecked. hes trying to figure put wat to do with it.

[stockk5]

what would one of these cars be worth if it was show room nice? This car needs a vinal top and new footwell floor panels.. Dad thinks its worth 30,000dollars......i believe hes a bit off..... thanks for trying to settle lil dad/son discussion!

[W451973]

That makes sense. That is the first 74 Y76 car I've ever seen or heard of. I always thought that started in 75. So what are you going to do with the car ?

[Macrover]

Nice car! Nothing like discovering you have a unique and rare piece of Olds history. This is the first 74 Y76 I've seen as well and it's definitely one to keep.

A good reason to be stoked, that's for sure. x2...what are your plans for the car?

Suffice it to say, Dads' know what they're talking about, sometimes. ;) :)

[stockk5]

wow thats really cool to know! He's not really sure what to do with it due to just life at the moment.. i think he would only sell it if was given the right price. He doesnt want to tho.

[stockk5]

Wow thanks a ton for all the info guys. He is not really sure what he is doing with it.. he wants to keep it but due to life at the moment might not beable to...

[zodiacblue442]

what would one of these cars be worth if it was show room nice? This car needs a vinal top and new footwell floor panels.. Dad thinks its worth 30,000dollars......i believe hes a bit off..... thanks for trying to settle lil dad/son discussion!

"What is it worth?" is always the hard question. I can tell you if the car was absolutely showroom perfect it would not be worth $30K. Except for one 73 Hurst/Olds that sold for crazy money at an auction, the 73-75 Hurst/Olds cars don't even sell for that much. The H/O is usually deemed the rarest and most desirable of the Cutlasses, with the 442's being next. That said, your dad's car is pretty rare (about as rare as a 442), but honestly alot of people don't know what a Y76 Regional Car is. It's worth more than a regular Cutlass S, but less than a 442. I'd say if it was showroom perfect, it may bring about $10K to $12K. Just a guesstimate - I'm not a car appraiser. The miserable economy right now has a big effect on what you'd be able to sell it for. Collector type cars regardless of make are typically not selling well right now, and people selling them are selling them cheap if they have to get rid of them. Otherwise they're just hanging on to them for now.

Obviously condition of the car means alot. I don't know if the car is rusty or just needs paint and a top, or interior or mechanical work or??? :confused: Another guess for the value of the car just from looking at the pics you posted is maybe in the $3,500 range. If it's rusty or needs major work, the value of the car drops quickly. Welding in new sheetmetal, quality body and paintwork, and upholstery work to name a few are all expensive restoration items. Like other people have stated, your dad's 74 Regional Car is the first one that some of us on this forum have seen and we pretty much breathe and sleep Cutlasses here! :D It's definitely a rare one. Hope this helps. I hope your dad can keep the car. It's cool. :cool:

[ebayalias]

We'd all be happy if these cars pulled that kind of dough. As to regional editions, I have a friend who swears to have seen a '72 once. And he knows Olds's. My parents bought a '74 DBSX regional car new. It was Wedgewood Blue, with painted sport mirrors, and blue sport wheels. It was badged a Supreme, but had the complete S style interior, right down to the white swivels. That interior was exactly the same as came in my '74 H/O. It had the S/442 style tail lights, and the Supreme fiberglass header. I remeber being so bummed when I wrecked it, and it came back with the 442 front cap. We sold it before I found the H/O, otherwise the interior would have gonne into the H/O. Someone swapped in a plaid like fabric into the car.

[69w3155]

Someone swapped in a plaid like fabric into the car Hmm, sevearl years ago (5-6) a second rate car lot in my area, had a '73 442 which was a bit worn, but not beyond saving, that had the swivel buckets w/ plaid inserts. i just assumed that it was optional, though none of my books show it.