A GDYNETS

PUBLICATION

© 2010, G. DAVID
®

Car Collector
Chronicles ®
YAROS. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED.

Volume III, Issue 4 Car Collector Chronicles April 2010

Exploring:

 Car collecting today

Caravan Touring
 Classic rides
What is caravan touring, you experience, it is very well or-
 Reports from the field ask? A good question! Actually, ganized, and a fun activity.
it is a term I have made up to
describe the type of adventure The reason for this topic, this
 Oldsmobile
month, is that I AM SEEKING
we experienced last summer. READER INPUT AND HELP. We
 Cadillac
Caravan touring is when a have been searching for another
 Allanté bunch of classic car owners get such tour to take this summer.
together and take a multi-day, I find there a slew of them, if
 Corvair multi-city, organized tour on the one lives in Europe. We don’t!
by-ways of America. The tour Apparently, such carvavan tours
incorporates daily car shows are few and far between in the
along the route. The one we good ol’ U.S. of A.?
were on had 2 car shows a day. I do know that the Antique
IN THIS ISSUE: If you have never been on one, Automobile Club of America
you need to check it out. One sponsors one, the Founder’s
Caravan Touring 1 cannot go wrong by participat- Tour. The problem we have is,
ing in the Hwy. 27 Tour, which Jean’s summer vacation does
GDYNets® On 1 takes in 10 cites in 5 days, right not start until a couple of weeks
through the heart of Michigan. after the tour. I am also aware
the Web
We did it last year, and had a of a Route 66 tour, but need Do feel free to tell us what you
ball. Here is the link for that more details, as to the dates, liked, did not like, about the tour.
tour: [Link] activities, etc. Do you recommend it?
1962 Olds Dual 2 The Hwy. 27 Tour requires So readers, here is where you Just maybe, CCC® can become a
Exhaust no club membership, and places come in. Have you been on a repository for this info? That way,
no restrictions on the year or caravan tour? Do you know of we all can access it and benefit from
make of vehicles that may par- any? If so, please send me the
our collective experiences? -Thanks!
Web Activity 3 ticipate. I can tell you from contact info, links, whatever.

One Thing Leads 3 GDYNets® on the Web

to Another -
Revisited WHERE YOU WILL FIND DAVE’S DEN: A website SAVED 62: A website devoted
GDYNets (me) on the WWW: devoted to a myriad of inter- to our 1962 Oldsmobile Dy-
Wisconsin Win- 4 ests. Foremost is extensive namic 88 convertible. The site
Dave’s Den -
ter Classic Daily information on the “Steel City” also has a lot of information on
Driver [Link] of Gary, IN. There are also Oldsmobiles and its founder,
Saved 62 - offerings on steel making, U.S. Ransom Eli Olds.
Coming Next 4 [Link] Steel-Gary Works, U.S. Marine
THE GRAY LADY: This web-
Issue jeandaveyaros Corps, M14 assault rifle, of
site features our 1955 Cadillac
The Gray Lady - 55 Cad de Ville course Oldsmobile, and the
Coupé de Ville and Caddy infor-
tragic story of the murder of
Car Collector Chronicles - mation.
Gary, IN Police Lt. Geo. Yaros.
EMAIL:
OldsD88@[Link]
Car Collector Chronicles Page 2

1962 Oldsmobile Dual Exhaust

Back in the day, as a high school kid, I was fortunate enough to own
a 1960 Oldsmobile Super 88 Holiday SceniCoupe. It came from the
factory with 3-on-the-tree and dual exhaust. It did not come from the
factory with a clock, power brakes, power steering, power windows or
A/C. This was still at the point in time when GM let you have your car
your way. You decided what equipment you wanted or did not want,
and it was built to your specifications. This particular ride was built to
the specs put forth by the original buyer, my older brother.

Today, as you may know, I have a 1962 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88

convertible. It came from the factory with a single exhaust system. I
would like to change that over to dualies. The sight of twin tailpipes
underneath the rear bumper appeals to me. Evidently, it also appeals
to others, as I have been contacted by a CCC® reader, Scott in New
Zealand, who also wants to make the switch.
“I have been
told that One would think going from single to dual exhaust would be a rela-
tively simple task? When it comes to old rides, even the simple be-
Oldsmobile comes complicated. Olds utilized a crossover pipe on the single ex-
used a different haust system. It ran from the left exhaust manifold, down and around
the engine, to the right exhaust manifold. The right exhaust manifold
left exhaust then empties into the exhaust pipe, resonator, muffler, tailpipe system.
manifold on the
Well, why not just remove the crossover pipe and block off the
dual exhaust crossover pipe connection of the right exhaust manifold? In fact, I al-
system.” ready have what purports to be the correct blocking plate to do just
that.

The problem is, there is not enough room between the left exhaust
manifold drop and the steering gear, to route the needed, new, left ex-
haust pipe. I have been told that Oldsmobile used a different left ex-
haust manifold on the dual exhaust system. The drop on it, where the
heat riser and exhaust pipe connects, is in a different location, sup-
posedly? If this is true, it may make the changeover easier. However,
this assumes one is able to locate a 1962 Oldsmobile left exhaust
manifold for a dual exhaust system today.

The likelihood of doing so is complicated by the fact that my

Oldsmobile parts book lists no such critter! It does list both the cross-
over pipe and the aforementioned blocking plate. It also lists only one
part # for the left exhaust manifold.

So, who is right, the folks currently advising me, or the 1962 parts
Car Collector Chronicles Page 3

book? If I had to put my money on one or the other, I would place it

on the parts book. Maybe when I awaken Saved62 from her winter
nap I can eyeball the exhaust system and get a better idea of what is,
what is not, possible. Right now, purely in theory, it seems like one
would simply yank the crossover pipe and route a new exhaust pipe in
its place. If anyone knows this can’t be done, do get in touch!

WEB ACTIVITY, or “Hey Kids! What time is it? It’s Net Time!

In addition to spending a bit of time putting this pub together every

month, and uploading it for you to read, I also expend more than a few
hours monitoring my sites, surfing the net and sending/answering
emails.

I find that to date, some 6,000+ folks have read some edition of
CCC®. The Saved62 web site has had over 14,000 hits, while The Gray
Lady has welcomed nearly 10,000 visitors. The Cadillac repair library “I have had
on The Gray Lady web site has had 179 user downloads; the most
folks connect
popular being docs on carburetors, brakes, radio removal and engine
timing. from
Bangladesh,
One of the really interesting things to me is from where visitors are
logging in. I have had folks connect from Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Ka- Bulgaria,
zakstan, Latvia, Qatar and Viet Nam. That has the makings of a
Kazakstan,
pretty diverse group of classic car fans!
Latvia, Qatar
Most of the sites that I try and frequent daily, just to stay up on the
and Viet Nam.”
latest news, are marque related. I try to keep up on Allanté, Corvair,
Coupé de Ville and Oldsmobile traffic. I also make sure to check in on
the AACA website. It has Allante, Cadillac and Oldsmobile fora all in
one place. The folks there do know their stuff. It is a veritable ware-
house of valuable information.

ONE THING LEADS TO ANOTHER—Revisited

Last month we talked of how one thing leads to another when it

comes to our rides. Here is but another example: my pending carb
rebuild. Of course, I had to a) buy the rebuild kit. Then, I determined
I needed a b) carburetor stand to perform the repair. I also felt the
need to get the c) appropriate tools (Kent-Moore) to do the rebuild. In
order to know what I am doing, as I have never rebuilt a carburetor, I
also had to have the appropriate d) Rochester Carburetor manuals.
Maybe now I am ready? Wait one, I still need … .
Car Collector Chronicles Page 4;;

For you folks reading this in a clime where spring may have already sprung (which is
not SE Wisconsin!), I thought you might get a kick out of this? This is a pic of a Wiscon-
sin winter classic car daily driver!

An interesting accessory, it is a gear shift

knob:

↑ Snowmobile photo courtesy R. Peroutka

Ok, I have had my say for this month. Now it is your turn! I invite/encourage submission
of your comments, opinions and contributions, and ask that you do help spread the word
about our pub. Everything sent shall indeed be reviewed by me. Submissions should
be sent to: OldsD88@[Link]
_________________________________________________
— RESTORE 'EM, AND DRIVE 'EM!

COMING NEXT ISSUE:

 Gentlemen, Ladies, Start Your Engines!
 Indy Sidebar
 Spring Has Sprung