Rare 1941 Oldsmobile Woodie With A Rocket V8
One of 604, the seller of this 1941 Oldsmobile Woodie wagon proclaims, and one of only five known to exist. I’m not sure how one accurately determines how many of a certain car are still in existence but it wouldn’t surprise me if the remainder is few and far between. Anyway, this woodie is located in Newport, Kentucky and is available, here on eBay for a current bid of $8,600, reserve not yet met. Thanks to Ikey H. for this rare tip!
We have covered woodies from many different manufacturers but I believe this is the first Oldsmobile version to surface. It is based on the Oldsmobile 60 series (1938-1948), a platform that included a 2-door business coupe; a 2-door club coupe; a 2-door sedan coupe; a 4-door sedan; a 2-door convertible, and a 4-door station wagon such as this example which was in its second year of production. Oldsmobile’s total output of 270K cars in 1941 put it in sixth place, just behind Pontiac and one step ahead of Dodge.
The images with this listing are poor, there’s no other way to state it and that’s unfortunate because this is an interesting car, and the images do little to nothing to promote it. The seller describes it by stating, “It is a 4-door, 8-passenger wood-bodied wagon (Body by Hercules), in near original form. The wood is in very good order. The floors are solid, as is the top. There is next to no deterioration within the interior and there is next to no surface rust where there is metal. The chassis has not been modified and is in comparatively good condition for a vehicle of this age. All of the original handles, window cranks, and interior parts remain intact and function(al). The original glass remains crack-free and in unspoiled condition”. From what can be seen of the extensive wood treatment, it does show well but there are only two images of the steel portion of the body and they’re not very conclusive. As can be seen in the last image, there appears to be a body repair of some sort occurring around the passenger side headlamp – no telling what else the cover is hiding.
The interior images aren’t what I was hoping for either and I’m not sure what’s up with the large, unfinished gap between the windshield header and the ceiling crossbeam. And I’m pretty certain that the wire with the plastic secure clip isn’t correct either. The seller claims that the seats are factory original and not ripped but there aren’t any thorough upholstery images with the listing and the ones that are included are not very telling. Unfortunately, there is no pictorial of the highly ornamented instrument panel but that may be due to a “slight” modification that has been made to it as referenced by the seller.
This Oldsmobile’s real surprise, other than its rarity, is its 455 CI “Rocket” V8. The seller claim’s it’s an ’80s version of the big motor but I believe ’76 was the last year for the 455’s production. It’s attached to “the accompanying transmission”, which probably means it’s a T-400, three-speed automatic. The seller describes this Oldsmobile’s operating prowess by claiming “The car does run and drive; although, it has been quite some time. Some fresh fuel and a battery and it should start right up…” The conversion actually looks well facilitated. Also included in the sale is the original 100 HP, 238 CI, in-line six-cylinder motor and transmission.
This is a neat and rare car that appears to be a good candidate for a return to motoring life but the images are so poor and disorganized they really leave more questions than a prospective bidder may have at the outset. And I would be cautious around a sale candidate where the seller doesn’t bother to remove the cover before a photo session. It’s certainly not my father’s Oldsmobile, the question for me is, would I want it to be my Oldsmobile?
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Comments
Incredible potential for all the “woodies” out there! This would require though a (finish?) carpenter as well as a good metalsmith but what a unique Coffee And Cars ride. The missing or unfinished header at the windshield/rooftop joint will be a challenge IMHO. Really decently priced though at $10,600 at the time of this post; don’t expect it’ll stay “reasonable”even with the truly amateurish/ really crummy/bad pictures in the ad..
As an aside, when I wrote “finish” carpenter, Siri tried to correct it to read “Finnish” carpenter..Maybe she knows something we don’t?!!
For coffee and cars, a Danish would be great.
That missing piece is going to take a lot more than a finish carpenter to make that missing piece. It may appear simple but from what I see it’s far from that. Once roughed out you’re going to need someone capable of doing a bunch of hand work including steaming in all likelihood, and it will be both time consuming and costly IMO. I’ve made some missing parts for a Woodie in the past and I won’t do it again, not worth enough to touch another one. Only one I’d ever consider would be if you had something you could buy a complete kit for (like some of the old Fords).
This one isn’t for the faint of heart or without a big wallet.
Since this car supposedly has wheels and tires why not roll it out and take some decent pictures of it? I see good workmanship in some areas and no workmanship in others. Either way, the car is unique enough to shine at a Coffee and Cars weekend as the man says… after someone puts the shine back on it.
$10,600 with seven and a half days left! 24 photos and not one pic of the entire car, just bits and pieces? What’s the seller hiding? I realize it is rare, but why would someone spend the money blindly?
Like this a lot.
When I was a freshman in college (1979) Cars & Parts magazine had an Olds woodie advertised back in my hometown.
I went home to see it and as I recall it was fairly rough. The owner was a body shop owner and he had a bunch of maple and parts to go with.
He was very supportive, but advised me that this car was a pretty daunting project for such a young man.
He was right. I can still see the finger joints spread so wide they could catch an Aaron Rodgers Hail Mary.
He should sell all of the photos as a jigsaw puzzle
That’s not a Rocket V8 that’s an ICBM V8 !
Yeah! We restored a 57 Super88 convertible and ‘Rocket 88’ was long gone before ’57. I think it was in reference to 303 engines. 455 , is the 2T olds: tourqey, thirsty!
Some of those header panels had a plywood cover.(Ford) I believe some of them were upholstered to match the seat covering.
Charles,
I think you are correct, years ago I did a complete re-wire of a similar Buick Hercules body station wagon, and the header panel was a thin 3-level ply covered with matching interior leatherette material. It was held in place by the 2 sun visor bases. It’s a flat panel that when installed correctly should have a gentle side to side curve.
A 455, why?
Why a 455? Why not? Cool rare wagon. Drive it as is while you find the right wood worker. I love the car.
Like all restorations, this one would take lots of money but even more so due to the wood. I would love to see this restored but my pockets aren’t that deep. I agree with the author, it is unfortunate to see such a great car represented by poor photographs.
There are hundreds, if not thousands of craftsmen who build & repair wooden boats who can duplicate any wooden piece needed to fit anywhere.
This is true, there is a school in Newport, RI that teaches specifically how to build and restore wooden boats, I.Y.R.S. I’ve seen some nice work coming out of that school
As of now 14K, I am always a glass half full guy and I like the engine swap to make it a driver. I have owned a woody and they are a very fun car to have. If you aren’t a nit picking freak and you want a woody and hopefully a manageable project, I would really consider this car
If that engine is from the 80s, then it’s a 5.0L (307) and the trans is probably a 200-4R. Not necessarily a bad choice but certainly not performance oriented. Personally, I’d prefer a good running 394.
Neighbor had a ’41 Olds coupe. The 6 was anemic. The fit and finish was alot better than a Chevy of the time. This is a gem for someone with skills and/or $ to make really fine. The V8 would make it go with modern traffic, but, I bet with 8 passengers and some luggage it would not stop well from 75 mph. As long as it is already modified, dual master cylinder, disc brakes, 12 v if not already converted which it might have been for the starter, bias
appearing whitewall radial tires, brighter bulbs in the exterior lights, turn signals while you were at it, beefier shocks, but keep the exteror and interior appearance as stock as possible and drive it fast and far. I can see myself cruising along at 80 on the interstates in Utah, with the WTF’s from just about everyone I passed.
I think the alleged missing cross piece above the windshield header ( which is metal) is an optical illusion. I think. Could be wrong.
As for how many exist I would think you could start with this:
https://forums.aaca.org/topic/167251-1941-pontiac-woody-how-many-built/
Also has a pix of the dash
You could also look here:
https://woodies.clubexpress.com/
Some folks ( like me) like them the way they were built . Others like to make them for 21st century friendly. This one is a sort of inbetween.
Its not going to bring what an OEM would but since it has the oiginal drivetrain included in the sale………it might be worth checking out.
As an addendum, my guess for the gap between the wood header and the windshield is leather that looked like seats……..
Its padded “everflex”
See the picture and description at the bottom of this paje:
http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/h/hercules/hercules.htm
The area berween the header and the upper windshield was padded “Everflex”………….
Theres a picture and description towards the bottom of this page on Hercules body bilders
http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/h/hercules/hercules.htm
It comes with fuzzy dice !!! I’ll take it !
Now at $20,100 reserve not met.
Mike Britt hit the nail on the head. No one should be fearful of woodies when there are still skilled craftsmen around who enjoy such challenges.
My ’39 MG SA had a wooden header that lead the convertible top edge, quite complex, but, my landlord at the time, who was a retired HS science teacher, and jack of all trades, made one out of seasoned oak, we had the old one for a pattern, he loved doing it, I loved having it since the rest of the wood framing of the top was OK. It was a straight piece of wood, the windshield being straight across. I am not saying I could do it, but I know people who can.
It’s a shame the seller didnt rollthis beaity out and take better photos. From what you can see the woods in better shape than most that have been posted here. Love the new Rocket engine cause this would be nothing more than a lumber truck with that six. Seller would csrtainly fair better taking more pics. Great find!
The National Woodue Club uses a 10% survival rate from original production figures. That would leave 60 of these Oldsmobile rather than the claimed 5. Still quite a rare wagon.
I’m a firm believer that rare cars should be kept as original as possible with concession to safety perhaps. Not all classic cars need to be rodded out. I’d have left the original engine in it.
Steve,
I fully agree with you, this needs the original engine rebuilt and installed back into it’s original home. And with modern machine shop capabilities, the original 6 cylinder can have some tweaks done to up compression & power.
The only thing I would do besides the drive train, would be to replace the entire brake system including lines. I have a feeling the brake lines on this car are original to 1941. Once everything pertaining to brakes are rebuilt [including new brass sleeves in all 5 cylinders and the use of DOT 5 brake fluid], this car should be very reliable for years to come.
Is that a band-aid holding that cable to the interior roof?
Thankfully, they stayed in the same engine family. Not sure if it would be possible to upgrade to power with disc brakes in the front and leaving rebuilt drums in the rear. Someone will be standing up on the pedal with all drums in this beast.