Dennis Casteele's book, THE CARS OF OLDSMOBILE, has this to say: "The strikingly handsome Olds model- the Cutlass Supreme hardtop coupe- was by far the most popular 1972 Oldsmobile. Model 4257 saw a whopping production run of 105,087. Base price was $3,257 and weight was 3520 pounds. Cars in this series were outfitted with full floor carpeting in a variety of colors. Lower door panels and seat backs were also carpet covered in Cutlass Supreme models. Cars with air conditioning, heavy duty suspension, or the 455 cubic inch motor came with G-78 x 14 inch tires."
STANDARD CATALOG OF OLDSMOBILE by Chevedden and Kowalke lists the 455 UB motor at 270 HP and says: "The Cutlass Supreme was the top Olds intermediate. This series had a two-door hardtop, four-door hardtop, and a convertible. This was the final year for a true Cutlass convertible. Standard equipment included all the Cutlass items plus a higher output 350 engine, a special die-cast grille, woodgrain dash treatment, and strato bucket seats. Upholstery was vinyl or cloth." Weight and production figures and pricing cited same as Casteele's book.
2001 Year One catalog shows 1972 "442" production of 9845 units, but does not cover the lesser SX or lesser-yet Cutlass or Cutlass Supreme models.
Illustrated Oldsmobile Buyer's Guide is rather silent on the non-442 models, and riddled with errors on the cars it does cover. No helpful insight from that book.
This car bears the "L75" engine, optional over the base or standard-issue 350-4bbl "QD" Engine. Application Code UA [no AC] or UB [with AC] would have been on the paper tape on the engine oil fill tube. I neglected to record the Engine Unit Number on the oil fill tube. This number is not very useful at any rate. Does not correlate to any other number, unless one has the Protecto-Plate listing the exact EUN that the car came with.
2001 Year One catalog lists the engine as "UB" for with AC applications, rated at 250 HP [net], and 8.5:1 compression. All 455's [in A-body?] came with Dual Exhaust.
1972 CSM [Chassis Service Manual- the factory repair and adjustment manual] shows that the timing for the L75 motor is 8 degrees BTDC @ 1100 RPM. Slow Idle is 600 in drive; Fast Idle 1100 in Park. Tune-up label code would have been SH. Distributor would have been 1112033, with vacuum advance unit #1973408 providing 12.5' advance at 18.5-20.5" Hg. Mechanical advance starts with 0-2 degrees at 540 DIST'R RPM, and rises to 10 +/-1 degrees at 1800 DIST RPM [3600 Engine RPM].
AC R46S Spark Plugs should be gapped at 0.040" with the stock points type ignition.
32Z1154__ Engine VIN Stamp
appears to match the Car's VIN, but could not see final 2 digits
1972 CSM, page 0-21:
The 4257 [all 3200 thru 4800] coupes have a wheelbase of 112 inches. Compression on all engines is 8.5:1. 455 bore and stroke are 4.125 x 4.250 of course.
Body Plate
==============================
ST 72 34257 Z 065512 BDY
TR 979 A65 63 F PNT
02D 121215 300143
==============================
72 = 1972 model year
34257:
3 = Olds
_42 = Cutlass Supreme body, or “4200 series”
___57 = Hardtop Coupe
Z = Fremont CA plant
065512 = Body sequential number. Not expected to be related, except in a general way, to the VIN sequential number. Interesting that the final digit is hand-stamped from the front side of the Body Plate, not embossed from the rear like the rest of the digits. I have not seen that on Lansing built cars.
TRIM 979 = SADDLE color Cutlass Supreme hardtop coupe notchback bench seat- also used for other seats in Saddle brown- Convertible or 4257 hardtop either notchback bench or Strato Buckets.
A65 = Notch back bench seat [originally], now A51 Strato Bucket Seats.
Other options the car came with, or now has:
A90 Electric Trunk lid latch
C49 Electric rear window defogger [E.W.D.]
C60 Air Conditioning
JL2 Front Power Disc Brakes [A-body]
L75 455-4bbl engine option for the F85 series
M40 TH400 Auto Trans
N10 Dual exhaust system
___ Thermometer, external [pg 15-36 of CSM]
A51 Strato Buckets
C08 Roof Top Covering
D35 outside rear view mirrors
D55 front compartment console
G93 Plains axle ratio 2.73
N34 Custom Sport Steering Wheel [CSM pg 15-33]
N66 Custom Sport Wheels Super Stock II
U35 electric clock
U63 AM pushbutton radio
V36 Protective Bumper Guards
Y72 HD Engine cooling & Gen. Pkg.
Many of the above options are gleaned from the 1972 options list in the 1972 Part Numbers Manual.
PAINT code 63 is "Tan Metallic" per 1972 part numbers manual, for touch-up paint. Also, page 0-21 of the 1972 CSM says "saddle bronze" is Paint code 63.
F is the upper body or vinyl top color. CSM says F is for Saddle Tan color vinyl top.
02D = Build date, 4.th week [D] of February [02]
121215 + 300143 must be Fremont-specific option codes or whatnot, I cannot find out anything about them.
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TRANSMISSION: TH400,
Tag says
72-OD-4134
Manual says:
OD was the std-issue TH400 used in the A-body with the 455 CID 4-bbl motor and Dual Exhaust.
ENGINE:
Could not access VIN stamp on LH side due to shifter cable and brackets; owner and Randy Miles assure me that the stamp was previously checked and verified as #'s matching.
INTAKE is the "U" casting one would expect to see. "1972 455 MT exc. W30 [also found on Big Cars]" says my database, but I have found many of these, yet not parted any MT cars, therefore they were ACTUALLY used on AT cars also.
Engine paint seems to be a bit off from the most-correct shade of Slate Blue.
Non-std grille support repairs are visible, only an issue for a show car.
No evidence that it has had accidents or bodywork. Fenders have dimples as correct for 71-72 models.
Correct fender braces terminating near the hood hinges used on BB A-bodies, see red circled bolt in pic showing hood hinge.
NO rust underside of hood or decklid
Air cleaner looks totally correct, and carb is correctly numbered for the application [and very pretty].
I see what might be teflon tape on the fuel inlet threads, which indicates installation by a person unfamiliar with the correct uses of Teflon Tape and flare fittings.
Carb is numbered 7042251 and dated 3481 or day 348 [Dec 14th] of 1971, suitable for a car produced in late February. Page 6M-16 of the 1972 CSM lists the proper carb for the A-body with UA and UB 455 motor as 7042251.
Alternator is a 64 A unit befitting an AC car, numbered xxx2464 [cannot read the first part], and dated 2L7 perhaps?
2L7 = 1972, November 7th. Must be replacement unit, made after car was.
Page 12-49 of the 1972 CSM says that A-body with 455 and AC and rear defogger and/or other options used a 63 Amp alternator.
Interior is exceptionally nice for a driver, or local car show, but not Best of Class OCA material- yet. Chrome on woody dash insert is near perfect, usually bad to very bad.
Chrome strip insert in dash is intact and pretty, usually MIA or ugly/ loose everywhere.
Console shows 2 'extra' holes in LH side, midway fore-aft. Console insert and PRNDSL plate are aged and worn, and can/ should be replaced.
Dash pad and seats vinyl is very nice.
Pedals show normal wear for the age of the car.
Door panel re-carpeting very nicely done.
NO rust at door bottoms.
Weatherstripping intact pretty much everywhere.
AM only radio, did not ck it for operation. Readily replaced by factory AM/FM.
Dash clock in place, presumably does not work, they never do.
Nice 4-spoke sport steering wheel; grain worn off as typical of 30 yr old unit. Orange silicone? visible around edges of horn button/ center cap- repair job?
Front seat backs show only slight scuffing, not brittle and shredded. Great for Driver, not Best of Class material.
Rear seat very nice. Headliner, package tray, and rear sail panels very nice.
Correct trunk lite, works fine.
No rust or repaired rust in the floorpan and rear wheel house areas.
SSII wheels, presumably 15" units. Spare is also SSII, lacking trim ring. Jack is present in trunk, I did not move spare to ck for all jack pcs and hold down hardware.
Underside shows normal oily grunge for a used car. Disk brakes up front. No excessive drips noted under car or where it was sitting. Oil pan not caved in.
FRAME is as solid as they get. No flaws found.
Correct W-Z exhaust manifolds. One RH spark plug wire bent/ tight against the AC ducting, substandard but not that big of a deal.
Stabilizer bar seems to have squared end. Cannot find the application info for this part in the manuals. Similar info in Fig. 3-1A of the 1966 CSM shows squared end bar being "A" type- 15/16" diameter, used on the A-bodies with C60 [Air Conditioning], and all series needing the HD part. The largest unit offered on the A-body.
No clamps on any of the -4- fuel lines from tank to body.
Fuel tank appears to have never been removed. Possible that build sheet is atop the gas tank yet.
Mufflers dented/ kinked from backfire in the exhaust- problem with previous carb perhaps?
True Dual exhaust.
Bucket seat brackets WELDED to floor, well done. Not cobbled/ bolted.
Final Drive [Differential] is 2.73 by turn count, open [not positraction].
Stamped SA B045 2
1972 CSM says SA is the std-issue 2.73 ratio [41:15 teeth] used on 3200-4200 series exc. W30. 8.5" ring gear with 10-bolt cover, non-anti-spin. All is correct for the car. The same gearsets were used on other Oldses up thru the 5400 and 6400 series with the 350 engine, unless they got HD brakes. The B is for Buick type differential asm., and the 045_2 should be the diff asm. Build date: day 045 of 1972, or Feb 14th, Valentine's day. This is just before the car's assembly date of the 4th week of February.
NO RUST on the diff housing, stamp was very easy to read.
Page 0-6 of the 1972 Chassis Service Manual says A-body cars with 455 exc. W30 would have come with G78 x 14 tires standard or G70 x 14 tires optionally.
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To summarize:
High production numbers make this body style not so rare, and lack of 442 or SX options will limit the ultimate value as a collector car. But, it's safe to say that very, very few of the 105,087 Supremes sold in 1972 came with the 455 engine option. Fewer still survive today, of course. It'd be hard to go wrong with a proven factory issue big block Cutlass. And, for this model year, only a W30 is ruled out by the VIN; car could be seamlessly cloned into an SX or base 442 readily, if one were so inclined.
The car's body and frame are in outstanding unmolested unrusted condition, making a great driver as-is, or a superb base for restoration to bone-stock, upgrade to an SX/442 clone, or to be modified to your heart's content into a street pounder. All the correct crucial pieces are in place for the easy restoration to just as it was ordered.