[1969GiPper]

A very good friend of mine (Ron) passed away last summer and I’m trying to help his family decide what to do with his garage full of car stuff. When Ron was very young his grandparents bought a new two tone (white over red) 1955 Oldsmobile 88 2 door that was eventually passed down to him. It had a 324 cubic inch V8 and a manual 3 speed (3 on the tree). Ron worked on and drove the 55 for years and sometime in the early 70’s pulled out the 324 and 3 speed and installed another V8 and HydraMatic transmission from a 1960 Oldsmobile. Shortly after installing that drivetrain the 55 went into storage in his mother’s garage in a suburb just outside of Detroit. Over the years the original 55 engine and transmission was stored in several different locations. Basically every time Ron and his wife moved the engine and trans moved with them.

Fast forward. Ron’s mother passed away in 2010 and her home was eventually put up for sale. As a result Ron made the tough decision to sell the 55 as he had no place to store it and he was starting to have health problems. Last time I saw the car it had a lot of light gray primer and from what I remember Ron put an ad in the paper and the first person to look at it took it home. However the original engine and trans was not part of the deal. At this time it’s sitting in Ron’s old garage.

As I said earlier we’re trying to decide what to do with everything which brings me to the reason for writing this. We’d like to give the engine and trans to the party that bought the car. Being a car guy Ron would have liked that. Unfortunately we don’t have the buyer’s name. We also don’t have the VIN (or serial number). His family has searched and searched and has found nothing. Does anyone know if there is an Oldsmobile forum like this one or does anyone know anyone in the Detroit area that is into Oldsmobiles? If possible I’d like to put some type of message out there in hopes the buyer sees it and responds. With the guy having purchased a 1955 Oldsmobile I’m figuring he is a “car guy” and is into Oldsmobiles and may monitor their websites like we do this website as Pontiac owners. I’ve already started watching eBay and craigslist for anyone dealing in parts for a 55 Oldsmobile. Would like to hear your thoughts.

Thank you for your time.