This beautiful 1959 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 had its original 371 engine removed and rebuilt with period (1960s) correct engine upgrades. Our goal was to duplicate what the experimental division of GM was doing from the mid 50s to the early 60s that started the Horsepower wars, building a “factory” dual Four Barrel performance engine, with modern reliability (as much as possible its still a vintage engine) modern overdrive transmission, high performance fuel system, high performance charging system, and more. We rebuilt the heads with bronze guides, new valves, 3 way valve job and some light porting, the rocker shafts were rebuilt to a higher standard than factory. The rotational assembly was balanced and machined with modern pistons and upgraded bearing style, bored .30 over stock we gained a little displacement and we milled the heads for a little more compression. Oiling system was upgraded with a high performance pump, custom oil pump drive. We painted the block back to the original enamel engine “gold” color. Factory exhaust manifolds were cleaned, rebuilt, blasted and Cerakoted, another passengers side was found and used to make true factory dual exhaust. After the factory exhaust manifolds a dual exhaust with full dual stainless 2.5” exhaust was equipped with Borla Pro XS mufflers. No crossover was used to keep some back pressure and keep the exhaust from “smoothing out” too much, to leave some growl. A Powermaster Alternator, all new high power charging and ground cables, were installed to support any kind of add ons to the car, EFI, Electric fans, running strong. We used the Holly Dual Quad Sniper EFI to retain a factory look while providing optimal performance and turn-key drivability. The attached Offenhauser Dual Quad intake manifold was chopped down and modified to fit under the hood for that factory optioned look. Details on the engine like the Offenhauser valve covers, factory breather, low profile air cleaners, and factory looking ignition system all contribute to the stock appearance. All of the stock brackets and accessory drive system was modified to clear and mount all the necessary parts and pieces, but retain a stock look. The Factory Distributor was cleaned and rebuilt, then the factory points were wet up to “drive” the MSD high power ignition system. By using the points to drive the MSD the points will last essentially forever but is bypasses the need for an expensive or impossible to find modern Distributor conversion for the car, which were not available for the original motor. We paired up a modern TCI 700R4 overdrive high performance transmission with a Saturday Night Special stall converter to the engine. The entire engine was repositioned so that it would all fit but would not require us to cut or modify the floor, frame or steering. In fact the original parts could be bolted back into place and the car returned to factory. Front motor mounts were converted from a front center mount to a side cradle mount using modern engine mounts that are easy to find. The rear transmission mounts was custom made and uses a modern Urethane performance trans mount. The driveshaft had to be modified and custom carrier bearing had to be found as original was not available. The factory gauges and Speedometer were set up to work with the new transmission, engine and parts added. The moral of this story here is, you do not have to remove the heart of your vintage car to get the performance and reliability that you would like. This Oldsmobile starts easy, if it’s cold or hot, runs smooth, launches from a stop and cruises (owner confirmed) at 1400 RPM at 70 MPH on the freeway. We wanted to create the car that Oldsmobile would build if they had this technology available to them in 1959. Preserving the history and look, inside, outside and under the hood, is what keeps the value in these vintage vehicles. We are happy to report, this land yacht certainly is no boat anchor, it can really move!
