1949 Olds 88 vs. 98 question

OK I just dragged home a 1949 Olds 88 2 door coupe. It's pretty rusty so I have my work cut out for me. Anybody know if the Olds 88 rear fender is the same as the Olds 98 for the 1949 model year? It sure looks the same. I know the moldings may be different but I am just interested in the sheet metal portion. Thanks fellas.

 

I don't think they are the same. The 88 is a 'B' body. while the 98 is a 'C' body. The look would be familial, so you know they are both Olds.

Cosmo

 

All the olds 88s and 98s I've seen were all the same except usually more inside options, bigger motor, and more chrome trim on the outside!

 

yer a lucky fella, been wantin one of those for many years, but out here in Hawaii stuff rusts away so fast 20 years is considered old! I was 7 yrs old when Pop's drove in the driveway with a new one!!! My old Pop's was a Olds mechanic all his life, he says the sheet metal will fit, might need massagin' a little, but if it was him (or me) we'd go for it....
Aloha,
Willy

 

Cosmo has it correct. The series 76 (6 cyl) and series 88 (V8) are the same sheetmetal. The 98 models were restyled in '48 but used the 257 cube straight flathead that year and got the new V8 in '49. They (88/98) do look very much alike but the 98 wheelbase is much longer and all exterior panels are different.

Ray

 

He wasn't talking about 1948 models... only 1949 models, now you almost got me confused??

 

Sorry I confused you. All I was saying is that the '49 98 body style was introduced on Olds and Cadillac in '48 and carried forward into '49. That GM "C" body was then shared with Buick in '49. The smaller 76 & 88 models were intro'd in the '49 models and while they look alot like the 98s, they are a different animal.

Ray

 

Thanks alot guys. The 1949 nos rear fender I was looking at is listed on ebay and seems like a bargain at $125.00, but not if I can't use it. This car needs a lot of sheet metal so the hunt is on. The inner and outer rockers are available as are the floor panels and trunk panels, the fun part is gonna be the rear fenders and the deck lid.

 

You can use a deck lid from a like body style Chev or Pontiac from '49 thru '52. What part of the quarter panels need repair? There are patch panels available for those GM "B" body cars for the lower quarters between the door and rear wheel, including, I think, the lower part of the rear fender 'hump'. Try EMS sheetmetal. I know they are at least HAMB members and may be an Alliance vendor as well.

Ray

 

I think that the rear fenders for the '49 Olds are all the same. The big difference between the 60 series, 70 series and the 90 series was in the front sheet metal. The additional length of the 90 series was all added from the front fenders forward. From the doors back, it is my understanding, that the bodies were essentially the same, no matter what series was being considered.

 

Whole different shell on the 98 model. You can use Chevy repro lower quarters and inner and outer rockers on them. Remember, these go to a 1-piece windshield in '50 that everyone was putting in their Chevrolet too - the main shell is the same. As long as the upper quarter is there, you're good.

I mean one of the yards we were in there was a 76 coupe I probably should have saved, and from the rear I thought it *was* a Chevy at first.

 

Sorry, Krusty, but you are misinformed on that. The GM "A" & "C" shells are dimensionally different everywhere you look.

On the "A" shells under discussion here you would be correct in that the Chev, Olds 76 & 88 and Pontiacs are essentially the same shell and the additional length on Olds and Pontiac is ahead of the cowl.

But the 98 Olds, Buick Super/Roadmaster and Cadillac are "C" body cars and are longer (and wider) bodies behind the cowl than the "A" body.

Ray

 

Also , 98's had detachable rear fenders 88's don't.

 

You can put Cad rear fenders on a 1949 98 Olds or Buick Super or Roadmaster, but not on the 88's. The removable or bolted on rear fender on the 98's and welded on fenders of the 88's should prove they are different.

 

ok there is some correct info on this post and alot of typical bad "old wives tales" body construction

get the body tag numbers off the firewall, call us "ems automotive" and we will decode the tag and tell you what you have and what will fit and what we have. bob 216-541-4585 but after the nsra knoxville show

 

Ray, thanks for setting me straight on this. Old age, senior dementia and a whole bunch of other crap have caused me to come up with these lame-ass answers from time to time. I'll go take another swig of my Geritol now...

 

Odd that the Fisher Body manual I have refers to the '49 Chevy, Pontiac, and Olds 76, 88 as "A" bodies.

 

Sure glad I have a 50 98! They are really different from the 88's.

 

Not odd at all, The Manual is correct............I misspoke (mistyped).........the Chev, Pont, Olds (76 & 88) are definitely "A" body.........I know that....but blew the post.
Kind of embarrassing for a 'detail' guy like me.

Ray