4-4-2 Adds Up To Fine-Handling Muscle

When it comes to popularity, muscle cars are still as hot as Las Vegas pavement in August. Despite the economy, Detroit muscle from the sixties and early seventies are the dominate vehicles at shows, tours and auctions.

The credit for the birth of the muscle car segment generally goes to the 1964 Pontiac Tempest GTO. The same year, however, the Oldsmobile division of General Motors released its F-85 Cutlass hardtops, coupes and convertibles with the 4-4-2 performance package. Like the GTO, the 4-4-2 rode on the 115 inch wheelbase platform and offered a 330ci V8 engine delivering 310hp—just 15hp less than the GTO’s standard 389ci.

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What made the 4-4-2 different was a focus on handling, which included heavy duty springs and sway bars. The 4-4-2 also featured a more upscale interior consistent with Oldsmobile’s position as GM’s entry-level luxury division above Chevy and Pontiac.

Say “Four-Forty-Two” and Ransom Eli Olds’ faithful will come knocking on your door with lug wrenches in hand. The proper pronunciation is “Four-Four-Two.” In its first year, the name meant a four speed transmission, four barrel carburetor and dual exhaust. In 1965, an automatic transmission option was added, but the V8 was enlarged to 400 cubic inches, allowing the name to be continued in good faith.

The 4-4-2 became known as the businessman’s muscle car, while Chevy Chevelle, Pontiac GTO and Plymouth Road Runner were the standards of the younger crowd. Of course, these younger drivers often found themselves on the losing end of a street race with a 4-4-2.

Today I’m in Seattle to test drive a pristine 1969 Oldsmobile 4-4-2 convertible. I roll the car cover off the beautiful Nassau Blue Olds to find that unlike many domestic cars of the era, the 4-4-2 doesn’t look bulbous… rather long and low. It’s elegant, fairly sexy, and also racy with its factory black hood stripes.

This car was bought from the original owner in 1986 and got driven daily for another year. It has been fully restored to the condition it left Overlake Oldsmobile’s showroom in Bellevue back in 1969. It even still wears its original license plate and 1969 tab.

The black interior with fake woodgrain is classic GM. Plunking down into the wide Strato-bucket seats, three circular gauges (speedometer, multi-function and clock,) stare back at me. Since this car was delivered with the optional Turbo-Hydromatic 400 automatic transmission, there is no tachometer.

A few punches of the gas pedal primes the four-barrel with fuel. Then with a quick crank of the key, the 400ci V8 springs to life. Another prod of the accelerator brings the idle down to a very smooth, quiet level.

It’s a beautiful day, so I release the two latches and retract the power top. Slotting the console-mounted transmission lever into gear gets it rolling.

The 4-4-2 is a very composed car, offering excellent capabilities as a daily driver. Even under acceleration with the top down, it’s easy to carry on a conversation – or hear the tunes on the factory 8-track player.

As I start thinking this might be a soft car, I plant the accelerator. With a respectable 325hp and head-snapping 440 lb-ft of torque, (25 lb-ft more than offered by Chevy’s contemporary top-gun 375hp Chevelle SS396,) the 4-4-2 is capable of putting a smile on any face. Power delivery is ultra-smooth and seamless.

Where most muscle cars lose points is handling, but the 4-4-2 seems to forget its size and grips admirably. This car actually wears original-spec redline bias-ply tires, so adding a set of modern radials would make the Olds marvelous on winding road…provided the driver remembers it’s a sedan-based muscle car, not a true sports car. The brakes are capable of immediately slowing the car. The 4-4-2’s only downside is the Roto-matic power steering, which despite a good ratio, delivers GM-typical one-finger effort and less feedback than a mid-road-test driver’s licensing official.

The 4-4-2 begs to be driven, be it hard or just relaxed cruising. It might be the ultimate muscle car for collector use. The Olds is comfortable enough for long touring with three passengers, beautiful enough to show and powerful enough to win its fair share of races against other better recognized muscle cars.