Denise has fought a war on two fronts since she took ownership of this survivor 1970 Olds 442.
Normally ownership of a classic like this isn’t rife with minefields, but somehow Denise stepped on a few since 2004.
She wears them like a badge of honor.
Denise swims upstream on a concept that’s often seen on the pages of MSCC–“old cars and wives are eternal enemies…like hyenas and lions on the Serengeti plains in Africa”. She’s married, and in reality, she talked her husband into the purchase of the 442.
That doesn’t protect her from the inevitable “nice car, how’s your husband like it?” stuff from observers but she takes that in stride. In reality, she has taken a deep interest in the history and the function of this classic Olds.
Denise bought it from the 2nd owner after a conversation that ended up with “do you know anybody who wants to buy it?” He’d owned it for ten years but she was clearly ruled out as a potential new owner. Undaunted, Denise sold her beloved Honda 500 and the 442 had a new home.
The second battle literally began on the home front because Denise’s town is a hardcore Mopar venue. This was like a guy wearing a dress to a Teamster’s meeting. She explained, “I didn’t know what I was getting into, everybody’s into Dodge where I live so everybody told me they thought I’d be driving a Dodge but my husband said everybody’s got to grow up sometime”.
Denise easily won them over with her commitment to the hobby in general and her 442 in particular because she spearheads a June car show in her hometown and the Mopar guys are 100% supportive.
The car has retained 80% of its original paint after the quarters “were touched up a bit” and the bumpers were re-chromed but this 442 has most of its original 1970 flair. Denise is both proud and aware of the value found in survivor Oldsmobile muscle.
Denise’s husband and son redid the front seat vinyl but the rest of the interior is still 1970s factory fresh. Her husband did the heads but the rest of this numbers matching 442 is bone stock.
There are no plans to sell the car-Denise has no urge to turn the car into a new kitchen and this fact alone will have 20,000 car guys asking the same question, “where was she when I was single?”
Clearly this is a classic muscle car in the hands of a classic owner because Denise sums up her relationship with the 442 like a guy …
“I have my kids but this is my baby”
Jerry Sutherland
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