Tech Notes
Who: Tim Meirick
What: '70 Oldsmobile Cutlass
Hometown: Dodge Center, Minnesota
Engine: Tim began by having Kenny Frison of Total Engine Service build the engine and do the machine work. He started by expanding the bores of a junkyard 455 out to 0.030-inch oversize, added a set of pistons to keep the compression around 10:1, and then added a Comp Cams Xtreme Energy 284 flat-tappet hydraulic cam. The cam specs out at 240/246 degrees of duration with 0.541/0.544-inch valve lift with a 110-degree lobe separation angle. Edelbrock helps the power program with a set of Performer aluminum heads, but instead of a matching Performer intake, Tim decided on the single-plane Offenhauser combined with an Edelbrock 750-cfm carburetor and a K&N air filter. An MSD 6A is mounted on the firewall to help the HEI perform its ignition duties.
Did you know that Canadian 4-4-2s came with Chevy-style 12-bolt rear-axle assemblies inste
Exhaust: The ceramic-coated headers come by way of Hedman 131/44-inch pipes that feed into a complete 211/42-inch exhaust system using a pair of Flowmaster mufflers to keep it to a dull roar.
Transmission: Even with all this world-class Olds torque, Tim's managed to make his TH350 trans live with help from a B&M shift-improver kit combined with a TCI 2,800-rpm stall speed converter.
Rearend: It's common to see a strong Olds running a Chevy 12-bolt. Tim runs a 3.73 rear gear and Moser axles with a C-clip eliminator kit to keep everything safely buttoned up.
Suspension: The short version is that Tim has changed very little. There is a pair of adjustable Edelbrock upper control arms for the rear axle, and that's about it as far as changes. There's also a rear sway bar bolted to reinforced lower control arms.
Interior: Equipped from the factory with a column shifter and bucket seats, Tim has restored the interior back to stock, adding only a small Sun tach to keep track of the engine speed. There's really nothing else to talk about except the Grant steering wheel.
Wheels: Those are 15x8-inch Weld Racing five-spokes on all four corners with a pair of 255/60R15 BFGoodrich drag radials to maintain adhesion. Up front is a pair of 235/60R15 BFGoodrich Radial T/As to provide direction.
Paint: Tim enlisted the help of Charlie Capi of Owatonna, Minnesota, to do the bodywork and apply the '94 Ford truck blue hue. They also added the contrasting white stripes and 4-4-2 and W-30 emblems just to give this Cutlass some character.
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For the record, there have been at least four different Olds definitions of what 4-4-2 mea