Paul Martin's Perfect 442!

[Xplantdad]

Since it is the Christmas season, I though a red car would be perfect for this weeks Members Rides...Merry Christmas everyone...and Paul has ANOTHER 442 waiting it's turn...you can catch a glimpse of it in the bottom photograph.





Having owned many 442’s and 5 of them with the w-30 option, I was aware of the rarity of a 4 speed W-30 equipped convertible. I was also aware of how well Red cars did at car shows and auctions.

In Feb 2002 an On line ad appeared for a 71 442 Convertible, believed to be a W-30 and It had a 4 speed. I contacted the seller in PA and had a discussion about the authenticity of the car. He was an Olds guy but was uncertain of the unique features of this beast. I committed to his asking price on the condition that he search for a build sheet and upon verification I would transfer the money and close the deal. Within 48 hours he found a build sheet under the carpet and confirmed it was a real W-30. One of 32 Convertibles with a 4 speed.

I wired the funds to him and arranged to have the car shipped to Cleveland where it would be stored by a friend until I could arrange transportation to Vancouver (2600 miles). My friend in Cleveland had many NOS parts he would sell and it was not advisable to have them shipped with the car. By mid May 2002 I set out for Cleveland in my truck and trailer to fetch the car and parts. The trip is another story, but I made the 5200 mile round trip in 11 days.

I commenced the rotisserie restoration in August 2002 and completed it in June 2005. No expense was spared in turning out this car which won Best in Class with 991/1000 points in its first National show. Those are NOS Uniroyal Tiger Paws you see in the photo.

The car was built in Feb 1971 making it an early production w-30 convertible as the first cars came down the assembly line in late January due to the strike in the fall of 1970. It was sold new in Michigan and appears to have links to Rochester, Michigan and Detroit.