1971 Oldsmobile 442 convertible

Feature Article from Hemmings Muscle Machines

In 1971, Oldsmobile marketers envisioned guys like Bill Ingler sliding into the Strato bucket seats of brand-new 4-4-2 convertibles and cruising them off of showroom floors. An Air Force pilot with hundreds of successful missions at the controls of Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft, Bill (now 81 and retired) is just the sort of car enthusiast who might've appreciated Dr. Olds' brand of refined performance.

But Bill never really thought much about Oldsmobiles back then, leaning instead toward Corvettes, Thunderbirds and classic cars. In 1992, when Bill was living near Columbus, Ohio, and serving with the U.S. Air Force's 160th Air Refueling Group, he got a call from a friend telling him about a certain 1971 Cutlass that was for sale in the area. The owner of the Olds had tried to trade it in on a new Cadillac, but the dealer wasn't interested in an old car--even a one-owner with 60,000 miles on the odometer.