First-year 1964 Oldsmobile 4-4-2

While the Pontiac GTO gets all the press, every GM muscle-car fan knows that another acclaimed and long-lived factory hot rod also made its debut in 1964, the Oldsmobile 4-4-2. That’s right, with hyphens, back when the four-four-two designation had the specific meaning of 4-barrel carburetor, 4-speed manual transmission and dual exhaust.

The 4-4-2 was an option package introduced mid-year after Olds marketers and engineers witnessed the runaway success of the GTO. It went on through the ’60s to become an icon of muscle-car performance, and much valued as a collector car today.

The Pick of the Day is a first-year car, a 1964 Oldsmobile 4-4-2 hardtop, one of just 2,999 of them produced that model year.

Restored to its original specs, aside from a set of aftermarket performance headers, the hardtop won Best of Show out of 600 entries at the 2015 Cape Fear Antique Auto Club of America in North Carolina, according to the Elyria, Ohio, dealer advertising the Olds on ClassicCars.com.

“This is a numbers-matching, all-correct example,” the seller says in the ad. “Dare we say Protecto Plate! Yep, we sure do. Owner history back to new? Yep. Photos of the car as delivered in New York day one with its original owner? Yep. No worries here, this is an investment-grade car. Period.”

While the restoration was completed in 2012, the 4-4-2 remains in immaculate condition, according to the seller, with just 63,757 miles showing on the odometer.

“The paint on this Olds is truly magnificent,” the ad says. “No waves or ripples down the sides or flats, door, hood and trunk fit that is way past what GM typically delivered in 1964. Interior – outstanding, crisp and correct. Mechanicals – truly excellent.”

Considering the purported condition of this desirable Oldsmobile, the asking price of $44,200 sounds reasonable. The muscle car also presents some real possibilities for the next owner, the seller notes:

“Drive it, show it, keep it in a bubble and polish it as a prized possession, the choice is yours once you make it yours.”

To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.