Located in Sterling Heights Michigan, the GM North American Heritage Collection is made up of approximately 600 cars and trucks. Many reflect GM's industry firsts, like the first electric self-starter, used on the 1912 Cadillac, the first production V8 that powered the 1915 Cadillac, and the first air bag, found on 1974 Buick, Cadillac, and Oldsmobile models. Others are technological experiments like the first American gas turbine-powered car, Firebird 1, or the world's first hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle, the 1966 Electro-van. Concept cars and special-interest styling/performance one-offs are part of the mix, along with significant race cars and milestone production vehicles such as the first production 1966 Olds Toronado featuring General Motors' front-wheel drive. The GM Heritage Collection is ever-changing. New vehicles are constantly being obtained to fully represent GM's product story of the past 100+ years.While not being opened to the general public, access is only granted for GM internal sources and external organizations. Being able to see any of the vehicles in the collection is a very rare opportunity, being able to actually purchase a car out of the collection is even rarer. For this reason, the car you see here is an extremely rare and desirable piece of automotive history. For 60 years, this 1949 Oldsmobile Series 76 was owned by GM and was part of the GM Heritage Collection. In 2009, the car was sold out of the museum to one of the most prestigious collections in the world, The Blackhawk Collection in California, where it has stayed until earlier this year, when we acquired the vehicle. The 76 Series was the level for Oldsmobile where luxury was made affordable. The Big 6 engine was overshadowed for '49 by the new short stroke OHV V8 that was standard in all other series Oldsmobile's. The standard transmission was a 3-speed manual but when optioned with the 4-speed Hydra-Matic drive, the torque multiplication moved this big Oldsmobile right along effortlessly. This '49 thus represents nearly the last of the breed of 6 cylinder Oldsmobile's. By 1951 all Oldsmobile's would be OHV-V8 powered and the 76 Series would be dropped, replaced by the 88 and Super 88 model designations.With only 18,000 original miles from new, this is one of the nicest, most original '49 Oldsmobile's on the planet. Finished in its correct color of Ivy Green with a Dark Gray interior, the car is stunning and looks as good as the day it came off the showroom floor... Or should we say museum floor?!?! The paint is in nearly perfect condition with no imperfections to speak of. The chrome bumpers are spotless as well as the stainless trim and accents. All of the glass looks great with no delaminating, chips or cracking. Inside, the car appears to be all original and looks nearly perfect. The dark gray seats and carpet look great as well as the door panels and headliner. The painted dash and all of the gauges look as good as they did new and work with no problems. The steering wheel shows no cracking and is solid. Under the hood, the inline 6 cylinder runs great and is connected to the automatic Hydra-Matic transmission. The transmission shifts as it should and the motor starts with a push of the button. The engine is nicely detailed and looks as good as it did when it left the factory. In the trunk you will find a full size spare as well as the original jack and spare. The underside of the car is extremely clean and as nice as you will find. This car is a true time capsule and would be a welcome addition to any collection or simply your prized possession. The current mileage shows 18,479 and is said to be actual for the car. VIN number is 496M14692.