I grew up in Oldsmobiles and then all I would ever buy was an Oldsmobile. Now I’m disabled and looking at a Cadillac XT5… and it will share garage space with my parent’s last car, an ‘87 Oldsmobile Touring Sedan… I never cared for imports, they’re just too cheap looking and too damn small…
I'm driving a 85 Toranado. Fun car, except for all the maintenance it needs from sitting 10 years outside. Like a new gas tank, break lines, and all the rubber hoses. Basically all the stuff any old car would need to stay on the road.
My first car when I turned 16 in 1995 was a 1987 Cutlass Supreme. One day I want to pick one up to restore. It's hard to find the rally wheels though. Most of the examples of this car I still see out there have been turned into wannabe donks.
My aunt had an '85, and I can remember taking it up to 80-85mph one night on the Brooklyn Queens Expressway. It felt like the front end was floating - no feedback from the steering at all. On the plus side, it was a fantastic highway cruiser, smooth and quiet.
@Scot Prendergest I don't live up that way anymore, so it's been a while since I was on the BQE. I always seemed to be on it last at night, so it was fine. The Van Wyck to JFK was a nightmare, though...my car (1977 Mustang II at the time) used to overheat like crazy when stuck on that highway :)
My dad had one of these with the v6 0 to 60 time was about a week . The way it rode though , there are no words for how superior the ride in that car really was . It was like driving a couch on a cloud . It didn't have zero gravity seats , it had a zero gravity suspension .
It's nice to see these WITHOUT 30" wheels and neon paint. It does remind us as to why American cars get a bad reputation, but I would love to see more examples of clean 80s American RWD goodness driving around without 18" speakers rattling the trunk loose.
This is sincerely one of my all-time favorite cars for a very special reason. The Cutlass is one of those very special cars, like the Ford Mustang & Volkswagen Golf, that is truly all things to all people. Want a basic run-around-town car that still has some luxury with good gas mileage? Can do. Want a luxury car that doesn't make people think you are about to take them to the cleaners? Sure thing. Want a fire-breathing muscle car that still has room for the family? You bet!!!!!
I have an '85 Cutlass Supreme Brougham I bought in 2008. It was the perfect commuter for many years. Comfortable and reliable while consistently returning 22 mpg all around no matter how I drive it's 231 cubic inch V6. Now I am modifying it into a mild pro touring car with an Oldsmobile 350 V8. So by the time I am done, this one little car would have been all things from one vehicle. Although I am modifying the suspension and brakes I have to admit these cars have surprisingly balanced handling when driven with in their respected limitations. As well as being very capable in the snow, which we've had a lot of this year.
I am an original owner of a 1985 Olds Cutlass Supreme, it has apx 350,000 miles on it. Yes, a couple different motors and transmissions. I'm just looking for help in finding good replacement parts for it, mostly body & interior. I'm running a SBC 350, aluminum heads, Q-jet, 212 degree cam, headers with duals and balance pipe, 4 speed auto, and 3:42 gears. Any suggestions will be very appreciated. Thanks, Billy
There was one that looked mint in the same color as the one on the video that showed up around my house a few months ago. Now it has those stupid little gold wheels and holes cut in the panels for huge subwoofers.
kirbyswarp lol. The "card". It's cool though, lowriding is in our culture. I am not the biggest fan of seeing G-bodies at these meets but to each his/her own.
One of GM's worst mistakes ever was shifting the G bodies over to a front drive platform in '88. In this video Al seems to be looking forward to that eventual shift, but those '88 and later cars were just awful.
Umm... I don't think so. With as much as I loved this body style (and I owned a '84 Monte Carlo SS convertible), by '88 they were starting to look pretty common, as you saw them everywhere. When the new Cutlass and in particular Gran Prix was introduced they looked pretty futurist and awesome at the time - and got rave reviews as well. One of the reasons I think these cars look so awesome is that they really weren't made for very long - so they went out before people got bored of them. But for those '88 and new models the design hasn't aged as well - plus those cars were made for a very long time and thus people got sick of them.
The W body Cutlass Supreme actually sold pretty well and was better built than a G body by far. With the 3.4L DOHC and 5 speed manual they weren't too slow either.
I grew up in this era. I always thought they were sharp. Comfy as hell the 307 was never a powerhouse. Remember the annual road trip to the beach. Get on I-95 south at Fredericksburg rolling gently 85 mph at idle. ICE cold air and total silence. Damn things were quiet and couch like. why in my mid 30s I bought myself another 86 lol..
+Jason Lesnock Dude, stop. You're making me homesick. I remember rolling up 95 to DC back in the day in my Cutlass. They don't make 'em like they used to.
I had this car new in 1983. I loved the car. Kept till 1988 and traded. It was a V8 will full power. Just a sharp looking car. Miss to this day. (Cutlass Supreme Limited) * mine was a Blue over Blue with Velour pillow seating with a full vinyl roof. 👍
I had an 81 with a 307 and a 4 barrel. Had nice power. I sold it with well over 200,000 miles on it. Bought it with 100.000. Had to rebuild the transmission and a new exhaust. A good deal as far as I am concerned. I sold it to a friend (cheap) who drove it for a couple years. He had to rebuild the distributor. That was it. Later the motor was taken out and used in another project because the motor was still in great shape. A lot of these cars would last a very long time if given proper maintenance.
I live in Los Angeles and I had one in 1987 I bought used, I loved the car but I would get HARD LOOKS from the police and gang bangers so I had to sell it 3 months after I bought it because I didn't want to get shot by a gangster by mistake to bad because I loved the car very comfortable almost like a caddy
Had a 79 put a 350 in it ! Loads of fun also had a stock 84 they were the best cars I ever owned ! The 84 almost had a million kms on it when I sold it
I knew a guy who had two of these Oldsmobiles. One had a perfect body, but the engine was blown and the other had a terrible body and the engine was still running great. So in one weekend he went all out and yanked the engines out of both of them and put the good engine in the car with the good body. The car ran perfectly during the shake down run until he lost control and smashed the car up, bending the frame. So he had to get it towed back to his house where he put the good engine back in the ugly car again. Except now the ugly car was even uglier because he wasn't very careful when he pulled the engine out. Oldsmobile Cutlasses always gave him nightmares after that.
I had one with a 307 I bought back in 2000 for $400. It ran great for the year I drove it until I could afford something nicer. Gave it to a friend in need and he drove it for a couple years relatively trouble free. Sure the gas mileage wasn’t the best but they were solid cars.
These were VERY cool back in the day!!! P.S. Can you guys imagine if cars were STYLED like this today, with all the tech enhancements we enjoy now like 4-wheel ABS, direct injection, NAV screen, etc???
Actually, these were the height of uncool back then. When new, these were old people cars. During the 90's, a young guy stuck driving a "gutless Cutlass" was subjected to plenty of teasing by the other dudes. With the 3.8 v6, these cars were slow, old people cars. With the 305, though, the Cutlass was a sleeper. The MotorWeek crew didn't know how to drive if they were getting 0-60 times of 13 seconds. They could run about 9 seconds 0-60, and went over 100 with ease.
Almost got a 12,000 mile dinged, rust spots, '86 Cutlass 'demonstrator', but then discovered I could get a brand new, perfect, loaded, better looking, Monte Carlo LS with a bit more HP for less money !!!
I noticed that lower trim piece immediately. The nameplate falling off is like a corny 80s tv show when the "kid" does something silly and "mom" puts her hands on her hips and says "ooohhh GM"😂😱😳
Of all the cars I ever owned my 1981 Cutlass Supreme was my favorite. Shure wish they would make these again. It was so smooth, quiet, reliable and a great looking car.
The 84 Cutlass Supreme was my second car. Mine was white with dark blue top and interior. It was sophisticated and elegant with a youthful sporty edge. The only issue was it would overheat on the highways. Because of this, I had borrowed my mom’s car to make a long drive out of town, and my mom was driving mine, and had a wreck and totaled it. She was fine but distraught over it.
Excellent body style, one of my favorites 1981-1988 with the euro headlamps, Calais, two tone, bucket seats and T-Tops, V-8 power, what a sexy Oldsmobile.
I bought a new one , Salon Coupe, when I was 23. The car was very sharp and sporty for a bigger car. Mine was two tone, buckets and rally package. It was wasn't fast but I remembered it was fast enough for me, and so smooth.
The Cutlass Supreme/Grand Prix/Monte Carlo/Regal. GM G bodies. Basically the same car but there was one that stood out above all the others in the G family, the Grand National. That was the one to have.
I love catching up on these. I was a kid then (well teenager), and Mom had an '85 with the 5.0L (307), she didn't have the Brougham package, but had the bucket seats with floor console and regular gauges, err speedometer and I remember the landau top. Now that I think about it, our steering wheel didn't have the faux wood trim with horn buttons on it, rather a full rubber cover. Watching this, the funny thing was, ours had that same trim piece on the passenger side bumper cover surrounding the parking light. 😂 It's like the trim piece was a smidge too long and they forced the end in to the bumper cover, causing the trim piece to buckle some. The drivers side was fine IIRC and ours didn't have that issue with the lower trim piece or the "Oldsmobile" falling off the deck lid.
Just imagine if GM could have done something with their quality control issues of the 70s & 80s and their badge engineering problem, do you think maybe Oldsmobile and Pontiac may still be being made, sometimes I wonder
Elizabeth Cherry Im a huge fan of Oldsmobile and Pontiac and even I wish GM put a little bit of effort into these divisions as well. When they became too value oriented in the 90s along with other GM divisions consequently quality with their Halo cars like the aurora did take a bit of dip. Still wont stop me from getting a Aurora though :)
True, GM's quality control in the 70's and 80's was a little hit and miss, it went into a tailspin in the 90's when Oldsmobile's reputation for quality was destroyed, leading to declining sales and ultimately the closure of the division as it was left to wither on the vine.
I loved my 1988 supreme classic. Black with burgundy interior and the factory chrome 442 wheels... I could park next to a Porsche and have a crowd standing around my car with the Porsche getting little more than a glance.
@@ElectoneGuy my diesel van engine makes the same power but what you have to factor in is that V8 is in a very low state of tune & runs very low RPMs, meaning it'll outlast most engines.
I had an 86 and loved it! But what they showed with the brakes was no joke! If you had to jump on them it would lock up the rear and start coming around. Happened to me a couple times. Still, would love to have it back.
supreme2005 that was with the 4 speed too. most of them only came with the 3 speed auto, which didn't have the overdrive resulting in bad mileage. we used to have one (3 speed V8) and it never got better than low 20s on the highway.
+supreme2005 My '79 Cutlass Supreme did a real-world 26 MPG on the highway. Mine had the Buick 3.8 V6 vs. the little Olds 260 / 4.3l - which was less horsepower but more torque. That engine combination in the video came with a 2:24 axle ratio(!!!!!) for better economy - which explains the 13 second 0-60 time. The V6 had a 0-60 time of 12 seconds. Power option was a Chevy 5 liter.. just something wrong with a Chevy engine in an Olds.
Cutlass, Monte Carlo, Grand Prix, Regal, they are all gong to be classics very soon..... as some already are. I owned a few of these years ago and they are just flat out cool cars.
Some things never change, just like GM's 'fit and finish'...still an awesome vehicle. My father still has his from new...1984 model and still running and looking like new.
My first car was a used 85 Cutlass Supreme Brougham. Bought it in 1988 when I was 16. It was beautiful with the black paint and red pin stripe, with the factory mags. The interior was plush. However the 5.0 307 4bbl V8 was so slow! I traded it in in 1992 for a 1988 Beretta GT with 16,000 miles. The Beretta with the 2.8 V6 and much less weight felt like a rocket compared to the Cutlass. I wish I still had both of those cars!
Once in a while I still see this car around and when I do see them some are still original and of course some have been turned into lowriders which still looks cool 😎
The 84 was my first car. Loved it. It was prone to overheating on long trips with the a/c on and went through 2 Turbo 400 (?) transmissions. But I still loved it. Nothing like it built today.
As a kid, our family car was a 1987 (last of them) Cutlass Supreme Coupe, exact same colour and rims (light blue) as the car featured. 307vi v8. I remember as a child it was an upgrade from our old Dodge Diplomat, but was similar as it had a lazy v8, rear wheel drive, and was quiet and isolating. We took it across Canada and back, and it was our family car for years. It was reliable but started burning oil around 220,000 kilometers. It was retired at 250,000 kilometers. The guy who bought it had plans to restore. My dad took great care of that car, the body was still in very good shape and was all original. These were handsome cars, I loved the light blue/dark blue roof/light blue rims.
I miss the "personal luxury coupe" cars of the late 70s/early 80s like the Cutlass, Monte Carlo, Regal, Magnum, Cordoba. Classic good looks, reasonable back seat good for short-term use, not too big, quiet, and comfortable. The acceleration was pitiful, but then so were all other cars.
I took driver education in 1981 and the car we used was a new Cutlass like this one. What a 🍋. in the 2 weeks we used the car the drivers mirror fell off, passenger assist strap came off in my hand, the passenger seatback release just quit working, and at just under 3000 miles registered the transmission failed. I am so glad we have improved in quality and engineering in our cars.
This car all stock with white walls is so clean. I remember feeling like I was on a smooth boat ride in them. Oh, and if you find one with the ttop, grab it right away!
YellowBeanieBoy I hate 30 inch rims, but I love the 13 inch 100 spoke Dayton's with white wall tires lowered with hydraulics 😍 Yes I too hate when they hop them, lowriders were meant to go low and slow not up and down smh 😒
I just watched Motor Trend's '83 Toyota Celica Supra Mk2 review. That car did everything better than this despite having an inline 6 with almost half the cubic capacity. It's a shame though. I quite like the 80s American sedans. My father had an 81 Buick Electra Park Avenue when I was little. Best car he ever owned in my opinion.
I remember the one my folks had when we were living in Indiana, was gray. They also bought an '85 S-10 Blazer after I was born. When we moved to North Carolina they sold the Cutlass and bought an '87 Plymouth Reliant K for my Mom to use for running errands, but we most of the time took the Blazer.
I LOVE my Cutty! Mine's an '87 Brougham Canadian coupe with a Chevy 305 (that's what the Canadian edition had that year). Just got the engine rebuilt, and driving this car only gets more and more enjoyable over time!
5:38 - loved this car! Had an ‘82 in college - everyone I knew had one - Just bought an ‘86 for 16K with 30K miles - owned by an oil guy who bought new and collected - Love it all over again and young fathers with little kids go bonkers over it!
My first car was a 1969 Olds Cutlass Supreme convertible with a Rocket 350, 2 speed Powerglide, Cherry red exterior, black top/interior. What a bomb. Also drove an ‘81 Gutless Supreme Brougham with a useless 4 litre/ 267 ci SB, but what a cruiser.
Omaha419 Tyres are a big part of that, along with suspension. Anything can be made to lock up, the development of ABS is the rest. The brakes themselves aren't much different to todays runabouts.
I had a 5 year old used 2000 Olds Alero GLS and it was one of the most capable cars I've ever owned. It felt more like a sporty import than a typical (at that time) American automobile.
My very first car was the Cutlass 5.0 with a T top that I couldn't use back in 2004. The exterior was a little ratty, but all the electric stuff worked (power mirrors & seats etc) Still the most comfortable car I've ever owned. My stepfather and I are currently working on an 85 Monte Carlo L, and we are swapping out the factory 305 for a 454 with a nice cam and couple of Edelbrock performance RPM heads.
Remember I had the '86 model 3 speed auto. It was like driving a boat around. Literally twirl the overboosted steering wheel with just two fingers from lock to lock. Low end torque was decent to move on low speed city blocks but boy did it struggle to get going on open roads. Useless to have it rev out (not sure of rpm since it had no gauge) but I'm guessing anything over 3500 rpm was just useless. Handling was a real joke. Compared to the time's Sentra's and Civics, this was just downright scary to take in corners. Only redeeming part is that I remember the air conditioner got so cold so quickly, never had a car that had such a good a/c system.
@@oldtwinsna8347 - Then earlier than '86... My Mom had '86 Cutlass Supreme and I had '86 Monte Carlo LS... both 4 speed auto RWD... 50 MPH in 1st, 90 in 2nd, way too fast in 3rd and 4th... I put tach in mine, shifted at 5,000 RPMs... Cheaper 'Cutlass' was FWD and 4 or V6... 3 speed auto...
Lots of arguments over quality in the comments here... the reality is that the build quality was not great. Those big, heavy doors sagged early on and would make horrible noises when slammed shut. Large panel gaps were typical. Headliners fell down, interior plastics cracked or fell off. The feedback carbs were totally half-assed and difficult to keep running properly. Performance-wise they were soft and lazy compared to European and Japanese cars. On the bright side, they were simple cars that even the shittiest mechanic could work on (aside from the CCC system) and the basic mechanical elements were sturdy. If you wanted to buy a "new" car from the 1970s in the mid-80s, this was the car to have... and plenty of people still wanted that at the time. I love them despite the flaws, although I wish GM had gone down the same path Ford did with the Fox Thunderbird - taking the same basic concept and updating it with modern construction, drivetrain and suspension. Ultimately, both of them were a dead end... people stopped buying "personal luxury coupes" in the '90s.
doctor zaius In the 80's and early 90's several people I knew had cars like this. And yes, lifting the door to close it was considered "normal". Signs that the roof liner was doomed started with a little bubble. Then spread like cancer. Also the plastic gap fillers between the body and bumper had a definite sell by date. After a certain point, they'd (and all of them did) begin rotting faster than old fruit. Either brittle and pieces would chip off, or they'd sag in odd places.
I had an 84 coupe, silver, loved that car but had to sell her. The only few I see now in my area have chrome wagon wheels on them and you need an extension ladder to get in ‘em. What a shame.
Brandon B It was pretty bad. I remember my dad buying a new 1983 Pontiac 6000 LE and we had the drivers power window motor fail as we left the dealer lot. The paint had totally faded by 1986.
I had a 84 Cutlass Supreme with the brougham trim. In fact expect for my car being blue, everything in that car shown in the clip, looks the same as mine did. Best car I have ever had. I loved it. I would still have it today if it wasn't stolen, stripped and left on the side of the highway back in 95
These things sold like hotcakes. The olds dealer my dad worked at in the 80's couldn't keep a car more than a day before it was sold. Have no idea why. I really like the 5th gen cutlass supreme tho, especially in convertible form. With the top down the rollbar gave it a sweet look. Within 20 years Olds went from U.S. sales leader to dead. Smh.
My first car was an 84 Olds CS with a 3.8 and then I bought an 85 with a SB 350, I absolutely regret getting rid of them. I loved everything about them.
Those tall axle gears and the good torque gave it 30mph on the highway, despite it being shaped like a brick. Most modern V6 family cars now still get the same, give or take.
Tommy TwoGun My 2011 Honda Accord V6 gets 34 highway per the EPA. It makes 271 hp, a mighty 45 hp per cylinder. It will run 0-60 in 6 seconds. Times have changed. April 20, 2015 10:36 pm
