So Cal Personal Luxury: 1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme
There was once a huge segment of the automotive market that catered to the driver in a semi-luxurious way. The personal luxury coupe segment was as hot as the SUV segment today, and no automaker was more aggressive in marketing to those customers than General Motors. Reader PRA4SNW has found a great example of that class for us to ogle. This 1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme coupe for sale on Craigslist in the beautiful San Fernando Valley of California is a pristine example of the breed. At a $9,900 asking price, is this 66,000-mile example priced too high for the market? Or, is the time right to add one to your collection?
In the seventies, Oldsmobile had a license to print money with its Cutlass Supreme. Once the top of the line designation for the Cutlass, it soon morphed into its own product line. From 1966 through 1997 when Oldsmobile inexplicably was cut from the GM lineup, the Cutlass Supreme was a favorite of anyone who wanted their own luxurious coupe to cruise around in. While sedans and wagons also fell under the Cutlass Supreme nameplate, coupes were the bread and butter of the marque.
In the early seventies, weight and size were no obstacles to automobile production. Then, a couple of periods where Americans actually had to wait in line for fuel changed how the automotive world worked. Suddenly, fuel efficiency was a selling point and the domestic manufacturers found out that they would have to change the way they did business to satisfy the Feds and compete with the Japanese. Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards and Corollas forced a sea change in the American market.
Oldsmobile’s incredibly popular Cutlass Supreme coupe and its GM stablemates were downsized in response starting with the 1978 model year. Having downsized a bit in both girth and displacement during the third generation of cars, the fourth generation was even smaller yet. While a lot of weight was shed in the downsizing, there were some trade-offs. NASCAR teams had a devil of a time getting the speed they were used to out of the smaller, less stable platform. Many only made the switch to 4th generation bodies when forced by the manufacturers and the sanctioning body.
Regardless of the car’s racing prowess, customers loved the new Cutlass coupe. These neat vehicles were the bread and butter of Oldsmobile’s sales until the fourth-generation cars bowed out in 1988. While they used the same rear-wheel-drive platform throughout the production run, there were numerous changes made both under the hood and with the styling. Add to that the government-mandated changes in emissions and safety, these cars were far different when GM decided to switch to a front-wheel-drive platform.
One of the special styling touches that this 1977 model has exclusively is a rocket in the center of the taillights that lights up at night. Of course, one of Oldsmobile’s trademark symbols was the rocket from the Rocket 88. Not that this car needs anything special. In the very brief description we have, the seller stated that this Cutlass has just 66,000 miles on the odometer. It is still decked out in the original green paint with a green matching interior. The only drawback is that a few of the center caps are missing. These tended to go flying off at speed, and I am certain that aftermarket replacements are available.
This car is testimony to how soft the Southern California climate is on automobiles. While it was most likely helped along by caring owners and a garage to call its own, you don’t see cars like this in the Northeast very much. While the price may be a bit on the high side, there are a lot of folks who have a soft spot in their heart for these personal luxury vehicles. Myself included. It might not be the right price right now, it will be soon. I hope it finds a good home.
Do you have a soft spot for Oldsmobiles of this type and/or vintage? Please share your experiences in the comments.
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Comments
The front seats are not original to this car. It looks to be a Cutlass Supreme Brougham with the back seats being original.
In the dash photo it looks like it has 106,000 miles, not 66,000.
I concur on miles not that low.
Front seat not original and if truly a 350 its a NOM.
231 v6 260 or 305 V8 engines were available blocks.
I luv this model in maroon as it brings back memories of my 78 231 v6 car.
It’s an Oldsmobile V-8 engine. You can tell by the oil filler at the front of the block. The only Olds V-8 engine offered in the ’78 Gutlass was the 260. So if that’s a factory original motor, that’s what it has.
A buddy of mine had a ’79 Supreme with that motor. It was a real slug. We ended up tearing it out and putting a SBC 350 in instead.
you could order a 305 chevy. I know I did.
Yeah this was a generation of cars I can forget , slow, under powered & only redemption is rear wheel drive .
Although it’s a nice presenter, I really don’t think $9,900.00 is going to happen. Too many questions , and not enough answers. I really like the 1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass. I think Oldsmobile got a “home run “ with the downsizing of the REALLY popular and larger 1977 model. The 305 which SHOULD BE in this car ( if it was purchased in CA ) is just powerful enough to give it reasonable performance. The 260, I believe, wasn’t available in CA because of emissions standards. This car is nice but it’s really only worth $4,000-$5,000 tops. I like these cars but for almost $10,000.00 it better be pristine. Nice article!
I love the wrong color junkyard front bench seat. I wonder what happened the original, or maybe I don’t want to know. And good luck sourcing a correct original Brougham seat. $4k would be the absolute tops I’d pay for this, and even then I’m not sure what kind of deal I’d be getting.
There’s a lot of work to do here, including an engine swap if it has the Olds 260, which I’m guessing it does. That’s a miserable, slow, and boring motor that I’m not sure would even be safe in modern traffic, especially if its “horsepower” has diminished over time.
Good catch on the replacement seat.
I had a 79 Chicken Cutlass (3.8 L V-6)….
While it was underwhelming on the highway…..it rode smoothly with cool air conditioning in the summer 🌞🏝️….
&…..was mostly reliable during my college years.
These cars were ok, a friend of mine had one with T-Tops and it was a nice car. But comparing them to the 1977 model says it all, it was a harbinger of things to come. I was only 15 in 1978, and seeing where the auto business was heading was a really depressing time. Living in the rustbelt of Michigan, there still was 60’s and 70’s on the road but they were either full of Bondo, rusted out, or too expensive. Then your insurance was so high at 16, you couldn’t win for losing. We never thought at the time horsepower would come back the way it.has, but the styling didn’t make it for the most part. It sure was great, thinking 24/7 about cars and girls and sports, nothing else mattered. We didn’t no how good we had it.
As noted, the only Oldsmobile-sourced engines offered in the 1978 Cutlass line were the 260 gas engine and the 350 diesel. This is obviously not a diesel. In any case, the fifth character of the VIN will tell you exactly which engine was in the car when it left the factory. “F” would indicate the 260, “N” the 350 diesel, and while not available in this car, “R” would indicate the Olds 350 gas engine. Also, the block casting number next to the oil fill tube will be 557751 for the 260 and 557752 for the 350 gas motor.
Actually, I have to correct my last post. The diesel was not available in the Cutlass line for the 1978 model year.
All original , but clearly shows over spray on the door jams
350 olds
From looking at the rear seat in the original ad it appears to be the “Brougham” edition. However the blue front seat can be from an uhh let’s say a Regal?, a Grand Prix? Not a Monte Carlo that’s for sure. Chevy didn’t standardize front seat center armrests in any of their models of the 70’s other than the Caprice. Or maybe that cheap blue front seat can be from a base model Cutlass from 78-86 or 87. Asking way too much for such an undesirable looking Olds.
Had a friend in HS with one of these, same color. The 260 olds was so sludged up inside it wouldn’t oil the valve train. We’d pull the valve covers about once a month, replace the worn through rocker bridges and slather everything in the top end with wheel bearing grease. It made a lot of banzai runs down the back roads with a johnboat tied to the roof. It was still running when it got replaced by a raggedy third gen Firebird; he drove the Gutless Cutlass to the junkyard and left it parked out front.
When I first spotted this ad, I thought the front seat looked oddly colored. but what I really noticed was the color of the carpet/ That color just seems to be off – it doesn’t match up well with the green, IMO.
Was that factory, or has the carpet been replaced?
I bought a new ’78 Cutlass Supreme w/ the 260V8 Auto trans. Vinyl interior w/bucket seats and floor shifter. Was sluggish but better than the V6 ’83 the dealer talked me into buying when I Got ready to trade at 80,000 miles. Only problem I had with the ’78 was fuse link shortage and radiator failure; actually got 56,000 miles on the factory tires. Didn’t keep the ’83 long and didn’t get another Cutlass until the last rear wheel drive ’88’s. Wish I still had that car. It had a 307 V8 I think and the mileage was better than the 260.
It’s nice, not great. I have 2 of these 78 Cutlasses, one almost identical to this. Not sure if it was mentioned, but that’s not the correct rear bumper.
Also… the center caps would not fly off due to speed… I have all 8 original of mine, and plenty of extras, and you have to really yank to get them off
A friend of mine bought one of these little Cutlass Supremes for his wife. It was special ordered. His was more of a bluish green, bucket seats, console automatic and loaded with options. His also had the Oldsmobile 350, yes Virginia, the 350 4 Barrel Oldsmobile engine was available in these things.
I nearly bought that car when they traded it for a fwd Olds 88 later on. BTW, they hated that Olds 88. It was a P.O.S. from the word go.
I had a friend who bought new a 79 Cutlass same color as this 78. His had the 305 & T-tops. It was a great ride. He put over 150,000 miles on it before he bought a truck in the 90s. Olds sold a bunch of them thats for sure