I don’t know if this is a good sign or not, but out of the seven 1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass Salons that we’ve seen here on Barn Finds, I’ve written up six of them. I really like the unusual profile of these round-shouldered cars. This Brougham is posted here on craigslist in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, and the seller is asking $6,500. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Zen for the tip!
Looking fine, but with some issues – is that front bumper filler material missing? And the color difference between the front clip and the driver’s door? – I have a thing for these awkward designs. GM offered this unusual angle-backed, or aeroback, design on the Olds Cutlass Salon and Buick Century, as we recently saw here on Barn Finds. I’m still kicking that one around in my otherwise-empty noggin. I’d really like to have that Century Turbo. Shoot, it looks like that one has sold, so much for that!
These cars aren’t hatchbacks, even though they look like they should be. We don’t get to see inside this trunk, but the seller has provided a nice range of photos otherwise. You can see the color variation between the driver’s door and left front fender in the photo above again, and more possible bumper filler material issues. That’s unfortunate. The fourth-generation Cutlass was made from 1977 for the 1978 model year until 1988, but the Salon went away after the 1980 model year. Hagerty is at $5,533 and $7,100, and the seller’s asking price is just about halfway between those numbers. Given the obvious paint work and bumper filler material, I’d have a hard time giving even half of their asking price. For the record, I noticed the missing wheel covers and the black rim on the left front. I believe this color is Carmine Red, according to page 15 of this brochure.
There it is: a 5-speed manual in an Oldsmobile four-door sedan! This isn’t a 1968 442, but I’m positive that the 5-speed makes this car more fun to drive than if it had an automatic and you just put it in D and went about your business. The back seat fabric looks perfect, and the front bucket seats also look perfect to me, other than the oddly pink armrests and scratched and faded-to-pink hard plastic parts. I’m not sure if that plastic just faded at a different rate than everything else or what caused that, but I’d dye it to match the seats, pronto.
The engine is an Oldsmobile 260-cu.in. OHV V8, with a meek 110 horsepower and 205 lb-ft of torque when new. Backed by a BorgWarner T-50 5-speed manual sending power to the rear wheels, the seller says that “the car runs, but should be overhauled to restore the beauty of this American classic vehicle.” Their description almost sounds like half AI and half actual human words, so please check out the listing to read the seller’s description to see if you can decipher what this car needs. I can’t see it selling for even half of the seller’s asking price given the paint issues and apparent drivetrain issues. Any thoughts on this one?
“The beauty of this American classic” is not how I would describe anything about these backwards doorstops.
Seriously, the rear end is soo out of proportion with the rest of the cars lines that it looks like it’s wearing an over-loaded diaper,…Beyond the V8 and the 5-speed, which I would LOVE to swap into a similar vintage Malibu M 80, there’s not much else that makes the car desirable in my eyes. My sister picked up the 2 door version with the V 6 and three years experience with it turned her on to Toyotas perminantly,…
This particular V8/5 speed combination is pretty sad, unfortunately. This T50 was designed for four and six cylinder applications. That Oldsmobile saw fit to bolt it up to a 260 anyway tells you all that you need to know about the 260.
When I first saw the Buick equivalent of these at the Tech Center in 1977, I had to do everything I could to keep from throwing up .
The 77 models were stunning for both Olds and Buick and then these came out. Check the sales figures if want to see how the public felt.
Hard to believe that thing came out of GM’s styling studios. Looks almost like something AMC might come up with. :)
A five speed in the era where four speeds still ruled. It was an interesting combo in that era. Now the bustlebacks A-Bodies were not GM’s best idea but people are warming up to them as so few are left in existence now. A few week ends of shampoo’s, degreasers and rattle can’s plus a few trips to the local boneyards should make this one back to it’s better days
Considering that every manufacturer now makes a rounded off jelly bean version of this body style, and then calls it a crossover…GM may have been ahead of the times 😂
To paraphrase Larry the Cable Guy, “she’d make a Blind Man Flinch.”
Seriously, if they’d made it a Kammback, they’d have continued making them until the Front Wheel “A” Bodies had come out (and at that point, an altered the Celebrity Wagon into a SportWagon with a 3800, a 5-speed from a Fiero, FE3, Decent tires, 4 wheel Anti-Lock Disc Brakes, coming out with the Pontiac Successor to the Pontiac 6000. Maybe, just maybe, the Pontiac Aztec & Montana wouldn’t have happened. Just saying….
Uhh, bustle back? I remember when these were new thinking how awkward they looked.
Not a bustle back. That’s the second generation Seville. Scotty has the correct aeroback term. These cars get a lot of hate, mostly deserved. Underpowered engines, fixed rear glass on 4-doors and my pet peeve, lack of head room. Styling was right for the time except Americans saw it as a hatchback. For some reason that’s always a bad thing. Maybe due to association with Gremlin, Pinto and Vega. Sadly it continues today with name association on cars. Will we ever be able to think independently?
The 5-speed makes this otherwise unloved Olds a somewhat interesting car. Make sure it is roadworthy, proceed with whatever changes you deem appropriate (stock wheel covers would help a bunch), don’t worry about the mismatched paint, and just drive it.
Good job SG.
Someone ordered this to their specific liking. V8, buckets and 5-speed is not a stock for inventory list. The body color wheels imply hub caps. It’s a different sort of survivor.
When these were new I will admit, this was not my favorite Cutlass. But now, looking at this one with the 260 5 speed combination, I’d consider it!!! I’m going to second what Nelson said I remember the plain hub caps with the Oldsmobile emblem on them, I’m willing to bet dollars for donuts this had that originally. I also agree with Bob, don’t go nuts over it. Just clean it up drive and enjoy it. I’m sure it’ll get lots of comments. ( and I mean positive ones).
I always thought these looked like they were designed by a 7th grade boy with a straight edge… I was surprised people actually bought these….
not uncommon to see these with a stick shift. i would pull out what’s in there and put a 455 with a later model trans and let this thing rip even as ugly as it is.
I’ll join the chorus of those who never liked these when they first appeared. I have to admit I’ve warmed up to the “bustle-back” design over the years. The 260 5-speed is a plus in my book, but a college buddy had a regular Cutlass 2 door G-body notch-back with the same drivetrain that was a lot more attractive.
Had a 2 door 79 Olds Salon with the 442 option package.
The 260 was hammering when I bought it. Straight 50 weight until the 403 was ready to install.
I laughed at these when they were introduced. Now? I’m thinking they’re sort of cool looking. A co-worker had the 260 in his 77 Cutlass. It quickly was christened the Gutlass.
Rear hatch looks like a 70’s ford pinto
If this was an Alfa with similar specs, what would it be worth?
I was a kid when these came out, and I thought they were pretty cool.
That being said, what I really objected to with these cars is that the rear windows in some (all?) Cutlasses in this era didn’t roll down. That’s just cheap…
CAFE ( Corporate Average Fuel Economy) laws were new, and all of the American manufacturers were trying to find the sweet spot! This is why we see so many weird cars of the seventies and eighties! My mother’s aunt bought one of these new in 78′! Imagine this beauty with a diesel!!
I was 16 years old when this car was brand new. GM actually sold a lot of cars based on this platform. They weren’t very good cars and they didn’t last very long. Yes, the dark red interior plastic did turn bright pink if left in the sun too long. It would also turn to dust, crack and fall apart in your hands. In 1977, auto makers were worried about two things only – fuel mileage and emissions. Power and attractiveness were low priority. This vehicle is a testament to that. Good luck to the seller and the buyer.
Ewwww… How cool….
Had a ’79, many years ago. 260 v8 and metric automatic transmission. Even with the quirky sloping rear, I kind of liked it. Very dependable. Wasn’t exactly impressive on takeoff…the five speed in this one should help with that…but it would cruise the interstates at 70mph+ all day long. Rode pretty nice, and got good gas mileage. I’d own this one for the novelty, but probably wouldn’t pay that much. Always did prefer a manual transmission.
I have distinct memories of four specific slow cars owned by my friends in HS – a 1977 Monarch with a 200 six, a 1979 Prelude with automatic, a 1978 Mustang Ghia with the Pinto 4 and automatic and, yes, a 1978 Cutlass Supreme with the 260. Man it was slow! I cannot imagine even a 5-speed makes it remotely quick.
Some call these ugly. I call them unique. Unique to me in a good way. Back some years it seems like everyone and their pet dog had a 2dr Cutlass, my uncle bought one brand new in 1979 and kept it until his death 2 years ago. Was it attractive? Yes it was but just too common for my ‘off beat’ tastes. My uncle was what you would call a thrifty man so he kept the 260 until it was worn out. At that point it justified getting an Olds 307 put in. Still no hot rod but he said the difference was night and day. I can’t recall the designation of the automatic transmission but despite the 260 not being a power house it definitely did not last as long as the little 260 V8. He had it replaced with a Turbo 350. So once it had a Turbo 350 and an Olds 307 installed he was one happy camper!
Ordered a 2-door Salon 442 in the fall of ‘78. Wanted the 5-speed, but it wouldn’t handle the LG4 305-4V, so settled for a 4-speed Saginaw. Like this car, the front clip was darker than the rest of the body, presumably a factory retouch before it was shipped.
Now have a tribute car, a ‘78, but with a built 350 replacing the 305 and a 700R4. It keeps up with modern traffic better than the original would have, and attracts a lot of compliments. I would have preferred the Calais/Supreme coupe body, back then, but the 442 package was only offered on the Salon, the entry-level price point model.
They were common in rental fleets back then.
Front clip and body were painted in different buildings. Slight mismatch was common.
Oh man, that is such great info, see2xu and Nelson C. Thanks for adding that about the front and rear halves being painted separately! I’ve heard that about some Fisher Body vehicles and just assumed the worst, but maybe that’s exactly what’s going on here.
These cars were a tough sell when new. We were Buick dealers with the same body style on the previously popular Century.
The public didn’t accept the awkward styling, ala VW Dasher (remember those?).
GM rushed a conventional sedan roofline to market.
Great visibility via all that glass! Fun w/V8 and 5spd…just needs a supercharger!
Are these the GMs that have marshmallows for springs and make a right hand turn when you accelerate?
Odd that I never saw one with this combo 4door v8 manual.
Likely a special order. Has full instrumentation, too.
Could be OK if it had a 350 and AC. Otherwise, CRUSH IT.