Enthusiasts fear that the supply of stunning barn and garage finds will eventually dry up. However, this 1975 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme seems to suggest that won’t happen soon. The seller discovered it squirreled away in a garage, a spot it had occupied for thirty-six years. They have returned it to active service, preparing for it to find a new home. The Olds is listed here on Craigslist in Milford, Massachusetts. The seller’s price is $22,500, and I must say a big thank you to Barn Finder NHDave for spotting this fantastic garage find.
Some paint shades generally don’t appeal to me, and black is one of them. However, I am prepared to make an exception when the vehicle is immaculate and features a black-on-black-on-black combination. The Ebony Black paint on this Olds shines beautifully, with most of it original. The seller admits they repainted the hood, roof, and deck lid due to spider-webbing, but the result is worth the effort. I feel like I could sink into the paint, such is the depth of color and shine. The panels are as straight as an arrow, and thanks to attention from the folks at Ziebart when it was new, this Cutlass is rust-free. The paint is complemented by a Black landau-style vinyl top and chrome that sparkles magnificently. The glass is flawless, and the perfect factory wheels are wrapped in narrow whitewall tires.
When the seller located this Cutlass, its original owner had parked it in 1986. When that owner and his wife recently passed away, the seller purchased the car to return it to active duty. The storage environment must have been ideal because there is no evidence of surface corrosion in the engine bay. The original owner ticked the boxes on the Order Form to equip the Olds with a 350ci V8, a three-speed automatic transmission, power steering, and power brakes. The car rolled off the line during the height of The Malaise Era, so a power output of 170hp is about what buyers expected at that time. It allowed the Cutlass to cover the ¼ mile in 18.4 seconds before winding its way to 118mph. After thirty-six years in hibernation, the seller faced a long list of tasks returning the car to a roadworthy state. They say they spent a lot of time and money on the process, but it was worth the effort. The state of the engine bay is indicative of the car’s health, with the seller stating it drives as well as it did the day it rolled off the showroom floor. They claim an odometer reading of 34,000 genuine miles but don’t mention verifying evidence. However, the car’s overall condition and ownership history make the claim plausible.
The “black” theme continues when we examine this classic’s interior. It features black vinyl upholstery, with carpet and a dash that match. However, the bright trim pieces prevent the inside from becoming oppressive and claustrophobic. The upholstery is perfect, and there are no signs of wear, physical abuse, or UV damage to any interior part. I always hesitate to use the term “showroom condition” when describing any aspect of a classic, but this isn’t far off that mark. The original owner ordered the Olds with air conditioning, an AM/FM radio, and an under-dash 8-track player.
Regardless of the make and model, it is hard to go wrong with a well-presented black-on-black-on-black classic, which is what the next owner receives with this 1975 Cutlass Supreme. Its presentation is as close to showroom fresh as you are likely to find, and its odometer reading helps it to stand out from the crowd. You can go out into the current market and find cheaper examples, but none will have the impact or mileage we see here. The price isn’t unprecedented, but the fact it has been listed for two weeks suggests the seller doesn’t have people beating down their door. However, I won’t be surprised if it finds a new home any day.
Given the condition of the engine bay, I believe the mileage claim. The engine compartments on these did not age very well when they got a lot of miles on them.
A lot of scratch for a Colonnade but this is one of the nicer ones you’re going to get. I think generally, Olds Colonnade fans think the 76-77 models look better, but this is pretty good.
Looks like a 260 air cleaner. Maybe that’s why it’s so slow. Nice car anyway.
You’re right, it is a 260. No one will buy this car for anywhere near that number unless they are really uninformed.
From CL: “Have title and death certificates of prior owners husband and wife.”
It sounds like (from the quote) that the car may still be in the deceased original owners’ name. I would check that out thoroughly prior to making an offer.
Very nice, clean vehicle, but I think if fails in comparison to the 76-77 models. The waterfall grill, and the rectangular headlight assembly, really freshened up the look of the Cutlass. I know the price of everything has gone up, but I think this one is a little high. That being said, I am sure someone has a memory that could get the price they’re asking. I miss Oldsmobile, they made so many beautiful rides.
1975 is a plus if you want to register it in Ca.75 and earlier..no smog testing.Plus for me always.
I had a 74 Salon coupe in that same triple black combination. It had the color keyed full wheel covers with the center done in the matching black. Yeah, it would’ve looked better in the Superstock wheels this car has, but I couldn’t bear to lose the originality of the Salon wheel discs. It had the reclining bucket seats and console, which I loved. I bought it in 1981 with 29 thousand miles on it. Like this Cutlass, the hood, trunk, and roof showed lots of spider cracking, since the car was in Houston Texas from 1975 onwards before the original owners moved to Long Island NY in 1980. The hot Texas sun and an all black car weren’t a good combination, unfortunately. I wanted to keep the car as original as possible, so I didn’t have the affected areas repainted, but after trying several waxes and cleaners over the years, I had a good amount of success with a product from Meguiars. It was a 3 step process that consisted of one bottle of liquid compound, one of liquid polish, and one of liquid wax. It was time consuming, and the results weren’t as good as a professional repaint, but it was a VAST improvement over how it looked before, and a helluva lot less expensive than paintwork!
I held onto that car till 2001, mostly as a second car. But I lost my garage space, the elements were starting to take their toll on the exterior, and I was in need of a commuter car as a daily driver. So I reluctantly sold the Salon to help raise money for the purchase. Like so many of us who are forced into a situation like that, it wasn’t long before I came to regret selling the car. It preyed on my mind for years afterwards.
Well, it took me almost 36 years to right that wrong, but in September 2017, I found a 74 Cutlass Supreme coupe with 33 thousand actual miles, still wearing its original paint, vinyl top, and interior. It was a one piece bench seat with a column shift and an AM radio – definitely not as attractive as my Salon with the bucket seats and AM/FM. And the color combination – Sage Green paint and top, black interior – was a far cry from matching the elegant look of triple black. But it was in outstanding original condition, completely unrusted, and I knew if I was ever going to be able to recapture that portion of my youth, this was as good as it was going to get. So after hemming and hawing a little, I bought it, and have no regrets. That bench seat, which most critics back in the day panned as being uncomfortable, has turned out to be a blessing for my now worn out lower back – don’t ask me why! I can’t get my 2019 XSE Corolla with the 6 way power seat to feel as good!
Is my current 74 Supreme an exact match to that 74 Salon from my youth? No. Do I love it just as much? Definitely, if for different reasons unique to the car. Am I glad I compromised and didn’t exactly match that Salon? Absolutely. If I hadn’t, I probably would have still been searching today, 5 years later, and wound up with nothing…
I had a 73 cutlass and man what a nice car.
yeah its nicely maintained and the mileage is low but for that money or only a few bucks more you can get yourself something really desirable. Would have to be a mighty strong memory to shell out that kind of money for car which wasn’t much to brag about when it was brand new.
I had a 75 similar to this, mine had the swivel buckets with console and floor shift. Same color keyed olds rally wheels, buckskin color interior the seat inserts were like a wide corderoy with dark green paint and tan quarter top. Not a speed demon with that 350 but rock solid dependable. Other than maintenance I never had a single problem with it. One I wish I still had.
Olds Blue on that engine is 455 unless someone painted the SBO, BBO colors.
It’s an anemic 260 2bbl. That is GM Corporate Blue, not Oldsmobile 455 Metallic Blue..
I bought a new 75. It was red with a white top with red interior. What a stunner. Great car. Wish I still had it. Fond memories of the front (and rear) seats.
I owned a silver 1976 Cutlass Salon in 1978 with Hurst Hatches. Should have never SOLD it, but had to pay for college at PSU. Most comfortable and beautiful car I have owned to date and I have had just to mention a few, a 69 and 70 GTOs, a 77 Grand Prix SJ with Hurst Hatches, a 1988 Monte Carlo SS, a 1971 Corvette, 1970 Road Runner, 1966 Chevelle convertible and my current toy, a silver 1973 Corvette. I would rather have that Salon back than any of those cars. GM quality. I never had any trouble with that car and met my wife in that car Penn State. This black one is nice, but at $22,500, it should be a Salon with those comfortable high back buckets.
It’s a 260 / 2 barrel. It’s worth about $12,000 tops even if it had 10 original miles
This is not a 350!
Author, do your research before you write these articles. This is NOT a 350 car at all. It is a 260 2bbl car, which is HIGHLY undesirable. It is evident, and obvious by the fifth digit in the VIN. This is the way all GM (and other makes) were uniformly VIN coded (beginning in 1972 for GM). It is, for this reason, that you see so many clones and fakes of pre-1971 cars. You can’t fake the later GM cars! It took them a while to catch up because Mopar, Ford, and AMC had gone to this universal VIN system years before. “F” is the 4.2L, 260 c.i., V8 that no one would want in a million years.
Everyone has a choice in how they respond to errors other people make. I would never respond as you have as it attracts too much negative karma.
BTW, I don’t see the VIN anywhere in the ad. How was the “author” going to research that information?