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Confidence Inspiring: 1987 Oldsmobile 442

Located in Farmingdale, New Jersey and listed here on Craigslist is this 1987 Oldsmobile 442. Listed with a clean title and a reduced asking price of  $11,995, the seller of this Olds is also open to considering trades. This car was a one-owner car until March 2014 and has a claimed 61,000 miles on the clock. The owner says that the mileage may increase slightly as they are still using this as a daily driver. A big thanks go out to Barn Finds reader Bill Walters for referring this one to us.

This appears on the surface to be a fairly honest vehicle. Whether the mileage claim can be verified is, of course, an open question. The thing that I find reassuring is that there appears to have been no effort by the seller to disguise any potential negatives with the car. They state that the paintwork is original and that it suffers the usual crazing on the hood and trunk lid that you can come to expect from lacquer of that vintage, and don’t I know about that. There are the usual dings and marks that you would expect from a daily driver but the nicely detailed photos supplied don’t really suggest any major problems. There are a couple of small rust spots starting to show on the bottom of the passenger side fender and passenger door (and in a couple of other places), but I think that these could be easily addressed.

The interior looks better than you would probably expect from a car of this age that is being used as a daily driver. The dash appears to be in good order with no obvious issues. The car comes fitted with the original Delco AM/FM Radio/Cassette that is fully functional. There is some discoloration to note on the seats and console, and there’s also some wear on the wheel. However, the seller emphasizes that everything works exactly as it should. The car also features a new headliner and the Astroroof has been rebuilt. My favorite feature is the 6-way electrically adjustable bucket seats. They’re the only electric chair that I want to have anything to do with.

Under the hood is the original 5.0l HO engine complete with factory dual exhaust (which is new). This is backed by the 4-speed automatic transmission. Once again the seller goes to great trouble indicating that everything functions exactly as it should. The only exception is the windshield washers. The car sports four new tires, and it was given a front end alignment when these were fitted. The alternator, battery, and fuel pump have been replaced, and the air con and auto transmission have been serviced.

This seller has gone to a great deal of trouble to help potential buyers be fully aware of what this car is. They have provided clear photos which identify both the good and the bad points of the car. They have given a comprehensive description of the recent work that has been performed on the car, and have listed all of the option codes from the Production Codes that this car features. The price of this car fits roughly at the middle to upper end of examples that are on the market at present. It is not the best one that I’ve seen, but it is by far and away not the worst one that I’ve seen either. I honestly don’t know whether or not I would actually buy it, but the sheer candor that the seller has demonstrated would give me some confidence if I were considering handing over the cash.

Comments

  1. Avatar Kenneth Ellis

    Nice car,not a 1982 though, it’s an 87,has the composite headlights,some were even built in early 1988 I think but not sure.

    Like 1
    • Avatar Adam Clarke Staff

      Thanks for that Kenneth. Not often that I manage to make the same typo twice in the one article. I think that it’s a first for me actually. All fixed mate.

      Like 1
    • Avatar Vin_in_NJ

      You are correct Kenneth. In 1988, they were released as the Cutlass Supreme Classic

      Like 0
  2. Avatar Nick

    I’ve been in touch with the seller, offering to trade my car for this one. He wasn’t interested, but was very nice to talk to. It’s a nice car, as mentioned in a similar car ad earlier today, I had one of these, stolen after a week, never to be seen again. I hope it finds a good home.

    Like 2
  3. Avatar Miguel

    Since when did used Cutlasses bring 5 digits?

    There has been two listed now in 2 days.

    Like 0
  4. Avatar Scott

    So what he is looking for in trade?

    Like 0
  5. Avatar Coventrycat

    If you squint you can pretend it’s a Grand National.

    Like 0
  6. Avatar Ryan

    I always thought the Cutlass was the prettiest of the G-bodies. The Grand Nat was bad ass, and The Monte SS was fun, but the Cutlass was classy. The Grand Prix isn’t even on my radar..

    Like 0

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