The Cutlass S was the sportier version of the Supreme, with more of a fastback look and fewer amenities. The cars were redesigned for 1973 as GM went to a “Colonnade” styling approach to their intermediates (sedans with pillarless doors). This ’73 Cutlass S has the looks of both a survivor and a sleeper with a reported 18,000 miles – but it’s anything but stock under the hood. Offered by a dealer in Henderson, Nevada, this one-of-a-kind Oldsmobile comes with a lofty price tag here on craigslist. The asking price — $79,980. Thanks for the interesting tip, T.J.!
From the factory, this Oldsmobile was a well-optioned car. Swivel bucket seats, Hurst T-Tops, factory air conditioning, and power steering and brakes. The Moss Gold paint looks spotless, flanked by a matching vinyl top and all-vinyl interior. There don’t seem to be any flaws in the car’s appearance although in a couple of photos it looks as there may be some bubbling under the top but it could be the lighting.
The seller refers to this car as a restomod because of the work that has recently been done. Instead of its original engine and transmission (350 V8/Turbo-Hydramatic?), an LS3 Chevrolet motor is present. The displacement is 376 cubic inches, and it produces 430 hp and 424 lb.-ft of torque. It’s paired with a 6-speed automatic, and we’re told the car will go at least 150 mph. Definitely not your father’s Oldsmobile!
These changes have apparently just been completed and the original drivetrain will follow the car on a stand. It looks like a beautiful vintage auto, but you have to wonder what prompted this transformation. If the car only has 18,000 actual miles and its beautiful condition is original, why not leave the factory drivetrain intact? And if you’re looking for a show car that no one else will have, is it worth twice the money with the 376 than it might fetch with the matching-numbers setup?
$80k no way…
This car is going to be listed for a looooonnnngggg time at that price!🤣. Good luck.
Not original not the asking price
$80K???? Must have a full tank of gas.
Stock it’s probably worth 25 ? So basically a 55,000 LS swap . Hard pass …
they are wanting charger money for this one, good luck getting it
Ho Lee Chit! 25k imho
Hope owner likes this car because at that price they will own it forever.
Comparing this body style to the 70-72 Cutlass. What was GM thinking?
That rollover standards, higher a/c take rates and a desire for less wind noise would spell the end of the pillarless hardtop. And that gas would stay cheap forever so the midsize models which had been conceived as the same size as a pre-1957 full size “Low-Priced 3” car were free to grow to the size of the 1965-68ish full size models but with long-hood/short-deck styling that killed space utilization and forced mechanics to lean past three feet of dead space to reach the engine…
Still, the Colonnade was a handsomer car than the Fords.
That’s gotta be a “honey, I tried to sell it but nobody wants to buy” price.
I looked at their website. Their pricing ranges from plausible to hilarious. If I lived closer, I’d be tempted to express interest in this PLC, not balk at the price, and then walk away when they hit me with their $200 documentation fee.
80K for a LS swap Olds come on. This person doesn’t want to sell this car or looking for that one magic moment when that person steps up and says great buy. Could be a while, got to love the classic car game.
I live about 3 miles from this dealer. Everything there is overpriced 2x+. And why is a Nevada dealer offering a car on the OKC Craigslist??
Real sleeper would surprise some cars on the open desert 🏜 hwy in Nevada. Be a lot of fun.
The vinyl top and T-roofs are aftermarket, not factory. GM Never did offer Hurst T-Tops on these collonade roofs, but ASC did. Only on the formal roof coupes (like the Indy Pace Car) could you order T-Tops.
And no tee top at all on any colonnade in 1973. I believe (could be wrong…someone let me know if I am) the first colonnade body with tee top was in 1975 on the Hurst Olds, I believe the rest got them in 1976 or 1977.
I have a friend that has a 1973 Chevelle with tee tops Sawzall’d in place. I believe the factory equipped tee top cars must have some reinforcement bracing in the roof, because his Chevelle flexes in the roof like a slinky.
80.000 wow, i think 30 would even high
All I can say is – there´s an ass for every seat, even at this obscene price.
$25,000 if it had the original engine. $5000 with the LS
80k? Owner must be a follower of in P.T. Barnum.
I am an Olds Cutlass guy, about to drop an LS into a 79 Cutlass T-Top, but even I can’t see the logic here. As the collonade models go, the 76-77 got the lines, proportions and front fascia right. The 73, not so much. Why someone would choose this car (and in this color???) to restomod is question #1. How they could think doing so makes the car worth $80k is question #2. If the engine is a junkyard pull-out, it costs less than $3K in this part of the world, not sure about NV.
PS – my 79 only has 39k original miles, but to answer the question “why not leave the factory drivetrain intact?”, mine’s a 260 diesel. Not sure what this seller’s logic was, as I expect the original motor was at least a 350, if not a 403 or 455.
Is the availability and price of drugs so good in NV ?
Are the drugs so potent that car dealerdhips are totally smashed?
Asking for a friend !
No 403s in 73. And being a base cutlass not a 442 or hurt olds. It would had a 350 180 hp. A few years back sold a 73 colenade. It was a roller. The fella who bought it put an ls motor in it. Last I knew he couldn’t sell it for 10000. So iam thinking 80000 is a barret Jackson price. These car deals piss me off. They ruined the hobby by asking these ridiculous prices.
Mecum sold a numbers-matching 1973 Cutlass S with a 455 and swivel seats at Chicago in 2015.
That’s a $19,000 car all day long, we’ll maybe…
The seller refers to this car as a restomod because of the work that has recently been done.
Someone needs to clue the seller in as to what a ‘restomod’ is.
Thiers gold in them there hills!!!
People are price gouging everything these days and they are getting away with it most of the time. If you want or are building a classic car, buy it now, for these prices have already killed many Son & Pop projects.
It seems to be in great condition, but for 80G’s I think there needs to be a drug test.
Funny. When I saw it was in Henderson and the price of $80K I knew it could only be from one person selling it. Or rather one dealer. But laugh as much as you want, he sells a lot of cars there
In a capitalistic economy, the price of an item is determined by supply and demand. So apparently this dealer´s ¨outrageous¨ pricing is right on target. Should he be wrong, he would have bit the dust long ago. Since he is still very much in business, he is pushing all the right buttons – NOT his critics, they simply don´t understand how the system works. This has nothing to do with price gouging, neither does the document fee, since the dealer is by law charged with executing all DMV paper work, which requires a whole bunch of people, all of whom must be paid and none of whom make an excessive amount of money, quite the contrary. When I worked for Ralph Williams Chrysler-Plymouth in Houston eons ago, we sold a lot of cars at a loss, for a great variety of reasons (reposessions etc), so somewhere a dealer has to make up for such losses.
The pricing is “right on target” only if they are actually selling the cars for the posted price, which in the case of this particular unit, is highly doubtful. Likely their approach is to price very high, hoping for that one “gotta have it” buyer, that guy that had one just like that in high school and now has the savings to splurge on the nostalgia. If that buyer doesn’t show, they’ve started so high, they’ve got a lot of meat on the bone for haggling down to a price another buyer who wants it bad, but not list price bad, is willing to give. Other dealers opt to price more reasonably and sell more cars each year. That’s their choice, but they do turn off a lot of potential buyers with crazy high starting prices, and I agree that pricing approaches like this do steer some people away from the hobby. I’ve talked to many who said things like “I wanted to get another Camaro/Mustang/GTO like I used to have, but 5 minutes of searching online made clear that wasn’t going to happen. Now sure, those folks may not have the drive to dig out the best deal, but when you have to sort through dozens of ads from sellers with Barrett Jackson fever, it does deter some folks.
The idea of pushing 430 hp and 424 lb/ft of torque to skinny 14″ whitewalls is both hilarious and terrifying.
Put the 350 back in it, sell the LS motor to one of the motor trend shows, that’s all they use now, and 18,000 for a nice low mileage 73 Oldsmobile, nothing on this car supports that drivetrain, suspension, rear end, brakes, tires, it couldn’t do 150 mph without another 50 large in upgrades
I’ve actually driven a 73 back in 74. The car was beautiful and had a lot of punch. I surely would like a car like this, but an Oldsmobile like this is worth as much as someone is willing to pay. Good luck!
Wow ! That’s a nice 73 but WOW ! Maybe if it had an LSX and a 6 speed and a Currie sheetmetal 9 inch and an aftermarket chassis , maybe .
Nice car and cool with that engine and trans combo BUT 80K is a lot of money and I just don’t see it with this Olds.
Probably ASC tee tops, American sunroof corp, cause I don’t believe they were available in that vehicle in 73, my 73,Grand Prix has factory sunroof, not moonroof,