I can’t help but believe the number of drivetrain offerings that could be had in the 1975 Oldsmobile Cutlass wasn’t at least a small factor in propelling this line-up to being the best-selling Olds for ’75. These cars could be equipped with no less than four different engines, including a 250 cubic inch inline-six for economy-minded buyers, and a small 260 cubic inch V8. The popular middle-of-the-road powerplant was the 350. But the big cheese was a 455, and just the fact that it was still available after the energy crisis from the previous 2 years was encouraging, as this was a time when performance was taking a back seat in the auto industry. If you’re a fan of the colonnade body style and like the idea of a 455 under the hood, this 1975 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme may be right up your alley. It’s located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and can be seen here on Craigslist with a price tag of $17,500.
Barn Finds would like to take this opportunity to thank reader Rocco B. for the great tip on this one! We don’t get a whole lot of background information on this Cutlass, other than the fact that it has belonged to three different owners and has been well kept. No word on whether or not that’s the original finish, but the outside definitely presents well, although the seller says there are a few pops that could stand to be worked out in the paint and body. Even if no further attention was given to the exterior by the next owner, this car would still be a head-turner just like it sits.
That 455 is said to be the original VIN matching engine, and it’s paired up with a Turbo 400 automatic transmission. The seller says it is for sure beefed-up, and while this is not expanded on there’s a video included in the ad that gives a walk-around of the car plus that big block starting up and running, which no doubt seems to run strong and sounds great. Mileage is claimed to be 85,000. One anomaly from the video is that the car is wearing a different set of wheels and tires than in the photos. Those appear to be Oldsmobile rally wheels in the pictures, but if memory serves me correctly, those are Keystones shown in the video, so I’d ask for clarification on which rollers come with the car before getting too serious.
Inside, things are said to be immaculate, and judging from the photos the most obvious blemish I could spot was a small chunk out of a headrest, pretty minor in the grand scheme. There’s an aftermarket Stereo that looks like it has a CD player, plus a quad set of speakers in the back, so if you’re in the mood for some tunes you just might be able to drown out the sound of that 455. The seller also mentions that the best reasonable offer may be accepted, so there may be some room for negotiation if you like what you’re seeing here. What are your thoughts on this 1975 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme?
Not particularly fond of the exhaust tips and the speakers, but everything else about this beauty is sublime! GLWTS!! :-)
I like it just the way it is. Nice driver.
kinda surprised to see the column shift, Loved these cars in the 80’s. I had over a half dozen of them back when you could buy them for 500 or less with less than a hundred thousand miles on them
I owned a 75 Olds and loved it. This one seems a bit pricey to me. I can’t see 17.5K for a driver which I believe this one is. I would be worried about what is happening under that vinyl top. Looks like water is or has been under there doing some damage to me. And the Immaculate Interior statement is a stretch when the pics show foam sticking out on the drivers head rest.
This is one that will not look as good in person…guaranteed. The top is crap and the interior is pretty worn out. If it’s numbers-matching, that’s a plus but, it will take some coin to make it nice. Nice truck tires, btw, lol.
Nice to see it was the factory gauges ( many did not) and a 120 mph speedo that the later ones didn’t. My 77 came with the 86 mph one thanks to government intervention.
One thing though, I was under the impression that the Colonnade nomenclature referred to the fastback style, not the square roof couple version.
Nice car, power windows would be nice, original radio would be a plus, dashboard is cut for new one, but it’s only a bezel, easy fix, 455 is a nice setup, color combo nice too, keep the Oldsmobile wheels on it
I see several things jumping out as non- factory. However, for this comment, I’m focusing on the exhaust. The last true dual exhaust occurred in 1974, & that was probably only in some spirited trims like the 442. The catalytic converter with single exhaust debuted for model year 1975. I ran true dual on my ’75 by swapping in an earlier cross member that would accommodate the dual plumbing. So this example either was modified the same way or perhaps a cat-back exhaust. The exhaust note suggests the former.
Its nice but I don’t care for the seat, I had a 75 had the swivel buckets with floor shift and console people pw pl, had the 350 would have been nicer with the 455 that said that car was about the most dependable car I’ve owned, aside from normal maintenance it never once broke down. Wish I still had it. I traded even for a 72 mustang mach1 with a cobra jet 351 w code 4speed 391 locking 9”
I think that you were the winner in the Mach One trade with the right engine and a 4spd. I like the Olds but was always a fan of the 71-72 Mach Ones or Boss 351.Here are 3 I could have bought in the late 70’s that were all mint low mileage cars.
* A 72 Dark Blue / Argent 351-4V and practically every option on it under 25K miles $2600.0
* A 71 Red / Black 429 SCJ they wanted $4400.00 I thought they were nuts and the salesman told me we could pull the Engine and sell it for $2500.00 today that could be a $200K car.
* A 71 Boss 351 Silver / Black $3300.00 In my hometown back then there were 6 different Boss 351’s running around I know they were all different colors.
Why did I not buy them? I just wanted to put them away and store them I knew that one day they would be valuable but I had nowhere to store them. I
also could have grabbed 4 good SS Chevys then for under $1500.00 each from people that I knew.
I was 18 in ’73 and remember these pretty well. This was a time of lots of work around my area, and I had a good job and wanted a new car. Cutlass was high on the list but didn’t make the final cut.
Several of my friends and people I knew had one, most with 350s. Smooth performance car for the period. I liked them then and now. Sure there are a couple of nits on this one but they’re minor IMO for the overall condition.