Barn Finder Jack M has spotted this Oldsmobile for us, so thank you for that Jack. By the time the 5th Generation Oldsmobile 442 arrived, the car was a very different vehicle to the one that originally graced the showrooms in 1964. Tightening design and emission laws had changed the face of vehicle design, but there was still some scope available for manufacturers to at least keep the memories of those earlier days alive. This 1987 Oldsmobile 442 is listed for sale here on Craigslist. Located in Westwood, Massachusetts, it is being offered for sale with a clean title. You can own this 442 for an asking price of $13,000.
The owner of this Oldsmobile is the car’s second owner, having purchased it from the original, older owner in 2015. He claims that the car has covered a genuine 69,000 miles. The car certainly presents well and looks to be in completely original condition. The paint looks good, with only a few minor chips to note. The car is also fitted with the optional T-Roof.
The interior is original, and it’s pretty close to perfect. There is some slight discoloring of the carpet, but the remainder of the trim looks really nice. One of my favorite indicators of high mileage is wear on the wheel rim, and this looks to be quite good. The seller also states that the car is in good mechanical order, with a small leak from the front of the automatic transmission being the only issue. The car is also fitted with air conditioning, and this has recently been updated to the latest refrigerant.
The 1987 Oldsmobile 442 marked the end of an era for the model designation, as it was the final year of production of the rear wheel drive 442. This one isn’t perfect, but it does appear to be in nice condition. With an engine that produced 170hp, it was a long way removed from the examples that used to pack close to 400hp, but this is the last of the breed. Maybe that’s a good enough reason to own one.
I had one for a week. It was stolen, never to be seen again. Super nice looking cars, but dogs when it comes to power. Low compression, detuned timing chain, single exhaust, and miles of vacuum lines. Whenever I think about maybe buying another, I think about how underpowered and what a pain these are to work on, and then I change my mind. But, to each his own, and I hope this nice one finds a good home.
Nick, these were, I guess they still are, the easiest cars to steal.
Yo had to buy the steel collar for the steering column to protect them.
A good friend at the time bought one of these new because he loved the styling too. His developed a carburetor issue where the car ran rough at idle, however, the 442 still had under 10K original miles and was under warranty. He took it to three different GM dealership Service Departments and each time the Service Tech told him that he had found the problem, that it was a vacuum line, or float bowl or this, but the problem still persisted. Once his warranty expired though, those same dealerships gladly offered to order him a NOS carburetor to the tune then of about $600. He gladly declined and promptly traded his 442 in on a new 4th Gen Camaro and immediately had it painted UT Vols Orange.
Last of the real cars, I upgraded mine, 350 alum. heads, muncie 4spd. 3:42 posi, poly bushings front and back, monte quick ratio steering box, f41 suspension, inner fender X braces, alum inner bumper reinforcements. like most cars, if you want performance you got to do it yourself.