So-called “four-door coupes” have been a fashionable trend over the last decade, typically characterized by a sleek roofline and frameless door glass, but if you ask me, for true more-door style it’s hard to beat a full-on pillarless hardtop sedan. Although legislated out of existence for very sound reasons back in the 1970s, in their heyday they allowed sedans to stand proud as the sleek, stylish equal of their two-door counterparts. Finished in a classy brown and set off by ample—yet somehow not overdone—bright trim, for my money this 1969 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Holiday (that’s Olds-speak for hardtop) sedan is every bit as attractive as a contemporary Cutlass coupe. If you feel the same, you’ll want to bring your money—at least $3,350 of it as of this writing with the reserve unmet, or a healthy $11,500 if you want to buy it now—to Jupiter, Florida, where this 34,000 mile beauty is listed on eBay. Thanks to Bob J. for the find!
Helping the Cutlass sedan’s proportions is its just-right wheelbase, splitting the difference at 114″ between the two-door’s 112″ and the Vista Cruiser wagon’s 121″. Rear seat ingress and egress was never helped by the smallish window openings required for the glass to retract all the way into the doors, but once inside the feeling of airiness makes riding in a hardtop feel extra special.
The inside story of this two-owner car is one of exceptional cleanliness and originality. The fabric has held up perfectly, and the dash is totally crack-free. In addition to the original AM radio shown here, the seller says that a period-correct dealer-installed 8-track player has been installed under the dash, which will come with a selection of tapes. If there’s no Carpenters in there, I say no deal. Also included are the original floor mats, owner’s manual, and Protect-O-Plate.
The original Chestnut Bronze paint photographs very nicely, but the seller is upfront that there are “a lot of touch-up spots on the doors and rear fenders,” so kudos to them for honesty. Not pictured is the 350 cubic inch, 4-BBL V8, which should be good for 310 horsepower (gross, of course), routed through a three-speed Turbo Hydra-Matic. The car is said to have recently taken several longer trips without incident, but I’d still want to see more documentation of maintenance; still, only those most irrationally opposed to cars with more than two doors would be able to deny the appeal of this handsome, all-original Olds sedan!
That car presented like that is a very good looking sedan. Maybe as good as those 69 corvair 4dr sedan I lust after. There’s a little Toronado thown in for good measure.
I can’t argue with your taste…I’ve had my ’65 Corvair sedan since I was 17!
I’m glad I’m not the only one seeing Toronado when I looked at this car. Beautiful lines.
A four door cannot be a coupe, if it has four doors and no pillar, it’s a four door pillarless hardtop.
Two doors good, four doors bad.
Versus; a four door pillard hard top coupe. Why is everyone so afraid to say SeeeDan? Besides, coops are for chickens. What ever happened to four door hardtop sedans?
Thusly, my ’56 Plymouth Belvedere is a pillard two door hardtop coupe. Right? Uhhhh, can’t be. Plymouth business ‘coupes’ of the 40s and 50s didn’t have a back seat. Why isn’t it called a five window coupe ((plus two wing vent windows)?
Why is life so confusing? ‘Think I’ll go out and feed the chickens.
Very sharp car…a little pricey, $7,500 would be a nice buy.
Much more stylish than our new 69 Delta 88 pillared sedan.
SAM and cousins circa summer 1969 Rockford, Illinois.
Hey Sam, any chance you are kin to the late Sue Ford her married name?? She has alot of family in Rockford. Just curious she was my aunt by marriage. Thanks. Mark Collier.
Nobody says ‘four door coupe’. It would also be nice if people stopped referring to four doors as ‘more doors’, nobody refers to two doors as ‘fewer doors’.
We always called ’em many doors.
RoKo read the first six words of the article.
What makes you say that? I read the entire article.
RoKo, get an eye sight check. Word three is “four “ word four is “four “, word five is “coupe”. Combine them together and it says “ four door coupe “. Sorry but I can’t explain it any more clear than that.
What about the sixth word you told RoKo to look at, Wayne? Have.
Really lovely design.
I miss my 68
What is disturbing; there appears to be a repair to the left ‘B stub’ pillar.
there is a reflection in that picture, it extends to the door as well
Look at the pic again … no damage
I expanded it out further. The door hinge looks like something that should not be on a nicely painted car. Fresh metal below the hinge. No reflections in my pics like what is on the door. Never can tell on these I-pad pics.
Nope… Still looks bad. Unpainted hinge as well in my pics. Looks like rust further down the stub from the hinge.
Main reason that I have someone look stuff over if I can’t be there. A different angle on the pic might help. Still a neat car.
I like this; but no A/C in a Florida car? No wonder it’s for sale. A hardtop, by definition, is pillarless. The correct body style for this car is 4 door hardtop.It has a 116″ wheelbase. The 2 dr. wb was 112″
Yup, 4 Door Hardtop
I’m just gonna call a spade a spade. These cars are fugly. I love some 4-door sedans…police cars, for example, but this is not exciting in the least. It’ll likely end up with 26″ “rimz” on it.
Gotta like those swoopy fenders on the olds Cutlass, have a look all their own. Always thought these looked even better with aftermarket rims. That 350 makes for a decent cruiser.
$1200 purchase .. Plus 1000$ for brakes and tires and away we go
We had a 69 Vista Cruiser which I always considered to be a stretched Cutlass. Our VC was a great, smooth-riding car.
Nice Car Robb……way to go. I love those old floaters as i call them. Thanks for sharing that sweet car pic.
It’s a 4 door HARDTOP. Come on, if it has an “A”, “B” and “C” roof pillars it’s a Sedan, if it doesn’t have the “B” pillar it’s a Hardtop 2 or 4 door, look at any period sales brochures from back when the made “Hardtops” or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMJUb75flTU
For the old car geeks, Oldsmobile called their “Hardtops”, “Holiday Sedans”. But anyway about it, 4 door hardtops are great sunny day cruisers, and now way more rare than 2 door “Coupes” or 2 door “Hardtops”.
Out of all the cars I’ve owned my oldsmobiles have always been my favorites. A reliable well built car. In my opinion out of all the cars GM made Oldsmobile was the cream of the crop
Amazing how good the ’68-72 GM A bodies looked as 4 dr Hardtops. Chalk and cheese compared to 4 dr sedan versions.
Many hardtop coupes and sedans went out of production after 1972 due to the fear of rollover standards that never materialized. It’s part of the same reasons convertibles went out of production after 1976. Ultimately there was no law that prohibited them.
Pillared hardtops appeared for many sedans while the opera window became popular for coupes. Hardtop roofs never made a comeback due to cost of manufacture and modern crash safety. Ultimately buyers did not miss them much anyway as they got used to newer downsized cars with full door frames and pillared roofs. Fortunately convertibles did make a comeback.
The drawback to hardtop vehicles was sealing the frameless glass from water and air leaks and keeping the glass from rattling and squeaking. Full door frames solved a lot of those problems and contributed to a better build quality that was more satisfying to customers.
Concerning pillared coupes, car manufacturers loved not having the expense of roll down rear quarter windows as it was cheaper and more profitable to put fixed quarter windows or opera windows in the C pillars.
I had a ’71 2dr and it ran like a bat out of -well you know what. The 350 never failed even in the 20 below Minnesota winters. The only soft spot was the center of the front bumper on the ’68- ’72 ‘s. Just one little bump and it folded faster than wet newspaper. Overall, it was a great car that got decent mileage and an engine bay that uncluttered for easy maintenance.
The rear door has nothing to do with entry and exit because of the ability to roll down the rear window. That’s solely the styling and design.
Rear windows rolled down fully in the sedans. And the shape of the doors is the same.
Mercedes can call their frameless door glass four door sedan and MINI their four door whatever “hardtops”, but they’re not.
No manufacturer ever called their two door sedans and coupes “posts”, but people seem to like to add a redundant [and meaningless] word.
Chevrolet used the term “sport sedan” for their four door hardtops.
i cant say i have ever seen one of these before
that little square of vinyl and trim on the top rear of the rear door …
I want this Olds!