This Oldsmobile Cutlass is an interesting car. It is a fourth generation car and until recently it has been sitting idle. Prior to the current owner bringing it back to life it hadn’t run since 1994. It is for sale here on eBay with a clear title. Located in Scranton, Pennsylvania, the owner has set an opening bid of $6,500 but there are currently no bids.
It feels like the photos for this one have been taken through a soft focus filter. They make for interesting photography, but make it harder to pick out details and potential issues. From what we can see though the car looks to be in pretty reasonable condition. The paint has a decent shine to it and looks to be rust-free as near as we can tell from the photo. When I first looked at the trunk I thought that there may have been some issues with the finish, but I think that it’s actually a reflection of the clouds above the car. By the way, those nice looking white wall tires are brand new.
Under the hood is the 260ci V8. This engine was an addition to the Cutlass range for 1975, and was adopted as a compromise between V8 power and economy following the 1970s oil crisis. Sadly these engines were strangled by the introduction of catalytic converters and unleaded gas in 1975, so they never got to show their full potential. When the seller revived this Olds he performed a number of sensible jobs on it. As well as the previously mentioned tires he added new brakes, radiator, master cylinder, hoses, belts, battery, and gave it a tune up and oil change. The Cutlass is also fitted with air con.
And now a lesson in how to not photograph an interior. What we get is this shot and one of the driver’s door card, which looks to be in good condition. All that we can tell is that this section of the dash pad is free of cracks and has a nice shine. Unfortunately there is no mention of the condition of the interior in the ad, but I would expect it if the owner’s claim of 30,000 genuine miles is correct it should be in good condition. We do know that it is fitted with a bench seat, so the swivel bucket was not ticked on the options list.
This Olds is quite a nice car that would be made all the more appealing with better photos. It appears to be in good condition. Being the 260 V8 could be seen as either a blessing or a curse. The smaller capacity V8 should greatly enhance economy, but the lack of capacity may undermine its street cred. The opening bid amount seems to be fair, especially if that mileage can be verified. Is this a car that would interest you, or does it just lack the muscle to make it appealing?
Photos 1, 2, and 5 taken by the original owner’s kid when it was brought home in ’74.
The 260 engine is a dog. This is a ten second car from 0-60. To bad about the engine in it besides that I really like it. 3-5 thousand at most.
110 hp in a 4000 lb car. Try 0-60 in 15-16 seconds.
http://www.automobile-catalog.com/make/oldsmobile/cutlass_4gen/cutlass_4_salon_coupe/1975.html
10 seconds was sports-car territory from the mid 70s through the mid 80s. They don’t call them the Malaise Years for nothing.
Those ’70s GM dashes usually cracked really badly. That one looks like it might have a plastic cover over it.
We don’t even know if it runs. The seller didn’t give much of a description and what is there is vague. He left out a lot of important facts, and besides that, his pictures are worthless.
Great advertisement. This looks like the poster ad for the “I really don’t want to sell it” crowd.
My sister had a 75 Cutlass coupe pretty close to this. Hers had a Chevy straight six, though. Very sluggish on takeoffs, but once you got it going, it glided along nicely at highway speeds. I think the rear end was geared high for economy IMO.
My first car exactly except my color was the maroon. This should have a 4 barrel carb. Mine was no where near as fast as my buddies 1973 with the rocket in it but mine did get better gas milage and road much nicer and was better looking. Sony stereo and Jensen coaxials. All set up baby. Would love to have her again. Some day.
That “soft focus” happens when the seller fails to clean the fingerprints off the phone’s camera lens.
Nice car, but that’s a lot of money for an underpowered heavy car. Hope it finds a good home.
The anemic 260 is a deal breaker here. Just imagine what a dog it would be with the A/C running. A 350 with a little tuning would not only run better it would likely return better gas mileage as well. My sister had a 74 and my buddy had a 73 which was a 442 equipped with the 350 and a Muncie 4 speed neat car that was totalled long ago. Come to think of it so was my sister’s 74. These were good cars but I would prefer a 6 cylinder to the 260!
As 68custom says, the 260 is a deal breaker. I had a 79 with a 260 and the car was simply a dog. And yes, a 350 is what it needs.
For a short time I had a Pontiac Phoenix with the 260/auto engine/trans. It made a lot of satisfying roaring engine sounds when I’d hit the gas, but there was little forward motion. The Toyota Corolla with a 5sp manual I also drove was quicker.
My opinion is that the opening bid is set to high! Drop that down and it would probably exceed that opener!
I like the look of this car.
If it was half the price and closer, I might want to take a look.