College car-1977 Cutlass (dont want my gn to get jacked)

[Sinister86]

hey guys,
im lookin at cars for college because there is no way in hell im taking my 86 gn on a college campus (even if it is an art school) lol. anyway, the car im looking at right now is a 1977 olds cutlass, yellow with white landau top and white leather seats, bench in front with column shift, rocket 350 with turbo 350 trans and ralley wheels. its got a good bit of rust on it on the rear quarters thatll need new metal welded in and minor rust sports here and there on the body. i can get it for $1000 because its a friend of the family and the thing really runs great, im just afraid the bodywork would be a bitch on expense. new 1/4's are 159 a piece for metal and 340 a pair for fiberglass. do you guys think this car would be worth it? i love old boat type cars and i need a car i can just be comfortable to cruise in from my home in ohio to college in savannah georgia. chime in if you guys have any input, take it easy, Taylor

 

[bandwidthpolice]

Wow, deja vu. I drove a '76 Cutlass to college; however, it was a 3 year old car when I was a freshman. Paid $3750 for it, had 40K miles at the time. It was great; good looks and all. White, no vinyl roof with maroon cloth bench. Best part was it had a 350 with 2.41 rear gear. Still peppy off the line and top end was unbelievable (I had it over 100 up mountains). Best thing I did was put dual exhaust on it (you have to notch the trans xmember to make duals work) and a Holley Economizer. It was a small 450cfm carb that was spreadbore/Quadrajet based. It was all the engine needed and cruising at 60mph got me 21mpg. Hauled a heavy load too. I can't say enough good things about that car but you're right, the quarters do rust. If you can patch it from the lower bodyline down, then you should be ok. Just gravel guard it and top coat that. I had a double pinstripe on that line going over the wheel lips ala 442 and it really set it off. Man, I had fun in that car. Chicks dug it too.

 

[b4black]

I always liked the '77 Cultass. Beautiful, big car. Too bad all the rear bumpers fell off them.

 

[fitz3820]

I had a '76 Cutlass through HS and College. Very relaible, the Olds 350 had 220K on it when I gave it to my cousin. The motor was never opened up.

The smaller carb might be a nice option as mine got pretty crummy mileage. You can fit tons of people in it and it has a big back seat that comes in handy, if you know what I mean.

Big and comfy, I even beat my roommates 2.8 Camaro with it.

Have fun!

Mark F.

87 GN 11.9 @ 115

 

[scottyb]

Sounds like a good beater. Try to talk them down a few hundred, drive it to college, then unload it. Maintain it, but don't fix a thing unless it needs it. IMO. If you decide you want to keep it then fix it up after you graduate.

 

[Brian Mc]

Is it a Coupe or 4 door? It's probably vinyl seats and not leather..

 

[Black Box]

Dude, go for it. Those are nice, big cars. Gotta love big Oldsmobiles! My Mom used to have a '72 455 4bbl Vista Cruiser. Whatta car.
The Olds Cutlass was the best selling car in America in 1977.

I looked at an absolutely mint '76 Cutlass S coupe about 4 years ago with a 260 V8 with a 5-speed (yes it was, I drove it). It had the 'Aero" slanted front end, a la NASCAR. It was a beautiful Porsche silver with black leather interior & bucket seats. I still regret not buying it. Real fun to drive. It was owned by some 40-year-old-ish woman & her son. Her and her husband used to cruise it in cross-country. They really wanted me to buy it, we had a great Olds/NASCAR discussion, and I think they were pretty well convinced that I would take car of it. But I didn't have a garage spot at the time and I refused to make a car that perfect sit outside and rot. I still think about tracking her down and see if she still has it. They had another prospective buyer but said that he was a d!ck and would only give 'em $1500 for it. She was asking $3500, and trust me, it was well worth that price.

Steve