Jalopnik
We haven't seen many Oldsmobiles in this series, and it's been almost two months since the most recent station wagon, so this Custom Cruiser seems like the right car for today. This is actually our second '77 Olds Custom Cruiser wagon, the other one having been shot just a few blocks from today's car (which also lives just around the corner from the '71 Blazer we saw on Monday.
A few decades before getting the axe from The General, Oldsmobile was moving quite a bit of iron off the showroom floors, mostly Cutlasses but also plenty of wholesome American station wagons like this one.
Sometimes the owner of a DOTS car comes out to see what's going on while I'm shooting the car, and that's what happened with this one. This guy was pleased that his pride and joy was getting such attention, and was even willing to pop the hood and let me get shots of that 185-horse 403 (also known as the "6.6 Liter" under the hood of many a Malaise Trans Am). With 320 ft-lbs on tap, the 403 worked pretty well as a station wagon powerplant.
This is a lifelong Alameda car, having been purchased from the original owner not long ago. It parks on one of the busiest north-south arteries in town, showing all those SUV drivers what a real family hauler looks like.
Comments
Holiday rooooooAAAAAAooooAAAooooOOOOoooooAAAAAAAoooooooo-d
That takes me back. Way back.
Bummer about the AC.
I love those fat Michelins.
I didn't think Fred Durst would ever drive something so cool!
Ahhhh the shaggin wagon! What a great piece of Americana.
It says Oldsmobile, but I see Chevy. Chevy Chase, and the Family Truckster.
SUVs got a lot to answer for
@beercheck: Great spot! I never would've noticed.
What's kind of funny is that 1977 wss the year that GM's full-size cars were "downsized" (take a look at a '76 Olds wagon sometime for comparison -- if you can find one).
My father bought a new Chevy Impala that year, and said that it was the full-size car of the future, as we needed to conserve energy. Of course, Dad chose the 350/4-barrel engine, which was the biggest choice available.
Our neighbor, who used to buy a new Cadillac every two years, was so disappointed with how "small" the '77 Caddys looked that he planned to keep his 1976 Coupe de Ville forever.
You'd think Brett Favre's younger brother would drive something newer, like maybe an '82.
70s cars deserve big fat tires like this. They look right. They look mean. When I see a classic car rollin on 18" wheels, I cringe. It's gaudy. Performance aside, slapping big rims on an otherwise period correct car is like icing out your grandma. No, she looks better with the little heart-shaped locket.
@beercheck: Observation Of The Day
Can anybody submit a "down the street" article? There are cars here in the Midwest that you rust and snow free California folks might not ever see, like a 4WD Ford Tempo not too far from where I live. Bet'cha never seen one of those before.
@JSmith53: They're truck tires, oddly enough. I had a set on my old S10. I believe the wheels came from a 1/2 ton 2wd Chevy truck, as well.
I love the 77-89 GM full-size Genericar-- I learned to drive in an 86 Buick Electra Estate, in fact. It was preceded by an 82 Electra sedan inherited from my grandparents, and the wagon was succeeded by an 84 Pontiac Parisienne. They're great cars, in a way. Relatively huge (those wagons are 18' long, and approach 6.5' wide), hard to park, boast interesting winter handling, ship-like body roll, numb steering, and Malaise-era engine technology. add up to pure nostalgia. Part of me wants to scrape together a few hundred dollars and get one just to look at, even if I never drive it.
I hope the owner of this one takes good care of it. It looks pretty solid, so it should last him a while.
Good find!
@grzydj: I do believe that would make for a DOTS-Bonus Edition.
I've been meaning to go around town with my camera. I've also considered maybe leave a note for the guy at my company that drives a SWEET Mercury Bobcat wagon (daily driven outside of winter-- I've seen it out already), asking for pictures.
...and track down the Meanest Chrysler Imperial Ever.
Stunning piece of automotive art.
Ahhhhh he's a good irish boy, local union pride!!
Cutom Cuses a geat...long time no see
@grzydj: Start your own blog.
[skyrocketpenguin.blogspot.com]
Wagon Queen Family Truckster- that front end just screams it!
@Paul Y: There has been a disconcerting lack of Imperials DOTS. Perhaps Murilee would like some pictures of my '67 Crown Coupe?
The kid's not yet familiar with the concept of "overhang", I guess- I like how the front plate is folded under, and the rear plate is peeled up. You can stop before you hit the curbstone, y'know.
Reminds me of Buick Estate Wagon my family had as our first N/A car when we arrived in Canada. Dad decides to drive to Thunder Bay and a week later we're still not close to it. Good times...
The condition of said front and rear licence plates indicate stong evidence of unauthorizied hoonage which resulted in danger to the general public.
Points given for it being a shade of brown (the only other option for a '70s grocery-getter being green, of course)- but I hope he's planning on ameliorating the deplorable lack of faux paneling on that thing.. they still sell it on rolls down to the DollarMart, after all...
Shame about the missing woodgrain though.
@slantsick: I swear I didn't see that when I posted.
Family. Truckster... I don't care if anyone else said it already.
@Smells_Homeless: And about the filth inside. Given the age of the driver, the recent purchase, the decals, and the messy interior, I have the sinking feeling that this car will not look as good in two years as it does today. Kinda ruins the DOTS vibe for me.
Sometimes the owner of a DOTS car comes out to see what's going on while I'm shooting the car, and that's what happened with this one.
So, is this guy actually living in the Olds?
Murilee - Just out of curiosity, what name did you give him?
I love how the badge is completely missing on the front - really reinforces the generic car that will take anything you give it and keep on keeping on image.
I'm really digging the Chevy truck rally wheels. nice solid ride!
@west-coaster:
Another funny thing is that the second generation of the "downsized" full-size cars, was almost back to pre-1977 sizes. The 1993 Fleetwood was only about 4 inches shorter than the '71s.
It's great to see his smile--he's got his dream car right here--and joy of joys, it's a wagon.
Flipping that air cleaner lid would give this animal a whole new personality.
Come away with me Lucille
In my Merry Oldsmobile
Down the road of life we'll fly
Auto~mo~bubbling, you and I
@slantsick: I usually folded mine trying to get in and out of sharply inclined driveways. I actually got pulled over for a "bent license plate" in my 1970 98 (model, not year) and ended up going to jail, eventually. Not for the bent plate exactly, for the wrong bent plate...
That's one proud man. This car needs an aggressive converter for the trans, 4.10s in the rear, and cherry bombs.
@mytdawg: (model, not year) - I guess that was unnecessary.
@beercheck: COTD, keen eyes and few words edition.
If only it were 2 years older...you could pull 100 lbs of smog crap and vacuum hoses out of the engine bay and free up another 50 hp.
Also: no pictures of the owners, unless they're crazy old people shaking fists at you from behind the shrubbery.
My mom bought a green and fake-wood-paneled '78 custom cruiser with the 403 that my dad used to haul his boat. He burned through a few transmissions dragging the boat around so he dropped in a GMC truck transmissions with lower gear ratios. When my friends and I were in the car (I would have been in my pre-teens to early-teens) he used to light up the tires at stop lights just to show off.
With so much rear overhang, you often scraped the rear bumper on the pavement accelerating out of steep driveways - extra fun in the rear-facing third row. Better than an SUV any day.
@Meat Farley: Great! Now that song is stuck in my head!
Yes, this is the "little" Custom Cruiser. What you want is the full size car...
God I love those things.
To compliment the under the hood shot we could have used a picture of the rear facing seat lingering behind that mammoth tailgate.
The 403 Olds...second behind the 301 Turbo on the list of second generation T/A motors that should have never been.
The 403 Olds...second behind the 301 Turbo on the list of second generation T/A motors that should have never been.
Actually a stock 403 would get a T/A up to about 140 with the stock gearing. It could have been worse. But the best thing about it was that you could bolt in a 455 Olds with some "minor adjustments". Makes 'em kinda squirrely though...
@mytdawg:
That was one of those great GM wagons with the "magic tailgate" (aka clamshell) that slid down into the floor.
You could also get these with a 455.
@grzydj: Send Murilee an email with some pictures and a short writeup (murilee@jalopnik.com).
If you search Jalopnik for "DOTS bonus edition" you'll see the cars that me, Kitt, and various others have submitted.
@mytdawg: That's cool and all, but what you really want is a Vista Cruiser. Those're the ultimate (non-finned, anyway) wagons.
Dear murilee,
you continue to impress me with your great taste in cars that are sometimes overlooked by many high-end car aficionados. Everyday people driving everyday cars that stood the test of time...that's where real car enthusiasts come in, I think. Especially these DOTS Detroit station wagons are very precious to me. It proves now and again that the SUV craze was just such a hoax on the automotive landscape, and that these station wagons have hundred times more class than those landhogs.
Thank you!
God save the DOTS!