Minneapolis Street Sighting: Chevrolet Lumina Euro four door

During the mid 1980s, GM came up with a new front-wheel-drive platform to do battle with Ford's Taurus. Like Ford's entry in the midsize market, the GM W-bodies had V6 power, and were front-wheel-drive. Also, akin to Ford, the GM cars had sporting variants. However, unlike Ford's Taurus SHO, the sporting versions of these new GM front-drives was limited to exterior changes only. The Chevrolet Lumina came in two sporting variants during the first generation's 1990-1994 model run-- the higher-class Z34, and the middle-ground Euro, which was available as a two-door coupe as well as a four-door sedan.
These cars differed from the base model in that a racier rear "wing" was added, black and red trim donned the rocker panels, and a more sporty wheel choice flanked all four corners. On of the most minor changes that set the Euro apart was the red "Lumina" lettering on the trunk. Yes, it's a minute difference, but one that adds just enough "flair" to set the Euro apart from the more basic cars. While no sports car, I still maintain that the first generation "hot" Luminas looked pretty good in their day, and still do today.








Unfortunately, most of the surviving Luminas Euros are in terrible condition. Rust plagued the rear wheelwells, and the door bottoms, and the rear suspension didn't cope under heavy loads, and these cars eventually fell by the wayside. Often popular choices as beaters for GM fanboys and W-Body enthusiasts alike, the survival rate for clean Euros is fairly low.
This car doesn't quite fit the "clean" label. While there's not quite enough rust to call this one a beater, this poor Euro does exhibit signs of a hard life led. The hood is showing some signs of rust creeping up through the metal, and the rear wheelarches are getting eaten, but aside from those two spots, the body looks fairly decent--for a Minnesota vehicle. The only main issue I take with this example, and I didn't see it when I rolled up on the curbside of the car. The Cutlass Supreme not only looks out of place, but the wheel design doesn't mesh with the Lumina's styling either. It looks... better suited to the Oldsmobile's shape (well duh), and most definitely does not belong here.
Finding first generation Luminas is a rare sight here, and finding one of the "nicer" ones is proving to be a tad more difficult than originally intended. Thankfully, this almost-dead example is still kicking, though I doubt it will be for much longer. I'm glad I spotted this one when I did, though since I shot this I have seen three immaculate Euro sedans--when I didn't have any way to shoot them.