Minneapolis Street Sighting: Oldsmobile Cutlass convertible

I have always been a sucker for some muscle cars, but like all automotive enthusiasts, I have my favorites; from a young age, the Oldsmobile Cutlass has been a nameplate that I've always loved, no matter what the bodystyle. Even the dowdy Calais from 1985-1991 was sort of a "do want" car for me as a child. There was one particular generation of Cutlass I never cared for, and that was the final generation of the nameplate; in 1997, GM decided to slap the much-heralded name onto a non-descript four-door midsize almost-economy car. But, I can see the logic. It was almost an exact clone of the Chevrolet Malibu. Just as it was 25 years prior to that car's introduction.

 Like its front-wheel-drive counterparts, these 1970s A-bodies could either be had in economical forms (base, six-cylinder, automatics) or muscle car forms (455 cubes and a four-speed sticks), and could be had in a variety of bodystyles (also like the modern front-wheel-drive counterparts). While no real muscle car, the step-down from the 442 was still a nice looking car, and certainly had more attitude than its modern-day counterpart.

 As far as GM's A-bodies goes (and this also holds true for their FWD counterparts) I've liked the Oldsmobiles the best, and this convertible is no exception. I've liked the convertibles more than the fastbacks, but I think I like the notchback best. However, I have not seen a notchback in the flesh, so this one has to do.

I dig the triple white scheme, and the color-keyed rallye wheels are icing on the cake. Oddly enough, the black-on-white collector plates look like they were made with this Cutlass in mind. Paint finish is great, as well as trim, though there are a few things that bug me a bit. First off, this example looks like, while it is pampered, it is also a daily driver. Unfortunately, this Cut has earned a little bit of road rash, but on the plus side, it looks easily fixable

Inside, all was well, too, but there was one glaring problem; the alignment was a bit screwed up as evidenced by the off-canter steering wheel; other than that, the interior was in as nice of shape as the exterior, and its one place I'd gladly plant myself for a nice roadtrip.

I don't see many Cutlasses, but when I do they fall into two categories--half-assed donks, or redneck beaters. I'm glad I was able to shoot a nice one--at nighttime no less. I hope I can find a nicer one now that I know what I'm doing with my camera :)