zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Buying
/
At $12,500, Could This 1983 Olds Cutlass Brougham Convertible Get You to Go Topless?
At $12,500, Could This 1983 Olds Cutlass Brougham Convertible Get You to Go Topless?-August 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:09:48

Cutting a car’s roof off is usually a bad idea, structurally speaking. That is, unless it’s a body on frame like today’s Cutlass. Let see if this custom droptop’s price makes you weak in the knees.

There are lots of things called Mega in America. There are Mega Churches, Mega Millions Lottos, and even Mega Burgers for people who won’t be happy until they’ve eaten an entire cow in one sitting.

We’re not ones to be left out of significant cultural phenomena so last Friday we brought you a , one of the mega-i-est Megas of all. Still, with a $39,999 price, not even that truck’s mega-capable 12,900-pound towing capacity could pull out a win, and in fact it fell in a mega-big 90 percent Crack Pipe loss.

Big trucks are still popular here in the U.S., with Ford’s F-series still taking home the sales crown year after year after boring year. You know what though? That wasn’t always the case. You might be surprised to learn what cars vied for that top spot back in the ‘80s. In the first year of that decade the Chevy took top honors with the Chevette. They sold nearly half a million of those little shitboxes. The next year Ford captured the title with the F-series, a harbinger of things to come.

In 1983, the crown went back to GM, however not to Chevy’s Chevette as people had caught on by then. No, the top selling car of 1983 would prove to be the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, which apparently was named in anticipation of the victory.

The G-body Cutlass Supreme would be the last of the models to ride on a separate body-on-frame platform, and in fact would stay with that until 1988. The rest of the Cutlass lineup went FWD in ‘82. It’s that ladder frame design that makes this even worth considering.

As the ad notes, Olds never made a convertible Cutlass of this era. No, these were converted by a company called ASC. Now, ASC originally stood for American Sunroof Company, but when they found out that the big bucks were in the removal of car roofs rather than just punching holes in them, they changed the name to American Specialty Cars.

Back when they chopped this Olds’ top off they were still American Sunroof. You can tell that by the paper tag that’s amazingly still on the car. Now, ASC did fine work and so, even though the top on this Olds looks a bit untidy when erect (who of us doesn’t?) it’s probably pretty well engineered and likely reasonably water tight.

The white paint job is claimed to be new and if your name just so happens to be Lola then you’re already set with the driver’s side detailing. There’s a little Von Dutch treat going on in back, and all the typically decrepit plastic work—bumper caps, grille work, etc.—all seem to be in decent shape. A set of 15 inch Billet Specialties wheels underpin and to those are mounted some reasonably new tires.

Under the long-ass hood sits an Olds 350 V8 with a new carburetor and aluminum intake. Behind that sits a TH350 three-speed slusher that’s claimed to currently have issues getting into top gear. You know, just like Chris Evans.

The interior is when the party starts to take a turn. The leather/vinyl seating surfaces are discolored and as puckered as an elephant’s under-tail. There’s some stitching that’s gone all Pooh Bear in there too. Perhaps most egregiously, there’s a Grant steering wheel that greets you.

The seller says the car is one of only 250 convertibles built—a modest contribution to the Cutlass Supreme’s stellar year—and that it comes with just 99,000 miles on the clock. Other notable factoids in the ad: the title is clean and the car is described as ‘100% rust free.’

Those are all admirable bonafides, but do they add up to the car’s $12,500 asking price? That’s what’s being asked on both , and the . What do you think, is that a fair dealto go old school topless? Or, does that price have you raising the roof?

You decide!

Washington DC , or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to elzornado for the hookup!

Help me out with NPOCP. Hit me up at and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Buying
For $1,500, You’re In The Army Now
For $1,500, You’re In The Army Now
In his seminal work on what humans find attractive about babies and juvenile animals - (pdf) - Stephen Jay Gould implies that it's the proportion of head to body size that is key. At the other end of the spectrum, today's custom combat caprice has cartoon-sized tires, but will its...
Aug 28, 2026
For $6,950, Have You Considered Every Benz But SECs?
For $6,950, Have You Considered Every Benz But SECs?
The Grey Market isn't someplace your grandma picks up her Schnapps-Flavored Ensure and Active Sex Life Depends, it's a mechanism for bringing non-federalized cars into the U.S.. Today's Mercedes 500 SEC was just such a grey, but will its current price have you seeing red? Okay, I promise, no more...
Aug 28, 2026
For $12,500, Misery Loves Company
For $12,500, Misery Loves Company
It may be hard to fathom, but during its 6-year dalliance here Yugo sold over one hundred and forty thousand cars in the U.S.. For today's contest we have eight Yugos - one for each side of an octagon. But will their package price prove a similarly shaped stop sign?...
Aug 28, 2026
For $1,400, This Is Why The Eagle Is Our National Bird
For $1,400, This Is Why The Eagle Is Our National Bird
There's a trope going around politics these days regarding American Exceptionalism, the expected given that we are in some way better than everybody else on the planet. While that may be the ultimate in hubris, today's AMC Eagle Rock Hopper is evidence in its favor. The question is, will you...
Aug 28, 2026
For $18,000, Is This A 280ZX-15?
For $18,000, Is This A 280ZX-15?
Lockheed's SR-71 was conceived at the company's Burbank California Skunkworks. Today's 1983 280ZX is similarly turbine-powered, but does its price simply stink? Speaking of stink, a field of slowly decaying Yugos must offer a pungent nose, and for an overwhelming 88% of you, spending nearly thirteen grand on was something...
Aug 28, 2026
For $3,000, Is This Bunny a Honey?
For $3,000, Is This Bunny a Honey?
Volkswagen may not have invented the hot hatch, but with the introduction of the Rabbit-based GTI they certainly refined its execution. Today's '83 edition has seen further refinement with the addition of a 16V mill. Its price however, may not be so fine. If you have a half-way interesting car,...
Aug 28, 2026
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved