In yesterday’s Cutlass Supreme CC, I asked the question where and when its loose-pillow upholstery first appeared. Leave it to the the CC sleuths to ferret out the answer: the 1972 Oldsmobile 98 Regency. Interesting follow up also to the ’72 98 Coupe we just had the day before. Maybe we should change the site’s name to OO (Olds Omniscience)?
Supremebrougham and stanly honed in on the answer, and I present you the evidence, thanks to oldcarbrochures. Here’s a bit more on the Regency, a special Olds 75thAnniversary model:
And a close-up of the detailed description of the upholstery:
That looks a lot more comfortable than the vinyl seats on the 98 coupe pictured in CC from Daytona. Those looked like they provided no support in corners.
I really doubt that seat provided much in the way of support or even genuine long distance comfort. More likely it was pillow-soft and designed to impress in the show room and no doubt disappoint in a long trip.
You guys never sat on these?
I must be up in age – or just lucky that my father wanted a Buick Park Avenue with this interior!
These seats were not only overstuffed – they were also very comfortable and as you can imagine – they didn’t let you slide around on corners. They were quite supportive and comfortable during long trips.
The challenge is keeping them clean. The design allowed for a myriad of crevices in which any type of crumb and dust could bury itself deep within the velour. You didn’t want to use these seats if you were sweaty. After years of use, the seats flattened out.
It also depended upon how fat you are! If you were under 200 pounds, these seats held up and maintained their look for a long time. But, fatties did flatten them out a whole lot faster. I recall a friend of my fathers who was fat and he had a similar interior that looked like it had been used by an elephant.
I believe the same with today.
Fat folks destroy car seats. I don’t know what the weight limits are used to design a car seat – but I have seen enough fatties to recognize that there is just no way a car seat could be designed for the constant crushing many endure.
Also – keep in mind that fifty years ago, most adults didn’t weigh as much as they do today, and car seats weren’t designed for folks over 200 pounds. Today, the situation is probably better, but curbside classics have aged seats that weren’t probably designed for the massive back sides of many drivers today.
True, I’ve seen many cars with completely flat bolsters on the left side of the drivers seat, that’s fat guy use.
And the velour manufacturerers of the world rejoyced. Now you guys have me wondering what the LAST car manufactured with a pillowed interior like that was. 1991 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham?
You beat me to it! And I’m thinking along similar lines.
All right you guys; which one was the last?
1996 Buick Park Avenue.
Ah! How could have I forgotten the amazing Park Avenue, and the Ultra in particular!!!
That’s it, I need a vacation, because apparently I’m losing it… 😛
I will put the 1997-2001 as a contender- you could get a signature series in cloth-velour?? – they are kind of uncommon though
“Limosine – Quality velour” , that was the phrase that got me too, lol… Was Velvet just out of the question for such a fine motorcar? In a strikingly handsome custom metallic paint, in exclusive Tiffany Gold, no less! I miss ad copy like this.
What ever happened to velvet anyway?
My understanding is the velvet is woven, and velour is knitted.
Because of that, velour stretches slightly, which would likely give it an advantage as an automotive upholstery fabric. It tends to mold to the foam cushioning when sat upon, and then returns to its original shape.
I wonder, how long did Tiffany keep the registry of whose keys belonged to whom ?
I love how they just explained how everyone would just drop the found keys in any mailbox and voila! Your lost keys were found, and you’d be on your way!
The “Return to Tiffany” program, started in 1969, is still around, and Tiffany still sells the key rings. In fact, the line was expanded several years ago to include items other than key rings (such as bracelets, with the same “Return to Tiffany” tag).
However, I couldn’t find any information as to how long the jeweler keeps track of records in its customer registry.
The War Amps of Canada charitable organization provides a key return service. Simply make a donation, and they will send you a couple of numbered key tags. Found keys can be dropped into any Canada Post mailbox, and the War Amps will send them back to the owner.
The War Amps initially focused on war amputees, but now most of their work is directed at helping young amputees. They do great work – see: http://www.waramps.ca
Not sure if something like this exists in the U.S.
Never fear, I am here!!!
I’m going to say that the last would have been the 1994 Chrysler LeBaron sedan, it was for all intents and purposes, a scaled down Fifth Avenue. I so wanted one as a teenager!
Don’t ask me why I have an old man’s car fetish…I just do!
That’s the car I was thinking. Such a contrast between it and the Cirrus that replaced it.
You’re not the only one, Supremebroughm. As a teenager, I always loved cars with classic styling touches and wide pillow-type bench seats. I was an oddity; I, too, preferred the “Old Man’s cars” over sports cars. Especially Chryslers.
The last car I remember riding in with those seats was an 87 or maybe 88 Regal. They were flat out awesome!
I think Caddy offered them in leather and cloth to 1992 in the Fleetwood.
Ugh it was an 82 Regal.. My steel trap mind is turning into a steel sieve…
Know the feeling!
The last Cadillac was, appropriately, the 1992 Brougham D’Elegance. The standard Brougham did not have pillowed seats. From 1987-1992 the Fleetwood and Brougham were separate models. Fleetwood was FWD and the Brougham was RWD. The last Cadillac “Brougham” was the 1996 Fleetwood Brougham, also the last RWD full-size Cadillac sedan. In 1997 the Sedan De Ville D’Elegance effectively replaced it. I believe the last Lincoln was the 1989 Town Car Signature Series, though from 1990-94 there was a sort of halfway pillowed seat on the Signature Series. I think supremebrougham is on the money with the LeBaron when it comes to the last Chrysler. The ’93 Fifth Avenues had it too. Yes, I like traditional luxury cars!
Thought the non-Brougham 1993-1996 Fleetwood base seats did have a pillow top effect.
Cadillac D’Elegance interiors never quite reached the excess of the 74-76 Talisman interior. In the early 80’s the D’Elegance in velour was pillowy. By the 90’s there were tufted interiors, leather was optional, and while the design was pillow like, it was not excessive, but actually tastefully done I think. So I think the overstuffed pillow style from the mid-70’s to the early 80’s is replaced with a more restrained pillow style by the 90’s. The late 80’s Park Avenue Ultra was not repeated with the 91 Park Avenue Ultra.
I love the 1972 Olds Regency, and owned one, but didn’t the 1972 Imperial also have a loose-pillow seat style? It’s a little more tailored and the entire cushion isn’t “loose-look”, but to me it’s a contender and I think it actually had it before the Regency, which I think was a Spring ’72 model.
Beat me to it, Mr. Green! I have no idea if the Imp had it first, but it was definitely there for the launch of the ’72.
My thought, too. And in both cloth and leather, IIRC.
I stand corrected. Leather only thru ’73, and they called it “floating cushion” upholstery, “fashioned in the style of fine furniture.” You can see a bit of Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona chair – also the inspiration for the seats in the ’61 Continental. From ’74 on, they were in full loose-pillow mode, in both leather and velour. ’72 catalog image below.
OK, so Olds was first to do the loose-pillow look with cloth, then. Also,the Olds was styled in a much more traditional furniture style, as opposed to what you aptly refer to as the more Miesian Barcelona-chair-style in the Imperial. I usually prefer modernity, but somehow the Olds interior appeals to me more than that Imperial anyway. It’s just so….inviting!
And what was the most over-the-top outrageous loose-pillow seating ever in a car? Could be a toss-up between the 1977-78 Eldorado Biarritz and 1977-78 Buick Park Avenue with its gathered, wrinkled velour upholstery that reminds me of a shar pei dog. Crazy!
74-76 FW Talisman, by far..
The Talisman had lots of “Medici” velour, but it wasn’t loose pillow.
The 77 Eldo Biarritz was so “loose cushion” that you could hold a Big Gulp in the button areas by twisting the cup into the upholstery…early cup holder points for the Standard of the World”.
The “loose cushion” really refers to the appearance of the seat surface being a cushion not attached to the seat below. The tufts are not required for this effect. In reality the “cushion” is firmly attached and the edges only look “loose”.
The Regency interior only has loose cushion seat backs and the seat bottoms are not loose cushion, but they are tufted.
I owned one of these:
http://www.oldcarbrochures.com/static/NA/Buick/1976_Buick/1976_Buick_Brochure/76%20Buick%20Pg%2030.html
Both the seat bottom and back are “loose cushion”. It was comfortable too.
‘Loose pillow’ auto upholstery (well, even on regular furniture, for that matter) is funny because, although it might look and be comfortable for a short period, in the long run, with absolutely no support, it becomes quite uncomfortable. What you end up with is a vehicle that’s quite untenable for any kind of long trip, particularly a cross-country trek.
It’s one of those sales gimmicks where someone would sit in a car so equipped in the showroom and think, “Gee, this is about the most comfortable seating in the world” but that’s far from the reality. It’s the automotive equivalent of a bean-bag chair.
Just so and it’s more tragic than ‘ funny ‘ (meaning odd I assumed) as Americans have the penchant to take off and drive long distances often and the extreme discomfort after the first few hours ruined a lot of long road trips .
-Nate
Sorry, but I have to disagree concerning comfort.
A buddy of mine had a ’82 Buick Regal Limited with the ‘loose pillow’ seats. On long trips, we took his car, not mine!! Five hour road trips to Florida were a lot easier with the red velour pressing on your backside than a ’83 Cutlass with bucket seats.
If offered today, I am sure there are plenty of Baby Boomers who would step up to the plate and buy in on the ‘loose pillow’ look.
I did own a 78 98 Regency. While I would not say the seats were uncomfortable, they were not the best seats that I have owned. The best seats for comfort were in my 95 Riviera, although the seats in the 2002 Seville were very good, as were the seats in the 2007 SRX. The 98 Aurora’s seats were OK, my ATS is not quite as good as I would like.
I remember when I sold Buicks in the 1990’s they have embarked on a “comfortable seat” mission, their efforts reflected best in the 1995 Riviera and 1997 Park Avenue seats, the last couple of years of Roadmaster Limiteds also got an improved seat too.
Two years ago, Automobile magazine did a nice article on Blaine Jenkins, the interior designer of the 1972 Regency.
http://www.automobilemag.com/features/news/1203_inside_man_blaine_jenkins/
That is what bugs me, that managers often get the credit for the work of their talented subordinates. Managers •should• get credit for good management, however, since this is a rare gift.
Sadly, Blanie Jenkins recently passed away in July at age 80.
http://psautomobilist.blogspot.com/2014/07/blaine-jenkins-1934-2014.html
Thanks for sharing, Carmine.
It’s at least gratifying to know that he had a brief moment in the spotlight, just before he died.
That first photo in the article looks like an illustration, or a heavily retouched photo of the interior. This is why I never got excited about collecting car brochures from the 70s. The cars shown were so heavily airbrushed and retouched, with completely over the top ad copy, that I felt I was looking at an automotive comic book.
Attractive seating for a 70s era luxury car for sure. Though it’s difficult to take the bloated ad copy in this Regency ad seriously. It’s clearly written towards someone with a big ego and view of themselves already. Or towards someone aspiring to be one of those people. lol I guess it’s what helped sell the broughams. That 70s envy of faux luxury.
…Finally, a handsome key designed exclusively for Ninety-Eight owners…
Finally? Like this is what the world has been waiting for? OMG that’s funny. The audacity of the Olds marketing team to regard this as a major factor in one’s car buying decision.
BTW, all of this begs more very important questions, like:
– Why did GM allow Olds to have this as a “first” and not Cadillac? and
– Whats the difference between velour and velvet anyway? assuming its analogous to alcantara and suede of current times (isn’t velvet made of silk, prone to wear, etc.?)
Please forgive the double post from my answer to LAx: Velvet is woven; velour is knitted, which allows it to stretch.
Ahh.
“Finally” is used here as a transition to the last point about the Regency’s features. Synonymous with “lastly.” I don’t believe it is used here in the context you describe.
Proof of how difficult it is to communicate intentions, you never know what the receiver will take away.
Ahh.
Why Olds and not GM? One school of thought holds that historically, Olds was GM’s “experimental” division, so Olds got Hydra-Matic before Cadillac, and the Toronado introduced front wheel drive a year ahead of the Eldorado.
I’ve always thought this was a bit of a stretch with few if any examples beyond the two listed above. More to the point, until the 70s and a misguided reorganization, the divisions had broad control over product planning and offerings, as long as they stayed within corporate guidelines (or found clever ways to skirt them, as Pontiac did with the ’64 GTO).
Olds had already ventured into this territory with the 98 Luxury Sedan, offering refinements not found on the nominally more expensive Electra 225 let alone Cadillacs. The Regency was the logical next step as other brands caught up to the LS idea.
Well there was a internal Brougham battle within GM, the first salvos fired by Cadillac with the original Brougham package on the Fleetwood Sixty Special, which added fold down wood tray tables and footrests in the rear, along with other special trim features, Pontiac also added a Brougham to the Bonneville at the same time, then Chevrolet added the Caprice, and Buick added the Limited to the Electra, which then again resulted in further escalation, leading to d’Elegance, Talisman and Park Avenue.
The 1972 Fleetwood Brougham did have a velour interior, which was very nice although not pillow style or tufted. I would say the Fleetwood was classier than the flashier 98.
I know this generation of GM full size gets plenty of criticism, but getting a ride in one of these when you were 12 and your normal ride was a tired ’68 impala that transitioned to a pretty basic ’76 LTD, the Regency seemed amazing.
Traveling with my dad on his business rounds in the summer of ’76, we were in his company ’74 Olds Delta 88 Royale. It was a dark blue 455 sedan with most options except power windows. It seemed pretty swank by my standards.
At one of our stops, the president of a local bank took us to lunch at his country club. The banker was fairly elderly, and one of his managers served as a driver. I was up front and my dad and the banker in back. The huge gold ’74 Regency four door hardtop seemed like an amazing part of the lifestyles of the rich and famous as far as I was concerned, small town Nebraska style.
I think this is one of the better of GM’s promotions of that era.
If you find a car with an interior like this in a junkyard and beat the seats with a stick the dust clouds are most impressive.
I think Car and Driver ruined it by referring to them as “sleep-of-peace” interiors. Once I read that, I just couldn’t associate that style with anything other than caskets. Not the kind of imagery the car manufacturers intended, I’m sure!
While the seats themselves might be quite nice, they always seemed to come with such old-style dashes and door panels that would turn younger buyers off. Couple that with the increasing Japanese market dominance throughout the loose-pillow years, and it’s not surprising that style fell out of favour. IIRC the Toyota Crowns and Nissan Cedrics of those years went to that style of upholstery, but you didn’t get them in the States. Did the Japanese do this style in anything they sent you?
It is interesting to note that caskets, for the most part are still very broughamy.
Nissan Maximas had them in certain trim levels up to 1988, and that included the only way the wagons came after ’82 or so.
Ive seen these loose pillow seats in Aussie Chryslers assembled in NZ though never in Aussie, I’m not a fan and wouldnt buy a car with them fitted.
“Electric Timepiece”. For when the mere word “clock’ just isn’t posh enough
I have always loved these seats. They are very comfortable, at least if you like the old living room couch bench seats of yore. Just added a pair out of a Ninety Eight to my 1985 Buick LeSabre Estate Wagon, courtesy of the local Pull’n’Save. Way better than the boring cloth pattern it replaced. Thanks BuzzDog for the Automobile article link – I’ll tip my hat to the late Blaine Jenkins for all the great car interiors : )