The GM B-body has been one of the perennial favorites here at CC. There have been full Curbside Classic profiles and shorter articles on lots of them, especially the 77-96’s in much of their variety. Surprisingly, though, we have only had one full CC on the final generation of wagons (a.k.a. whales). That was a 96 Buick, which represented the end of the line. We’ve not ever paid much due to the start of that generation or to Oldsmobile’s short-lived version. When I saw this well-preserved example at a used car lot, I realized this would be a good opportunity to have a closer look at a rarely seen gem. Click through to take a deep dive into this last chapter in the long story of Oldsmobile station wagons.
Oldsmobile has made some of the neatest station wagons throughout the history of that body style. I’ve personally been a lover of wagons since before I could drive and Oldsmobiles were always some of my favorites. Let’s check out the highlights before getting to the car at hand.
What an idyllic scene! Was it intended to be California or Florida?
Oldsmobile was present at the dawn of the Station Wagon, in the prewar woody period, with a wagon first showing up in their catalog in 1940. They were actually kind of late to the party, though, as Ford first offered its factory woody in 1929, while other makes slowly joined in over the course of the 30’s.
True woodies from most companies were dropped around 1949 with the first all-new postwar designs, clearing the way for high-volume steel models ready to haul the growing baby boomer families through Detroit’s golden years of the 50’s and 60’s. Olds strangely dropped wagons from 1951-56 but jumped back into the game with one of the most stylish of all time: the 1957-58 88 Fiesta hardtop wagons.
Another model that has to be mentioned with Olds wagons is the 1964-72 Vista Cruiser (recent CC here). Shared with Buick, these extended wheelbase mid-size wagons had forward facing third rows and the super-cool elevated rear roof with glass panels. The roof was reminiscent of the iconic 1954 GM Scenicruiser buses and the Vista Dome trains as seen in the background above, both still in use during that period. Oldsmobile (and Buick) must have felt the Vista Cruiser was plenty of wagon for most buyers as they took another hiatus from offering full-sized B-body station wagons from 1965-70. The 120 inch wheelbase of the Vista Cruiser is actually 4 inches longer than that on our subject car. Woodgrain applique made its first appearance in 1967.
Returning to full-size wagons in a big way, the first Custom Cruiser model came in 1971. Built on GM’s newly enlarged B platform, it was GM at its best and worst. Not merely a Delta 88 with some wagon body work, it had its own 3 inch longer wheelbase (127), unique leaf spring rear suspension, a forward facing third seat and that fantastical clamshell rear tailgate.
In conjunction with the release of the new Custom Cruiser model, Olds began in 1971 calling all of their wagons Cruisers. They had the Cutlass Cruiser, Vista Cruiser and Custom Cruiser. The tradition lasted through 1995, the penultimate year for an Oldsmobile station wagon.
As cool as the Clamshell wagons were, GM recovered its sanity and offered a much more practical full-sized wagon for 1977 (a.k.a. boxy generation. CC article here). The 77 B/C body cars are recognized on Curbside Classic and everywhere as one of GM’s greatest hits. GM used all its resources and accumulated wisdom to create a car line that was well-designed, well-built and exactly what people wanted at that time. It was rational but still had enough flair, luxury and size to fire aspirational buyers’ imaginations. They sold like hotcakes, too. Yearly Custom Cruiser sales in the late 70’s were the best ever for their full-sized wagons and about double what the clamshell had averaged.
The 1977 wagons returned to a rear facing third seat and acquired a 3-way tailgate similar to Ford’s “Magic Doorgate” they had used since 1966. One could argue that the 71-76 clamshell was a product of GM’s pride, when they felt the need to do something unique and bold to prove their technological wizardry and leadership. In 1977, GM was at least humble enough to tacitly admit that Ford’s tailgate was the optimum design for a station wagon.
The 1977 design was so successful, that apart from an attractive 1980 facelift, it continued with little change for 14 years with GM keeping the B-body wagons for Buick/Olds/Pontiac even after their respective sedans went out of production in 85/86. 1987 model shown above.
Though not selling in near the numbers that they had in the late 70’s, volume was still sufficient that GM felt it was worth doing a major makeover to modernize the B-body line for the 1990’s.
Pontiac dropped their Parisienne wagon for good after 1989, but Chevrolet, Buick and Oldsmobile all got the new versions for 1991. Chevrolet’s Caprice sedan came out in spring 1990 as an early 91, with all divisions’ wagon versions coming in the fall. Oldsmobile never offered a sedan. Cadillac got their Fleetwood version (D-body) for 1993, but of course never in a wagon.
Motor Trend gave the 1991 Caprice LTZ their Car of the Year award. The Custom Cruiser came in second, beating out the Buick Park Avenue, second-gen Chrysler minivans (heavy refinement of original k-based van) and second-gen Ford Escort GT (not a bad little car for the time), among others. The LTZ was the enhanced handling model for 91-93, the 1994 Impala SS replacing it with much of the same cop car (9C1) mechanicals but adding bigger tires, dropped ride height and a sinister look. MT at that time still did a separate Import Car of the Year, but if you go by their point system, the 1991 Caprice would have beat out the Mitsubishi 3000GT and the Cruiser would have been third. The only other import tested that we CC readers would probably consider a potential classic was the second gen Toyota MR2, which came in fourth. Anybody remember the Isuzu Stylus? It came in last.
You’d have to go back to at least the 60’s to find GM’s last example of such thoroughly changed styling on a carryover chassis. The B-body went from being the boxiest car on the road to having a very aerodynamic, modern look (for the time), doubtless influenced by Ford’s massive hit Taurus.
The nose is lower, the windshield much more raked, side windows more curved and backlight sloped. All fixed glass is flush-mounted. Bumpers became integrated with plastic covers as virtually every other car had by that point. The sedan’s drag coefficient went from .42 to .33, but gained 300lb. To the doubtless delight of many CC readers, glass area and visibility were tremendous.
The 1991 B-bodies were also notable for being GM’s first new or thoroughly revamped car line since the early 70’s that wasn’t downsized in the process (the Buick Park Avenue and Olds 98 that year would also fall in that category).
Motor Trend really raved about the Caprice LTZ’s handling, not so much the Custom Cruiser’s. I’ve owned a couple police package Caprices and can testify that they ride and handle great for such a large, archaic car. Despite being a carryover chassis, GM was good at massaging the best traits out of it with the right combination of tires, springs, shocks and sway bars. The handling-optimized LTZ sedans (RPO 7B3) still didn’t have a harsh ride, in fact many people would probably consider the ride better than the standard model. GM kept the Custom Cruiser more traditionally softer riding, even with the heavy duty suspension (RPO F40) which the wagons all came with.
Motor Trend didn’t care at all for the handling of the Cruiser, whose cause was probably not helped by the writers stepping out of an LTZ right before driving it.
All the B-body wagons shared the exact same body panels, the only differences were in the grille and the trim. The Buick and Olds shared their standard rear seat sunroof. The sunroof wasn’t available on the Caprice, which therefore had a longer roof rack of a slightly different design. The only other difference is that the Buick and Olds had C-pillar trim panels and the rear side window had a curve on its leading lower edge which the Chevy lacks. Isn’t GM funny? How many people noticed that the Chevy and Buick/Olds have different wagon windows? I didn’t even notice it for years, and I was always a fan of these cars and owned a 1994 Caprice wagon for a few years before that was brought to my attention. Was it worth making two different windows? At any rate, Olds adopted the Caprice window for 1992 as seen on the blue car in the brochure picture above, but Buick kept the unique window design.
The Oldsmobile was the most controversial of the three because they did not offer woodgrain siding, even as an option. It was optional on the Caprice and standard on the Roadmaster (with optional delete), but not available on the Custom Cruiser, the majority of which up to 1990 had been sold with wood for probably its entire run back to 1971.
Unlike the Chevy and Buick, wire wheel hubcaps weren’t available either, just the standard hubcap or a very contemporary looking aluminum wheel. The Cruiser also differed from its platform mates by having gray plastic cladding on the lower body instead of the others’ conventional metal rocker trim.
As an aside, though the Custom Cruiser wasn’t available with wood decaling, a loyal Olds customer with an itch for the traditional look could still opt for the Cutlass Ciera Cruiser with optional wood through 1994. The Ciera wagon would be made through 96, but the wood was dropped for 1995 when it became the Ciera Cruiser, finally freed from being a Cutlass. In 1996, it became the Ciera Wagon when one of the coolest automotive names died, the car apparently no longer meant for Cruising. Such is the way with a division losing its identity.
Interiors were also all new, with the only recognizable carryover components being the steering column, shape of the floor pan and, on wagons, the rear floor and third seat. The front seats were particularly improved, with better support and fully adjustable seat backs for driver and passenger on all models. Leather was available on the Cruiser for the first time.
Though nice looking, comfortable and roomy, the interiors are notoriously plastiky and could be considered the Achilles heel of the whale B-bodies. The lower door panels and entire dash are hard plastic. The dashes hold up well enough, but the door panels are known for cracking with hard use. This one is in pretty decent shape, but I’ve never before seen the cracking and discoloration on the window switch panel that this one has.
Back seats are reasonably roomy, but not as much leg room as you might expect from a large car. 116 inches is not an especially long wheelbase by the standards of the 60’s or 70’s. As mentioned above, the mid-size 1969-72 Vista Cruiser had 121 inches axle-to-axle, 5 inches longer, while the clamshell 70’s models had an 11 inch longer axle spread. Waviness on the edge of the lower seat cushion is common on these due to sunlight from the roof glass. Leather seats particularly tend to get dried out in back.
These wagons had a number of nice features, such as a few seen below.
I’d never realized before that the Custom Cruiser has a small pocket on the dash. I had always assumed it was just a padded panel but it is hinged and spring loaded on the bottom with velcro at the top. My only question is: What would you want to keep in there?
The tailgate is an evolution of the original Ford “Magic Doorgate” concept. It can be opened like a door (with the outboard handle) or lowered as a gate (with the inboard handle). The boxy B wagons also had this feature and in fact the mechanism and hinges were carried over without change. However, the boxies had the glass electrically roll down into the door, which was required when using it in gate mode. The roll down window was not a bad system, but not workable with GM’s new aero styling and steeply sloped rear window. The two-way gate with flip up window was a clever revision of the existing B-body tailgate, and a very practical design, I can say from experience.
As an aside, GM’s midsize wagons since 1973 used different tailgate approaches. The Colonnade wagons had a one-piece top-hinged hatch, with vent triangles in the side window similar to our subject car’s. The 1978-83 downsized A-body had no third row available and used a one-way bottom-hinged tailgate with flip-up glass. The FWD 84-96 models returned to having a third seat option and used a top-hinged hatch with a flip-up window (a very nice design).
Another odd GM divisional distinction was that Chevy and Buick versions had the third seat only in vinyl while the Olds used cloth. Who knows why…
Full instrumentation was standard, with a very spacious and legible instrument cluster. That’s 103k miles on the odometer.
Signature feature for the Oldsmobile and Buick was the non-opening sunroof over the rear seats. Sunshades were optional on the Cruiser and standard on the Roadmaster.
Paul suggested in a short 2011 article he wrote on the Custom Cruiser that Oldsmobile lost an obvious opportunity to call this car a Vista Cruiser, harking back to the iconic roof-windowed wagons of 64-72. I agree that it would have been a great name, but I think they probably made the right choice. After all, Custom Cruiser is itself on the short list of coolest car names of all time. Let it roll off your tongue Custom…Cruiser…
The previous B-body wagons through 1990 had the distinction of being the last automobiles still sold in the U.S. with carbureted engines (edit: commenters have pointed out that “honor” apparently belongs to the 1991 Subaru Justy). They gratefully lost that distinction with the 1991 addition of throttle body fuel injection, probably the most significant mechanical change made to the car in the redesign. For the first year, the Chevrolet 5.0L (305 c.i.) making 170hp and 255 lb/ft was the only choice. B-body enthusiasts prefer 1992 models because the Chevy 5.7L (350 c.i.) was optional, making 180hp and 300 lb/ft.
In 1994, GM consolidated the drivetrains in all their RWD cars and gave the B-bodies the LT1 5.7L V8 shared with the Corvette and F-body Camaro/Firebird. The Gen II small block’s 260hp was very healthy for the time and is the reason the last three years of the B-body tend to be the cult favorite for those still driving these. There are some folks, though, who prefer the earlier TBI cars since the engines are pretty bulletproof, easy to work on when they do need repair and parts are plentiful and cheap.
Grilles bear a strong family resemblance the new 1991 Olds 98 and 1992 88. All B-wagons had hood ornaments.
Sales the first year were 7663, less than half of the Caprice wagon and just above the pricier Roadmaster. However, 1992 sales fell to 4347 when Chevy maintained their sales and Buick had a healthy increase. So, Oldsmobile handed their cool-named veteran a blindfold and cigarette and it did not return for 1993. The Cruiser missed out on the brief future of wagons and GM sending their B-body out with a bang in the short-lived LT1 era.
Given the minimal differentiation and scant expense of having the third model of wagon, the question is why would GM bother to kill the Custom Cruiser after only two years?
I believe the answer is tied in with their curious decision not to offer woodgrain siding. Oldsmobile in the late 80’s/90’s was dealing with generally falling sales and responding to that put them in a bit of an identity crisis. They knew they had to break from their traditional image, which was not appealing to the younger part of the market. This was the era of “Not Your Father’s Oldsmobile”, the infamous self-esteem-deficient slogan that managed to be both very well known and unsuccessful.
So, I think Oldsmobile’s approach to the redesigned B-wagon was an unenthusiastic hedging of their bets. They didn’t want to leave sales on the table by not participating with the new wagons, but they also didn’t want a stodgy car dragging down their attempts to make the divisional image more modern and youthful. In trying to make their wagon more contemporary, they were willing to alienate a lot of long time customers by not giving them what they really wanted in their most traditional model and when sales were lackluster, they didn’t hesitate to kill it. The presence of the Silhouette minivan and the Bravada SUV in their showrooms probably also played a role.
The Custom Cruiser may have died prematurely, but all the remaining wagons were clearly living on borrowed time. With the exception of Saturns, GM in the U.S. would be out of the wagon business after 1996. Ford, the first American company to build an official production wagon, was also the last to leave the market, with the Taurus being the only American car having a claim at being a traditional station wagon when it was put out of its misery in 2004.
Station wagons may have died from neglect, but the current market’s dominance by SUV’s vindicates the wagon. Most SUV’s sold now are of the crossover variety, which as we all know are just tall station wagons with optional all-wheel-drive. In that light, wagons are more dominant than they have ever been. But they don’t make them like this last-act Oldsmobile anymore, that’s for sure.
photographed 5/27/19 in Houston, TX
Related Reading:
Curbside Classic: 1996 Buick Roadmaster Collector’s Edition – “B” There ‘Til The End
The GM B-Body: A Love Song In B Major
Curbside Classic: 1995 Chevrolet Caprice Classic – Engineers’ Choice
Nice writeup. I never could warm up to these wagons. They looked so bloated. But they are still interesting.
When these cars first arrived at the beaches, animal rights activists tried to save them by dragging them back into the water.
I keep imagining that these vehicles would have an old HAM radio screwed into the dashboard and there would be a couple of old Bob Evans paper napkins stuffed into the glove box.
Oink oink.
The initial market for these vehicles have passed away and folks who are now in that market drive Dodge Challengers.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that, btw.
Isn’t GM funny? How many people noticed that the Chevy and Buick/Olds have different wagon windows? I didn’t even notice it for years, and I was always a fan of these cars and owned a 1994 Caprice wagon for a few years before that was brought to my attention. Was it worth making two different windows?
Perhaps these are all the same pieces of glass, but the front edge is covered up partially by that curving trim piece on the Olds/Buick, a stylistic gimmick that helps integrate their raised section of the roof and roof window. In any case, only the 1991 Custom Cruiser used this style of rear side window design; it was gone in ’92 and later years, as your ad of the blue wagon shows. But the Buick Roadmaster wagon kept it for its full run.
“Perhaps these are all the same pieces of glass, but the front edge is covered up…”
I thought the same thing, but my online used part locator groups the ’91 Olds back windows with the Roadmaster, and the ’92-on glass with the Caprice wagon, so the two parts appear to be different.
This also confirms that Olds changed the C-pillar shape in ’92 just because (as noted by the author). GM’s willingness to complicate things never ceases to amaze me…
That little curve isn’t the only difference between the two designs – the curved one also has a much thicker C pillar, whereas the straight one starts the window right behind the rear door. Also, I totally never noticed this, much less that the rear glass on 91 and 92 Custom Cruisers is different.
The window on the 91 Olds and the RM has the same mounting surface as the Caprice, but the front is a filler to take up the area between the actual glass and the C pillar. The C pillars are identical for all the wagons.
The most dramatic difference is the gray cladding mounting. There was supposed to be a clip on the top, but I guess GM forgot to design it. The top is attached by pins into grommets, but they “rigged” the 91, because of the lack of clips. In 92 the pins became standard with the thin stainless strip trapping them.
My mother’s last full-size wagon was a ’95 Caprice which was decommissioned in the cash for clunkers program ten years ago and replaced with a 2009 Toyota Avalon, which she is still driving with north of 370,000 miles. Fantastically useful car with a nice ride and a high degree of road authority. Unlike her earlier 1980 Caprice Classic (sold because lifter valves promised an expensive repair) or the 1987 Safari (died of front-end damage after a theft at age 11), the fuel injected V8 had oomph and the handling was confident, really in all weather, including significant snows. The mileage was derided but turned out to be better than my old Legacy – 20-25 mpg.
I moved furniture in that car! Full-size folding tables, tall bookcases, Persian carpets.
I backed into the limb of a walnut tree once which took out the rear door window, but it was repaired. Fifteen Catskill winters and 200,000 miles put paid to it in the end, though.
There’s a 1992 blue Custom Cruiser with body damage that is sometimes visible in the local neighborhood – which I have thought about hard, until I realize I like my 2016 Outback’s low safety insurance premia more.
Didn’t Olds also first offer the Bravada SUV some time around ’93-’94? Perhaps they (I think wisely) recognized that the two models would compete too much with one another, and seeing the potential in a luxury SUV, opted to head in that direction and send the Cruiser off to a big farm where it could spend it’s days playing in the fields with other full-size wagons.
Bravada first model year was 1991.
Always had much lust for the final Custom Cruiser – The last V8 RWD Oldsmobile. I believe there was a towing package that could net a 5.7 V8 with the Cruiser in those final 2 years. That would be my choice.
The other thing is that it would be great if GM had continued evolving the “magic doorgate” because my TourX would be better for it, and I think small-midsize CUVs like the Equinox would be better off with it as well.
5.0 only for 1991. 1992 had the 5.7 optional.
Of the grille engineered cars I actually regard as kind of attractive and distinctive, it reminds me of the 60s Acadians that added Pontiac split grilles to Chevelle front ends. I kind of like the wagons and they kind of make me sick. They basically look like Taurus/sable wagons if they went through a awkward growth spurt, but I’ve seen some cool hot rodded versions.
Good call on the hotrod ‘bubble’ wagons. Honestly, I think the wagons look better than the sedans, and they’re definitely a crowd-pleaser to watch one launch hard and lift the front end at the dragstrip.
And I wonder about the ‘cruiser’ name. Did GM just let their legal hold on the name lapse and Chrysler swooped in to use it on the PT Cruiser?
In fact, I wonder how many car names were used by at least three auto manufacturers. ‘Cruiser’ would seem to be in the running, with GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, and even old Studebaker having models with the name.
A real thesis, thank you.
Looking at the ’57 Fiesta, I must wonder how occupants fared in a rollover with those thin pillars. In reality they were probably thicker, but not enough to support the weight of the car.
It was the 50’s, no one was wearing seatbelts so everyone would have been thrown out anyway.
Anyone know how sales of the Buick TourX are doing? The addition of AWD to a larger station wagon seems ideal (Subaru has certainly had good luck with their Outback).
But maybe the Outback is a good example of how fickle the US market for station wagons has become. It would seem like practical folks would just have bought a cheaper Legacy station wagon, which is simply a decontented Outback. But Legacy wagon sales were so low that it was discontinued a few years ago, while the Outback just keeps humming along.
IOW, you have to have that magic ‘crossover’ moniker to sell a wagon these days. Otherwise, it’s just a boring old station wagon, and (apparently) no one is interested in one of those. I guess that’s the point where a practical consumer shifts to a minivan.
Anyone know how sales of the Buick TourX are doing? The addition of AWD to a larger station wagon seems ideal (Subaru has certainly had good luck with their Outback).
GM has been saying that TourX sales are roughly 40% of overall Regal sales. However…
Regal Sales for 2018-2019 (current gen) = 22,967 x 40% = 9,186 roughly
For perspective the Envision = 55,001 for the same time period
Super happy the Custom Cruiser finally got a proper writeup here.
Me too! Thanks
Time heals most wounds. Today these cars, the Caprice especially, have a very sleek and distinctive look. It is a wonderful blend of American and European styling. Someties I see these in Denmark and some years back saw one in Rotterdam. A rather lanky chauffeur got out of the car as it glided up to a hotel in the city centre and an elegant pair of ladies floated into the back and the car swept off as if coasting on air. The movement of the car and its interaction with the city night lights burned a moving image on my mind´s eye. It was a real car moment.
Nice writing, sure burned an image on my mind’s eye.
Love these. On my bucket list to own one.
“The previous B-body wagons through 1990 had the distinction of being the last automobiles still sold in the U.S. with carbureted engines.”
I’ve heard this claim also made about:
==>the 1991 Jeep Grand Wagoner (SJ), which Chrysler discontinued rather than invest engineering into a 27-ish year old Kaiser Jeep / AMC design.
==>the last 351W-powered LTD Crown Victorias in the 87-91 era.
Which was truly the last?
I think it was truly the 351W Crown Vic COP CAR ONLY. That is why some people don’t count the Crown Vics because they were not available new to civilians and did not meet EPA regs.
Is it true that those Crown Vics didn’t have to meet EPA regs? I know in California when the Mopar M Body patrol cars were at their low point in HP, the Highway Patrol removed light bars to improve aerodynamics, the adopted the 5.0 Mustangs specifically because their vehicles had to be California emissions compliant. But maybe that was state law. FYI, in the street legal motorcycle world, the carbureted Suzuki DR650 is one of the few, perhaps only, larger displacement bikes which is still 50 state legal for the 2020 model year.
Apparently its the 1993 Subaru justy
I’ve heard the Justy as well, but Rock Auto only shows carb parts through ’91. It appears the ’92-93 Justy used fuel injection.
In 1992, manufacturers faced new emissions requirements which added a follow up dyno test after 100k miles of driving. I’m guessing manufacturers needed fuel injection to meet this new requirement.
So 1991 Subaru Justy is the last automobile (not truck). Didn’t know that!
I’ve also heard it said about the ’93 Isuzu Pickup.
Very thorough article and you had my attention the whole time. Glad this final Custom Cruiser has finally received the attention it deserves. I’ve been wanting to write about this car for years but haven’t managed to ever find on to photograph in full. Could this one be the finest-preserved one left in existence?
CC Effect: saw a white Custom Cruiser very similar to this today. A couple surfboards on the roof, and all the windows aft of the B pillar lined with blue tarp material, presumably for stealth camping.
I don’t think there’s an attractive line on any of the final B/C-bodies–including the Fleetwood. They’re all so bloated and barrel-sided.
Couldn’t agree more! 😂😂😂
Excellent find and Custom Cruiser biography Jon. While I’ve thought the Custom Cruiser (and Vista Cruiser) were consistently well styled, I didn’t like the design of this final version. As others have noted, they looked bloated and contrived. With a disproportionately long appearing cargo area.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the redesigned 1977 Custom Cruiser either. I thought Oldsmobile’s handling of the faux wood panelling following the wheel arch curves, as a tribute to the early 70s Vista Cruiser, looked odd and dated on these otherwise very modern downsized ’77-’79 Cruisers. IMO, this vintage Cruiser was the weakest exterior design among the downsized B-Body wagons. Though they do look unique today, at the time I didn’t feel the faux wood following the wheel arches appeared like OEM-quality design. The design element appearing aftermarket, or as if done by the car owners themselves. And especially unattractive in wagons with lighter paint colour than the wood panelling. Darker colours better masking the wood pattern following the wheel arches. I thought the 1980 redesign looked much cleaner.
Yes but the 1980 MY freshening lost the GOOD engines.
I want a 1977-79 model with 403 V8 and heavy duty suspension (oh and positrac)
True!
I agree with Daniel, the 1977-79 Custom Cruisers with wood grain looked unattractive. While I was lukewarm on the 1980 Oldsmobile sedan redesign, but the 1980 Oldsmobile wagons were a definite improvement. Even the wood grain went back to normal in 1980 (make mine wood grain free though).
Principaldan, in 1980 you could still get the 350-4bbl Olds in the Custom Cruiser. 1981 was 307 only. The 350 sized engines were available in the BOP cars for 1980. FWIW, though all wagons had the F40 HD suspension, which was not the same as the F41 suspension much loved by the media. The HD suspension was just designed for heavier loads, not improved handling. It was less wallowy than a base suspension, but not meant for handling. Also, I am not sure I’d call the 403 good. Olds used siamesed cylinders and windowed mains on all 403s. They were okay engines (I owned one), but not my first choice.
By the late 80s early 90s I remember Hot Rod magazine doing tech articles on the 403 and Ford’s much maligned 400. Both have more potential than they are given credit for.
Good to know the 350 lasted one more year. If the 307 had gotten fuel injection within a reasonable amount of time (say by the mid 80s) I wouldn’t curse its name so loudly.
You are correct that a 403 could be built for decent hp, but they still are stuck with the weak windowed bottom ends, and siamesed cylinders both of which were prohibitive to a true high performance build. Even in stock form, the 403’s had a bit of a reputation as running hot, and some had headgasket failures. The Ford 400 does have a lot of potential, and doesn’t suffer from inherent weaknesses like the Olds 403 does. It can be built to higher horsepower levels than a 403.
I agree, that GM should have had EFI by the mid 1980s, although if I were in charge, I would have dumped the 307 and used an EFI 305 across the board for the 5.0L V8 applications.
@VinceC – you nailed why I would really love an end of production Box Caprice sedan. It finally got the TBI 305 V8.
I love old cars but I think fuel injection is one of the all-time greatest improvements made to the internal combustion engine.
Great write up. I’m very familiar with the whale bodies in police package. You nailed it in that the handling and acceleration were great for such a massive, heavy car. I agree with the complaint on the interiors. I’d also add that the fact that the widest part of the car was just below the belt line made judging narrow pathways a bit of a crap shoot. My father-in-law had the Buick Roadmaster wagon version. I found the leather seats and upgraded interior a very nice place to spend time even if the dash left me a bit cold. Finally, I’d add that I found all versions of the whale bodies that I encountered to be reliable. Massive, rear wheel drive cars to me were always GM’s sweet spot.
When I was a kid at the time, I used to think the early 70s Custom Cruiser was the perfect summer vacation car. Along with what might have been nice then current vacation road trip music in the tape player.
Or Lighthouse…
Wow Dan, thank you. Make that ’73 Custom Cruiser you posted dark blue, with contrasting light blue interior, wheel covers, no luggage rack and a manual tailgate. Add a ’69 Apache Ramada popup camper on the back, and that WAS our vacation machine. We traveled all over the US with it. My Dad even had the whole works airborne for a second or so in Colorado! Drove over a dead moose in the middle of the road at night. Traveled down to Florida and around Lake Superior as well. That was our family’s 2nd new car. The 1st one was a ’66 Olds F 85 Deluxe wagon.
Thank you for the memories.
Bob
The Caprice was available with a 4.3l V8 (along with the 4.3l V6). One of the lesser known GM V8s. Essentially a baby LT1 with an L99 engine code.
Right, 94-96 for the L99. 85-90? for the 4.3 V6. Trivia fact: The 4.3L L99 was 265 c.i., the same as the original 1955 small block.
There is some controversy whether the L99 was actually available in Caprice wagons. It was listed as the base engine for all 1994 Caprices, including the wagon, but is not ever seen in the wild. It is believed that 2 left the factory with the L99.
GM brochures at the time showed the LT1 as the base engine for the station wagons. However, 1A2 wagons apparently could be equipped with the L99 as the base engine. That said, I have never seen a ’94-96 wagon with anything but an LT1.
The L99 was actually slightly smaller than a 265. The 265 used a 3.75″ bore, while the L99 used the 305 engine bore, of 3.736″. It actually displaced about 263 ci. These L99’s looked identical to a LT1, but were considerably poorer performers (even slower than the 4.6L Ford too). They didn’t have much torque. I am not sure why Chevrolet didn’t just make an baby LT1 out of a 305. I think it would have been a far better base engine, especially for a heavy Caprice
I remember Jon Moss from GM installed an L99 engine in a 1955 Chevrolet as a tribute to the original 265.
Dear Ol’ Dad has a 1996 Caprice sedan with the 4.3 V8. I don’t think the performance would be much different if GM had simply stuck a 3800 in there but hey you get to say that you’ve got a V8 and it makes V8 noises.
Perhaps Chevy changed it after the start of the model year, but in the first printing 1994 Caprice brochure that I have, they state that the 4300 V8 is standard in the wagon, with 5.7 optional. See the picture attached, I apologize for the shoddy pic, I took it in a hurry.
I seem to recall that the only (2) cars actually made with it were 1A2’s, but I could be wrong about that.
I expect that you are right about it being 263 c.i., though the Standard Catalog of American Cars 1976-1999 that I have lists it as 265.
maybe pic will attach now…
It didn’t attach, but I believe you Jon. I suspect that Chevrolet made a last minute change and pulled the 4.3L V8 from the wagon line-up. It would not have been a good choice for the heavy wagons IMO.
Yes, most sources listed the 4.3L as a 265, but I think because many media sources and even GM did so. However, it did use the 305 bore, and doing the math to calculate displacement proves otherwise. It was no different that Chevy calling the old 402 a 396 or 400.
Hi Jon,
The 1991-1992 Whale Caprice had 4.3 V6 as an option. But apparently they sold very few of those. I have seen pictures of a 1991 sedan with the 4.3 V6 – guess NYC taxicabs-owners bought a fair share of those.
And thanks for a great writeup, Jon. I have been looking around for fresh B-body articles for a long time, and I enjoyed this very much.
I live in Scandinavia (Northern Europe) and daily-drive a 1991 Caprice Classic sedan 305 TBI – best car I have ever owned with very few problems. 5 years and 60 000 miles with many smiles.
My dad, a Flint native and a regular GM stalwart, bought new Chevrolet B-bodies in 1977, 1984, 1985, and 1989, and was poised for another, but turned up his nose at the final generation wagons because the rear glass wouldn’t retract into the gate. “No way am I driving around with a ladder sticking out and that glass hatch raised high in the air,” he grumbled. Never mind that he never drove around with a ladder.
Don’t be too hard on dear old Dad, most people today drive pick up trucks with the dream of hauling things that they never do. Don’t kill me with exceptions, you all know what I mean.
Funny! I have driven around with the glass up and have to admit it felt funny. If I have a trip longer than a couple blocks, I have tied down the glass to whatever is sticking out so it is down even if it isn’t closed.
Excellent article John. You did a great job covering these cars. When these aero B-bodies came out I thought they were really cool cars. They seemed so much more modern than the 1990 models. But as time has past, I much prefer the boxy cars to these 91-96 cars. I still think they are okay looking cars for their time, and the wagons were one of the better looking variations (the Impala SS is by far the best looking).
These Custom Cruisers were the worst looking of the wagons IMO. The front grille looks like a Caprice grille with a hunk of plastic slapped in the middle. It looks really low grade IMO. I don’t know why they didn’t make the center section chrome, like on a Olds 98 or to continue the theme form a 1990 Custom Cruiser. The remainder of the car looked okay. I actually prefer my wagon sans wood and sans wire wheels.
It’s too bad they never used a full open fender opening on the rear of these aero B-body wagons. They would have looked much better. Too bad Chevy never made one like this below:
Sort of obvious that the ’91/’92 Custom Cruiser was dead car driving from the get go. There were also four door sedan versions of the Caprice and of the Roadmaster but no Olds sedan version.
Oddity of the windows is not something I knew about. But GM was weird. The Roadmaster wagon and sedan have different grilles. Why?
Thanks for writing about this Oldsmobile; I admire the car.
Thanks for the kudos. The whole front end of the Roadmaster sedan is different from the wagon, hood, fenders and bumper. GM wanted to differentiate the sedans, but didn’t think it was worth it to differentiate the wagons. I think it was easier for production reasons to keep the sheetmetal all the same for the wagons.
At least one person has transplanted a sedan front onto a wagon, I know.
Actually somebody did a “Fleetwood” wagon based off of the Roadmaster I believe…
The flip-up rear window, besides allowing for more style than the earlier roll-down version, also allowed for a much bigger window than the previous boxy wagons had.
I’m a great fan of the GM B/C-bodies of the ’77-’96 era. The early and late cars were generally the best of the big car breed. I owned one and drove many over many miles.
But, I’m going to have to call the ’77-’96 wagons a Deadly Sin in ways more literal than the words usually are used here at CC.
The early Vista Cruisers and the first gen Custom Cruiser got the third row right, facing it forward. Turning the third row to the rear in 1977 was antediluvian in terms of safety. A forward crash with the typically low backed seats was a disaster, a rear ending, sending bodies hurtling back while the rear door would start intruding into the passenger area was a very bad event for anyone involved.
In 1977 GM was four years shy of being the world’s largest automaker for 50 years. I’ll run with the idea that they knew this.
My wife and I were new parents to be in 1997. We took some child health and safety classes, and were shown a film of crash dummies in the way-back of a 1977 Caprice. The narration made it clear that you should buy a better designed vehicle for your family.
I wonder how many injuries or fatalities were linked to those 3rd row seats in these wagons? I would think by the mid to late 1980’s nobody was buying these cars if they had big families. The mini van and SUV (like the small Cherokee) were being bought for larger families.
I have been junk yard hopping since the late 1990’s and on most cars in there, the nicest seats were the fold away 3rd row seats. Nobody used them. My folks have had 2 Ford products (1993 Taurus wagon and 2003 Sable wagon) with these seats and they were never used. I have the 2003 Sable now as a winter car, Those seats looked brand new
I own a 96 Buick. The vinyl rear seat is in good shape, but then with vinyl it would take an awful lot of use to get worn. The carpet, however, shows signs of a lot of use. I have used it occasionally for passengers, but less so the last few years since we also have a three row SUV now.
Great writeup indeed and thanks for sharing photos of a neat looking car representing a body style that was on its way out.
There was also that mysterious 4.3l V8 engine (L99) that was offered on the entry level Caprice Classic from 94-96 and rated at 200hp.
I worked at a Chevy dealer in 2002-2003 and I saw a lot of those 91-96 Caprice models and only once did i see one with a 4.3l V8 in it.
I have seen many, and still occasionally see, 4.3 Caprices. They are easy to spot because they have single exhaust, while the 5.7 has dual.
My experience was the same as Jon’s. I saw lots of 4.3L Caprices. When I was working at GM, I’d always check the Caprices when they’d come in for service, and more often than not they were 4.3L V8s. The LT1’s were a ton of fun, but not very common around here in the sedans. Our local police dept even use some 4.3L powered cars too, but the Provincial Police always used LT1s.
Nice find and writeup! I was always puzzled about these, how Olds got a wagon but no sedan. There was a family where our kids went to school who had one of these, a navy blue one. I kind of liked it, but found it a poor substitute for our Ford Club Wagon.
Yes, the more traditional Buick was the winner. This car tried to appeal to a different demographic, but the Chrysler minivan was running away with that buyer.
I think the point was to leave something in the Olds fleet with a bit of brawn and some towing chops, the same reason the rwd B wagons outlived many of their sedan counterparts through 1990. The Bravada SUV came on board the same year as this Custom Cruiser and the future of where the sales would come from was established, allowing Olds to start moving on.
GM put a surprising amount of towing emphasis on the 1991 and up rear drivers, I recall reading the linked article on the plane flight to my honeymoon. Our rental on that trip was a 1993 whale Caprice. My wife was not terribly amused, but the strong engine and powerful AC were just the ticket as we explored the mountains in the southwest United States – in July.
https://books.google.com/books?id=4-MDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA36&dq=cadillac+towing&hl=en&ei=4dkXTeaROcP68AbVwPmJDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result#v=onepage&q=cadillac%20towing&f=false
Given how awkward the Buick Roadmaster sedan looked (along with the completely restyled 1993-96 Cadillac Fleetwood), it’s probably for the best that Olds never received a sedan version of this.
Olds actually had the right idea with the Bravada and the Silhouette. The problem with those vehicles was the execution.
These are extremely hard to come by, considering they were only offered 2 years. The last example I saw for sale in the wild was last year, just outside of Jacksonville, FL. It was dark blue inside and out, a 1992 model, and not nearly as nice or clean as this one. It also had an optimistic, if not fairly ludicrous, price tag affixed to it. The amount escapes me now, but I do know it was a bit much, given the miles and condition.
I vividly recall the debacle of the “This Is Not Your Father’s Oldsmobile” ad campaign. In one action, Oldsmobile managed to simultaneously alienate their loyal core group of traditional buyers, while virtually guaranteeing no one under the age of 30 would ever set foot in an Oldsmobile showroom. I’d love to have been a Ninja hiding in the boardroom the day the over-paid geniuses who worked in marketing came up with that whole plan and slogan. I place most of the blame on Oldsmobile’s demise squarely on the shoulders of those desk-driving, cotton-for-brains marketing execs who cooked up that half-baked idea. Way to go, Einsteins!
That little pouch above the glovebox was there to provide some differentiation between the Olds and Buick wagons which otherwise had the same dashboard (the Chevrolet was somewhat different, though the bottom half appears the same). GM wasn’t going to spent alot of money making the low-volume Custom Cruiser (with no sedan counterpart) look different than their other brands. Even the front clip is shared – only the grille inserts differ between the three brands. When the Buick Roadmaster sedan appeared a year after the wagon, it had a unique front end, but for whatever reason the wagon kept using the Chevy/Olds front clip even though the new Buick front clip would have fit.
The Buick and Olds cluster gauges are positioned the same, but the Olds has a different, more sporty look. The Buick had totally different seat than the Olds or Caprice. I understand that the front of the 92 Buick sedan was supposed to be used on the wagon, but had fit issues, and was delayed until 92…since the wagon was already set for introduction it was put out with the similar front to the other wagons. There is a difference in the grille, front bumper, and cover for the Buick. The grille is taller, and the bumper has a recess in the top for the grille.
The sedan front clip can be bolted to the wagon with little effort.
I am the current of a hot-rodded 91 Olds. It has a 454 transplanted into the engine bay. It is a fun car to drive, and gets more attention at car meets than most exotics.