It’s time, once again, my friends, for the weekly Klockau Lust Object. Unsurprisingly, it is another GM luxo-gunboat. In this case a metallic Sage Green Olds.
For years, the Delta 88 was the mainstay big Olds. Solid. Comfortable. Reliable. Imposing, but not so fancy as a Ninety-Eight, or, gasp, a Cadillac, to offend those at the Sons of Knute lodge when you went over for canasta.
But in the mid ’80s the second round of downsizing hit the flossiest of the General’s wares. Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight, Buick Electra and Cadillac De Ville and Fleetwood all were right sized, and although interior room was equal and in some cases better than the older rolling stock, some still pined for Brougham by the Foot.
So in mid ’84, Oldsmobile rolled out an extra plush Delta 88, which retained its 1977 dimensions.
Fancier than even the plush Delta 88 Royale Brougham, the Royale Brougham LS featured the outgoing Ninety-Eight’s luxury interior, among other extras.
It returned for a full model year in 1985. Weighing in at 3,515 pounds, with an MSRP of $14,331 (the Royale Brougham sedan, one step down in the 88 hierarchy, went for $11,062), it was the luxury Olds for those who wanted a premium car, but were not yet ready for V6 power or front wheel drive.
Delta 88s came standard with the 110 bhp 231 CID V6, but Royale Brougham LSs came with a standard 307 V8 with 140 hp. A 350 CID diesel V8 was optional but likely rarely ordered by The Year Of Our Lord, 1985.
Like earlier writeups over the past month, I saw this on the Finding Future Classic Cars group on FB. Offered for $8,000 in Columbus Grove, OH, this appears to be quite the time capsule, with a claimed 31,500 miles.
As you’d expect it is nicely equipped with sage green velour, power windows, power locks, AM/FM stereo with cassette, power trunk release, cruise and A/C. It looks good. If you’re so inclined you can check it out here. Until next time, stay calm, Brougham on, and always tip your bartender, folks!