EDIT: This is actually a base Ninety-Eight coupe, I checked my ’72 Olds brochure and this car has the base interior.
Here it is, another Saturday afternoon. Sunny, mid to high 80s. And here I am, out on the deck, intermittently reading a book, working on gin and tonic #2 (#3 will be on the way quite soon) and playing with my smart phone.
Today’s land yacht was one I’ve had in my phone’s picture folder since May, and forgot about. A pre-emissions, pre-giant bumper, Olds Ninety-Eight hardtop coupe.
In that bygone year of 1972, the Ninety-Eight was top dog in Olds hierarchy, save the personal-lux Toronado coupe.
It was the biggest, baddest and Broughamiest Lansing offering, with an impressive 455 CID Olds V8 under the pool table-sized hood. Ninety-Eights came with a 225-horse version as standard.
Riding a 127″ wheelbase, it had room to spare for you and five of your closest pals, and ash trays and lighters aplenty for your trip to the Moonlight Bay supper club, golf course or marina.
For ’72 they came as a standard 98, LS, or a special edition, sedan-only Regency model.
Regencys came with floating pillow seating, zippered storage pockets on the back of the front seat, and a Tiffany-signed clock. It was built to commemorate Oldsmobile’s 75th anniversary.
Even the standard coupe was pretty nice.
But for those seeking luxurious but perhaps not as ostentatious seating, the LS was a fine choice.
An LS coupe went for $5009 before options, weighed in at 4428 pounds, and 24,453 were sold.
The LS sedan sold much better, with 69,920 built. The base Ninety-Eights were less numerous despite being around $250 cheaper, with 13,111 coupes (like our featured car today) and 17,572 sedans adding to the total Ninety-Eight tally.
This fog gray coupe was featured on Finding Future Classic Cars late last spring, but of course the Craigslist ad is long gone now.
I don’t even remember what state it was in, though the period correct Kentucky license plates offer a possibility.
So many early ’70s cars were sepia toned-brown, green, yellow, that this gray coupe with black top and silver-gray interior really appealed to me. It didn’t hurt that I love pretty much all Oldsmobiles. All in all, a really nice survivor!