1972 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale

Description

You've seen some full-sized luxury drop-tops on our site before, and they always find new homes. Why? Because cars like this 1972 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale convertible will never be built again. With effortless big-torque V8s, suspensions that glide over rough roads, and room for a baseball team, they're the epitome of everything American. They're also screaming bargains!

While a lot of cars in 1972 were being painted brown or beige or avocado green, this tastefully freshened Olds got a coat of medium blue that will simply never go out of style. And for 1972, the look is surprisingly trim and restrained, and this might be one of only a handful of luxury cars built that year without goofy-looking fender skirts. Most of the car appears to be original save for a possible repaint some years ago, but the overall look and patina suggest careful maintenance throughout its life. The doors fit well, the gaps are pretty much the way the factory did it, and even the white pinstripe emulates the original look and again doesn't over-do it with flash. It's likely that the chrome and stainless brightwork is original and given that it's now more than four decades old, it's showing a bit of age but looks entirely appropriate on this big ragtop and I wouldn't change a thing. Instead you should load up the gang and head out for a road trip and let the guys with the trailer queens worry about bugs and weather.

The white-over-black interior is extremely impressive given that it appear to be entirely original. White seats in particular can be a challenge to keep looking fresh, but these look remarkably good with excellent details and no split seams. The wide benches allow room for six, although four is ideal, and with all the options it'll be a comfortable cruise for everyone. The A/C is cold thanks to original R12 refrigerant, there are power windows (probably should be mandatory on a big convertible), cruise control, as well as an AM/FM stereo radio just to the right of the steering column. The square speedometer face seems lost down there in the middle, but the arrangement of all the controls around the driver is kind of sporty. The door panels and arm rests might be showing a bit of age, but replacement is out of the question given this car's authenticity. A new white power convertible top is in excellent shape and the trunk is just as massive as you'd expect, even with the full-sized spare in there.

An Oldsmobile 350 cubic inch V8 provides the power and given how this one cruises, you won't be wishing for a fuel-hungry big block. It's nicely detailed in Oldsmobile gold with an original air cleaner and like the rest of the car, it looks well-maintained rather than restored. It fires easily and drives superbly with a great V8 burble from the single exhaust pipe. As a full-sized Olds, it gets a heavy-duty TH400 3-speed automatic transmission which twists a 10-bolt rear end, and new shocks all around make it feel like a much younger car. More care is evident in the tidy undercarriage and as you'd expect on something of this size, power steering and brakes are standard equipment. Big 235/75/15 whitewall radials provide a cushiony ride and protect original hubcaps for an authentic look.

This is a ton of drop-top sheetmetal for not a lot of cash. Someone has always loved this nicely documented Olds, now it's your turn. Call today!