Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham 1979 images

By 1979, ‘Cutlass’ could mean two very different cars wearing the same nameplate. This Brougham-trim example runs a modest 4.3-liter V8 and 3-speed automatic built for comfortable cruising, a world away from the same year’s Hurst/Olds package with its 350 Rocket V8 and Hurst Dual-Gate shifter. Together, they show how far Oldsmobile stretched one platform to reach opposite ends of the market.

All the high performace Oldsmobile Cutlass names from the ’60’s are back for the G4-from 1978 through 1980, and they offer top performace for the day, but are no longer the high compression power plants used prior to ’73. The Cutlass Cailais could have the performance 442 option for all three years. In ’79 the special edition Hurst/Olds power package is offered with 3,499 takers. The latter features the trusted 5.7 L (350) Rocket V8 coupled to either the 4 speed manual or the Turbo Hydra-matic with a Hurst Dual Gate shifter.

4.3L V-8 3-Spd Automatic

⚑ Featured Gear

Start Car Conversations →

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

MCF thanks Gateway Classic Cars for the images provided here

click any image to see a larger picture

Everything the existing text says about performance options belongs to a different car in the same showroom. This particular Cutlass wears the Brougham badge and a mild V8 built for comfort, not stoplight bragging rights — a reminder that by the late 1970s, Oldsmobile was selling two very different versions of the same platform to two very different buyers. One version chased quarter-mile times with a Hurst dual-gate shifter and a 350 Rocket V8. The other, the one pictured here, prioritized quiet cruising over quarter-mile bragging rights. Both wore the Cutlass name. Only one was built to be fast.

The Brougham Was Built for a Different Buyer

While Oldsmobile’s performance-minded 442 and Hurst/Olds packages leaned on the 5.7-liter 350 Rocket V8, the Cutlass Supreme Brougham trim aimed at buyers who wanted comfort and smooth cruising over straight-line speed. This example carries a smaller 4.3-liter V8 paired with a 3-speed automatic — a combination built for relaxed, efficient driving rather than stoplight duels, reflecting how far the “malaise era” pulled even a nameplate with genuine muscle car roots toward comfort-first engineering.

Two Cutlasses, One Nameplate

By 1979, the G-body Cutlass lineup stretched from the Brougham’s cushioned ride to the Hurst/Olds’ Dual-Gate shifter and gold-trimmed alloy wheels, giving Oldsmobile a way to sell essentially the same car to buyers chasing comfort and buyers chasing performance under one roof. That range is part of what makes the Cutlass one of the most collected G-bodies today — for buyers now, that split personality is part of the appeal: the same platform can deliver either a quiet, comfortable cruiser or a genuine performance package, depending entirely on which build sheet the original buyer checked.

Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Republished by Blog Post Promoter