Have you ever seen an advertisement for a vehicle that has the facts in the description incorrect? There’s bound to be some sellers who are misinformed about their vehicles. One that we noticed online recently bears mentioning because it seems to be a point of confusion that’s not uncommon.
In 1966, Oldsmobile introduced the Cutlass Supreme, a “glamorous” four-door hardtop that the company claimed “does for the Cutlass what the Luxury Sedan does for the Ninety-Eight.” In the case of the latter, the Ninety-Eight LS featured exclusive limo touches like walnut grain seat backrest and upper door trim panels, door and rear seat assist grips, vanity compartment on the front seat backrest, rear center courtesy lamp, and more.
While not quite the posh sedan of the LS, the 1966 Cutlass Supreme sought to milk the prestige. Oldsmobile’s brochure proclaimed, “You’ve got the newest, niftiest Cutlass that ever wore the Oldsmobile nameplate!” The Cutlass Supreme (the only four-door hardtop within the Cutlass series) included an exclusive Custom Sport Seat that “features a fold-down center armrest just like you find in expensive cars.” Other features included color-coordinated wall to wall carpeting, deluxe steering wheel, and padded instrument panel. Under the hood, the 320-horsepower 330 with four-barrel was the only way to go. Oldsmobile even suggested it could be harnessed with “4-on-the-floor.”
Oldsmobile expanded the Cutlass Supreme to a complete series for 1967, offering hardtops and sedans in both two-door and four-door configurations, plus a convertible. (In a change from previous years, the 4-4-2 package was available only on prestigious Cutlass Supreme two-doors.) For 1968, Oldsmobile redesigned its mid-size offerings and reshuffled lineup—the 4-4-2 now was its own model, and the Cutlass Supreme’s lineup was reduced to two four-doors and a hardtop coupe.
The regular Cutlass series continued to be available in a bevy of body styles. Two-door Cutlasses were christened Cutlass S. What did the “S” stand for? It’s never been officially stated, but Oldsmobile wanted to promote the sporty side of its cars, even using Youngmobiles in the ad campaign starting in 1968.
You may not be surprised to learn that some folks think the “S” stands for Supreme. However, the Cutlass Supreme was a different model. In fact, for 1968-69, there was a Cutlass S convertible, but no Cutlass Supreme convertible. There was a Cutlass Supreme convertible in 1967 and 1970-72 but, for 1968-69, the convertible was a Cutlass S.
