This sighting was an answer to a prayer I hadn’t even yet offered up. My religious beliefs aren’t the point of this post, but it can’t be ignored that this Delta 88 Royale made its glorious appearance last Sunday morning while I was on my way to a worship service. It’s even white – how angelic! Believe me when I tell you it floated across the intersection of Addison and Halsted (just a few blocks east of Wrigley Field) as if on a cloud. In my opinion, no other American full-sized four-door of its era pulled off the visual balance of luxury and relative sportiness more deftly than these Deltas.
I recall having seen probably only a handful of examples of the original wave of downsized, 1977 – ’79 B-Body Oldsmobiles in the past ten years or so, but this is the second such car I’ve spotted within the span of one year. Like the green Royale coupe seen in Flint last summer, this one looked to be in fantastic condition, and also like the other car, it was fitted with Olds’ Super-Stock II wheels. Perhaps these underappreciated cars are finally getting their due and coming out of Grandpa’s garage for the next generation to cherish and enjoy. I said, can I get an “Amen”?
Lakeview, Chicago, Illinois.
Sunday, June 5, 2016.
Amen, Brother Dennis!
Seriously, these are the most visually appealing of the downsized B’s, and that continued after the 1980 facelift.
Another car jumping out for you to photograph.
I agree completely, at least on the 77-79 models. From 80 on, my allegiance switches to Buick and Cadillac.
There have been many such sightings this year, Brother Shafer! Summer is just getting started.
Amen Joseph.
In or around 1982 I was dating a woman who owned a 1978 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale Coupe medium camel metallic with a full camel beige vinyl roof. It needed some detailing.
One day I drove her to work in it, took it home, washed it, scrubbed the beige vinyl roof, vacuumed the interior, cleaned the dash, all the windows, steering wheel, etc. etc., you know, the full manic obsessive tidy up.
It looked like new. She was very happy!
I like your taste in cars.
How happy? 😉
That is one beautiful Eighty-Eight! I agree that a little care and detailing can take the appearance of a nice car to the next level.
This is my all original fully loaded 1978 Olds Delta 88 Royale with the big block Olds 350 (Code R) engine. It has been in our family since new.
VERY nice car! Thanks for posting–great to see cars like this getting their due. This must have been one of the last olds with a real olds 350ci engine.
I had a classmate who drove a tan ’77 Delta 88 from before our graduation in 1995 until…I don’t know! But I’ve seen it around within the last 10 years, although it’s way rustier now.
Anyway, it came from the factory with a Chevy 350, which my classmate liked, but Oldsmobile buyers of 1977 apparently didn’t (wasn’t there a class-action lawsuit or something?).
Nice car, Mark! Rare luxury wheel covers – very rarely ordered on Deltas.
Just beautiful, Mark. Great shot of it, too.
CC effect!
Just yesterday I was thinking about Delta 88s from an odd viewpoint. Most series names are meant to imply status in one way or another. Locations like Malibu or Bel Air, direct adjectives like Deluxe or Custom, warlike terms such as Corsair and Invicta, connotations of travel like Wayfarer and Land Cruiser.
Delta 88 is the ONLY series name that got directly down to the whole point of status. Delta. Increment. More than the neighbors, moving UP in the world.
I doubt that Olds was thinking along those lines, but with a tradition as the engineer’s car, you never know.
I drove my ’78 Delta 88 to church today…second car in the parking lot at approximately 9:30 a.m. after the usher. Of course, being the pastor, I *should’ve* been first! 🙂
I always found these to be the nicest looking large sedans of the 70’s, balancing some sportiness and luxury together in one package. You could equip them to be a near-98 or a big Cutlass Supreme, depending on which way you went with the optional interiors and wheels. RIP OLDS!!
To each his own… I prefer the more formal C-pillar of the later models. I think the (relatively) sporty look of these early B-bodies is more suited to a smaller platform. But I’ll disagree with myself a little: the early Caprice coupes (with the bent-glass rear window) are just right.
Amen!
Sadly… It’s probably soon destined to the “Donk Your Ride” shop to get hijacked suspension, 44″ hoopla hoop and rubber and wheels/tires and a Cocoa Puffs-themed paint job…
I don’t see why we should think that. It looks to be in good enough shape for the owner to keep it around for years to come.
Regardless of one’s opinion on donks, at least their owners are keeping them out of the junkyard.
Agreed!
That’s the thought that brings me back every time I think badly about donks/hi-risers/whathaveyou. While I’d prefer them original too, if you look at the big picture, that trend has probably kept thousands of big RWD cruisers out of the junkyard. And most of the modifications are even reversible.
Sweeet. I can almost hear the Turbo Hydro 350’s first-gear windup from here.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love all the 1977-79 B-Bodies but I would put the Delta 88 squarely at the bottom in terms of desirability. I just find them boxy and bland. The Holiday coupe is a little more interesting but still, I’d take a Bonneville, LeSabre or Caprice over this.
Here’s the thing, William: The Olds isn’t so much a beauty as it is not let down in one or two big areas that the other 77-79 Bs were. The Buick was nice, but had a really weak butt. The Chevy was weak in profile, not being able to decide if sharp creases or rounded curves was its theme. The Pontiac, well, you just have to love fender skirts and plastichrome, and Cadillac just wasn’t Cadillacky enough. The Olds looked pretty good from every angle and had a kind of square-shouldered muscularity to it (especially with these wheels) that give it that extra something. And then there was that sound that came from the Olds 350, an engine that you didn’t get in all of them in that first generation.
My best friend in high school drove his parent’s 88 before they purchased an old Comet for him to use. His dad used to own his own dealership, but when I knew him in the mid-80s he was a salesman and had a new Cutlass every year for his use. We never got to use the Cutlass. We used to cruise around town looking for girls with that 88. As I recall it had the luxury wheel covers. Not exactly a “chick magnet” but my other friend had a Fairmont wagon to drive and my parents had a rusted out 70 Impala. The 88 was by far our best choice. The funny thing about it is that you could start/drive the car without the key in the ignition. The lock on it was faulty and I remember starting it one time and driving around while my friend looked on with a strange combination of surprise and contempt.
I agree that the Delta is the best looking of the ’77-’79 sedans by far (the coupe champion would have to be the bent-glass Caprice). It just looks *right* from every angle, with none of the fussiness or awkwardness of some of its platform-mates. Unfortunately, it’s also the only one of them that came out of the ’80 restyle worse off (Chevy, Cadillac, and Buick improved, and Pontiac is debatable).
This white one is a very nice catch of the perfect Sunday driver!
Whether you’re a ’77 to ’79 Delta 88 lover or hater, we can say with absolute metaphysical certitude that at night *this* is a beautiful sight!
I still think the Buick LeSabre sport coupe was the best looking…especially with the classic Buick chrome road wheels
My favorite B-body of the 70’s. In coupe form with the Holiday package, Olds rally wheels, one of the larger Rocket engines and the top suspension and tire size available.
I love the 88 holiday couple. With a 403. Didn’t some have t tops? Best looking b of the time. 80 is more old lady looking car and horribly cheapened and lightened
Like this site a lot. Here is my 79 olds 98 regency. AACA certified original HPOF class. 350 Diesel with original motor. We have owned it for 10 years now never let me down. This is one of my favorite originals that I have. Great fuel mileage, and rides better then the Cadillacs I had with the same platform.
Another original in our collection 84 Buick LeSabre Limited with an olds 307 54k original miles. It is on display at the AACA museum at Hershey PA until April.