The 1980s were not exactly the golden years for the big American RWD car. The second energy crisis in 1979 really put the kibosh on the genre, and throughout the ’80’s, market share for the sector was just around 10%. No wonder the manufacturers didn’t invest in them, and the two holdouts, GM and Ford soldiered through the decade with very little changes to their boxy cars. They had become the Toyota Crown Comfort of North America, suspended in seeming perpetual motion.
And most were dogs, thanks to higher gas prices and the upward creep of CAFE. But there was at least one exception: the C91 Chevrolet, which was still living in 1977. Heavy duty everything and the 350 4 barrel and THM 350 for motivation. If I had to have a big American car, it would have to be one of these. Of course wrangling one from a Chevy dealer would be another matter, but then this is an MM exercise.
Happy Malaise Era to you!
The FWD V6 Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable had a big effect on America’s traditional big RWD cruisers. They effectively redefined the American car.
With a young family then I enthusiastically bought a new ’87 Sable. It felt like a big car to me, it was plenty big inside, and had an excellent ride. Never gave a thought to the boxy old Grand Marquis or Crown Victoria.
If the Taurus/Sable doesn’t answer the question, then I guess I haven’t got one.
Not a lot that appeals to me, gotta go with Paul on this one. 9C1 Impala.
I agree, I drove them as a police officer in that decade and they were fast and handled great. The photo is a internet shot of a ‘77, though.
My sentiments exactly. If I absolutely had to drive a 1980s American sedan, it would be a Taurus. But that probably doesn’t count as big for this exercise.
I guess for my pick I’ll stick with the GM B body, but I’d like a little variety instead of just another Chevy like I picked last time. I think this time I’ll take a 1985 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale coupe, like this one: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1985-oldsmobile-delta-88-royale-last-call-for-the-lansing-b-body-coupe/
Yep, 9C1. Make mine beige
To Live and Die in LA definitely had one of the better chase scenes. Seems like it was one of the first to feature a jack-knifing semi.
Speaking from experience, a 9C1 is best in areas with smooth roads!
One of the best chase scenes ever and pretty good movie too. All the cop cars in that scene were 9C1 Impalas and 9C1 Malibus IIRC.
1989 Olds Ninety Eight Touring Sedan. That ’75 Grand Ville ‘vert would have probably cost me about 300% of its purchase price to keep fueled up until 1989, but there just wasn’t anything out there worth replacing it with yet.
I guess I should have had a bit more foresight before picking the Chevy as my seventies car, because that seems about the only choice for the eighties as well. So make mine the wagon or sedan, maybe even 2 door, that I didn’t buy in the previous decade. And yeah, all those heavy duty police package options, of course. And if I can’t pick the same car two decades in a row, make my eighties car a LeSabre T Type. White or silver.
1989 Cadillac Brougham. Though, admittedly that’s tough because I know that it too has problem. It’s more a choice of picking what can overcome its flaws better rather than what could be considered good, and for all of the crappy plastic and the wheezing 307, the Cadillac has still enough of the positive big car traits that I can overlook it. Plus, these 80s Cadillacs are the first thing to pop in my head when I hear the word itself, the design language being rather memorable in its own right, so I guess that counts for something.
Can I get a Taurus SHO? Otherwise the 9C1 Impala is the answer.
Well, the ’80s cars I actually owned were definitely not full-sizers:
1982 Chevrolet Cavalier Type 10
1985 Mercury Cougar (my brother’s old car that I repaired and sold)
1987 Suzuki Samauri (had to sell due to high insurance
1987 Suzuki GS550ES (totaled after a year)
1987 Suzuki Samauri (came back to the well)
1988 Chevrolet Spectrum
1989 Honda Civic
I lived with my grandmother during college, so her ’85 Grand Marquis was both my date car (and eventually wedding car) as well as my only real brush with a large American car. Wallowy and pillowy are the two words that come to mind.
I like the idea of the 9C1, too. They were (and still are, to me) good-looking cars.
The eighties were tough on the traditional full-size car, even the downsized versions. First, there was the introduction of the 1982 GM A-body (Celebrity, 6000, Ciera, Century). Then, the 1983 Camry, Toyota’s first ‘big’ car for the US. The 1984 Chrysler minivan followed and then the 1986 Ford Taurus. Finally, the rise of the SUV/CUV craze was beginning and making some real inroads into mainstream transportation.
With all this going on, the old, body-on-frame, big, poorly packaged RWD car just didn’t have much of anywhere to go other than commercial and government fleets.
But, if I had to make a choice, I’d probably go with the last Pontiac Parisienne (1986).
Why not the last *real* big Pontiac, the ’81 Bonneville? Still with this awesome real-Pontiac interior instead of repurposed Chevy parts.
Good choice!
Good call on getting the earlier, real, full-size Bonneville. I’d forgotten how GM simply rebadged and slapped the earlier Pontiac taillights and front end onto a Caprice to create the Parisienne.
Not even the front end – everything forward of the A pillar was from a Caprice, save for a different grille insert and hood ornament. The ’82-’84 Parisienne had a Chevy rear end as well, but the Pontiac sheetmetal was brought back in 1985, as were Pontiac seats and inside door panels from the ’81 Bonneville Brougham.
I assumed you preferred the SBC over the Pontiac 301 V8 which has seen some criticism here and that’s why you preferred the later Parisiennes, but I drove a ’77 Bonne with the 301 and it proved quite robust and reliable, and felt more powerful than it was. If you must have a Chevy engine in your ’81 Pontiac, you can try to pull one in from Canada.
My father had a 1978 Bonneville with the PONTIAC 400 cu. in. V8 and whatever Turbo Hydramatic that came with it. It had a ridiculously tall rear end (2.41:1 IIRC) but would still chirp the tires going into 2nd gear.
If in the late 1970’s the police needed a 4-door sedan that would really haul a** they could probably not have done better than a Catalina with that same power train. Some departments probably did drive the down-sized B-body Ponchos. In the small town where I attended college at that time the predominant cruiser was the colonnade era Le Mans.
BTW, today is Dad’s 83rd birthday and has in his garage a 2019 Buick CUV that looks like an Easter egg with windows [sigh]. He seems happy enough with it but I’ll bet he would be delighted to turn back the clock to the time when he first brought home that white Bonneville.
If I can have a 1989 Lincoln Continental, I’ll take it.
Otherwise, a 1988 Deville Touring Sedan. The shorter 1985 body with the mighty 4500HT. Eat my dust, Paul!
I had over the years 5 Chrysler Fifth Avenues from the eighties.
I think that answers the question.
If they’re good enough for Mike Ehrmantraut, they’re good enough for me.
The perfect car for Mike Ehrmantraut.
He has so many Buick’s but I agree, the Chrysler fit him best.
1988-ish Crown Victoria. They were the Lake County, Indiana police cars and they always looked tough, especially with the front push-guard and Eagle GTs.
1980 Buick Electra Park Avenue with the 350ci V8 or a 1988-89 Lincoln Town Car
Overall not a big fan of the 1980’s vehicles.
Easy: Chrysler Cordoba LS (the shoula been a Dodge sporty version with the crosshairs nosecone) equipped to cling like grim death to Mopar’s muscle car heritage. 360, slicktop, leather buckets with console/floor shift…most likely T-topped also. In fact it’d be just about the spitting image of the midnight blue /6 powered beauty that Joe Dennis caught in Chicago. The twin Dodge Mirada is nearly as cool, but DAMN that LS front clip looks perfect!
Alternatively, Id like a Plymouth Gran Fury or Dodge Diplomat slicktop with all of the cop spec engine and suspension goodies. The dogpans on the 6-slot steelies are gone, I like the bright trim rings and small chrome caps from the Super Coupes’ road wheels of the same design.
In the late ‘70’s I could have gone with a Caprice bent window coupe or even a ‘Frank Drebin’ 4-door but the 1980-ish styling changes to the sedan definitely took its looks down a peg or two and completely obliterated the attractiveness of the coupe, IMHO.
I like the Cordoba idea. It’s under appreciated.
Yes they are, as are many Mopars from ‘75-on.
I have been down multiple blind alleys here. Lincoln? I will be completely disgusted in 1980 and it will take most of the decade to even partially recover after my glorious 72 Connie.
Cadillac, hmmm. It would have to be an 80-81 with the 368. Certainly nothing newer.
Final answer: the one I haven’t tried, an 80 New Yorker. Not an 81 because the 360 went away. A dark single color and with some good wheels. I may kick myself for passing on the Cadillac if I get a crappy one, but it will be my last chance.
I came here to post this but you beat me to it! Ironically, the downsized ’62 Dodge and Plymouth’s that were Paul’s pick for the 60s became mid-sizers in the mid-60s to late 70s but then once again became Chrysler’s downsized, full-sized cars of ’79-81. Definitely the end of an important era. (of course, I’d get mine with extra-comprehensive warranties, given the abysmal build quality of the day).
I was a taxi driver all through the 1980’s so I have driven every sled there was. The best, in my experience of millions of kms of seat time, is the Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale Brougham. These cars had a stout drive train and an excellent interior-much better materials than any other big car of the era, including Cadillac. The FE-3 made for a very nice handling car and the 700-4R transmission made for economical highway cruising.
Yes, the 307 was a bit of a dog but the torque it produced made the big car peppy in the city. The were well put together and didn’t rust nearly as badly as stuff a decade before.
Another huge plus for the GM Body was the electrics are just bulletproof. The Grand Lady (admittedly a C Body) is a perfect example: every single accessory works, although they are so heavy they must be made of solid steel.
Ford CV cop cars were nice, too, but they had electrical an engine problems galore.
Wouldn’t be my pick based on the styling, but you make a strong case. Additionally those Deltas held up relatively well in the rust belt, they were a staple in the Kenosha/Racine area well into the 00s and you still see them on a common enough basis to blend into the background. Many GMs from the 80s, including other B/C bodies, got those bizarre circular rust spots all over the sides of the body, but on the Olds the chrome bumpers seemed like a sacrificial anode.
Some GM B-bodies got aluminum reinforcement bars on their bumpers. This caused the bumper corrosion. Canada had different bumper laws than the US for some time in this era and it seemed most of our cars got the steel reinforcement in the bumpers, so this wasn’t a problem for us. My ’85 Olds got rear ended and just the bumper needed replacement. The replacement was from Texas and had an aluminum reinforcement. It didn’t last long in Canadian winters.
I had an ’85 Delta 88 Royal with a 307 and a TH200-4R. It was Canadian emissions car, so it had a fully mechanical Q-jet and no ECM. It was a good car, and the only thing that eventually killed it was rust. Mine had the upgraded suspension (as I preferred on my B-bodies), although it was F41, not FE3 (as per the RPO sticker). It was a very low option car, no A/C and plain interior. It was a well built car, but I preferred the Oshawa built 305 Chevrolets and Pontiac Parisiennes myself.
Not all B-bodies electrics were bullet proof. I remember some early 80’s Olds used aluminum wiring, which here in Ontario dissolved pretty quickly.
Here was my ’85 Olds:
Every rule has its exception. My 1984 Olds 98 dogged me with body electrical issues. I had short circuits that kept blowing fuses until a good mechanic painstakingly chased them down. There was evidence of other electrical fixes under the prior owner as well. And the automatic temp controller had been fried. The 3 panthers of my experience suffered none of this, only the common self-destructing Autolamp switch (and the recall for the cruise switch).
I’d buy my 1988 LeSabre T-Type again if that’s considered “large” enough. But I’ll note that I have gained an appreciation for the Caprice due to this site. I have not actually driven one since starting to read CC (need to do that, add item to bucket list) but from what y’all seem to say, I’m sure I will hear hosannah’s when doing so.
Choices are definitely dwindling. I think I would have to go GM.
First choice: 1980 Cadillac Coupe de Ville – I like the 1980 facelift, and it’s the last year for the regular Cadillac 368 (V8-6-4 could be modified to disable cylinder shutdown, but I wouldn’t want to mess with that in a new car)
Runner up: 1980-87 Buick Electra Estate Wagon – all years similar, but 80 had 350 still available and no fragile overdrive transmission. 87 was the last year for the hard, skinny rim steering wheel, which I really like. Has to have the aluminum wheels and woodgrain (which I think could only be deleted on the LeSabre)
Ford choice: 1988-89 Country Squire – facelift looked nicer. These at least had fuel injection, unlike GM’s full sizers.
I’m assuming the 1984-89 Lincoln Mark VII wouldn’t count, cause I would probably choose that if it does!
Good news for you: the 1980 Cadillac was the first year of the 368 V8 and the last year of ye olde Quadrajet carburetion. The V8-6-4 setup came on the 1981 models. The 1980 and 1981 cars still had the Turbo 400 transmission too. Everything changed in ’82….
I rescued a triple silver 1980 Coupe De Ville from a scrapyard and enjoyed it for a couple years. It was no 472, ha-ha, but a delight to drive.
1989 Pontiac Bonneville LE. Acceptable looks, competent handling, decent pep and fuel mileage. And on the inside, a ballroom-sized interior equipped with ‘gages’.
What’s not to love?
1980 Lincoln Town Car with optional towing package and 5.8 Liter V8 fully loaded because it has to last me sixteen years until my 90’s purchase. Dark red metallic/tan or white interior.
I feel like this car though still rare would have been easier to find in 1980 than a 360 Chrysler or a 350 gasoline Buick Electra or Olds 98. But any of these would suffice correctly optioned. Stay away from Cadillac in the 80’s.
https://www.vanguardmotorsales.com/inventory/3209/1980-lincoln-continental-mark-vi
I actually did find one in 2019 that is almost like new!
Price is higher than I am willing to pay. But I know this motor and transmission was very durable because my dad drove a 1979 Mercury Cougar through the mid-90’s with a 351W without any major issues. It was stolen and totaled in a chase but never let us down prior to the theft. The thief was uninjured in the accident and took off on foot. We never found out who stole it. It had about 140K miles on it when stolen.
Funny thing about cars of this era all the full sizers at Ford and GM had pretty much most of the bugs worked out and even though they were down on power compared to the 1969-1970 models, the reduction in power probably made them that much more reliable because you really couldn’t redline these engines without doing neutral drops or holding the brake in drive.
Anyway customers in my opinion became pennywise and pound foolish by purchasing Vegas, Pintos, K-Cars, J-Cars, X-Cars, etc. that while better on gas proved to be unreliable, rusted faster, and came to define the term “disposable penalty box.”
It wasn’t until the debut of the Chrysler Minivans that consumers started up-sizing again and that was mainly due to the baby-boomers having kids and needing more roomy vehicles out of necessity. But by then most of the engine families from the 60’s and 70’s were discontinued in anything but trucks, GM B/C Body, and Panthers.
Of course by the late 80’s the word was out about “domestic reliability” and with the release of the updated imports Camry, Maxima, Accord, Legend. Customers began running to the import dealers in droves. But it was in these years 1980-1989 that sowed the seeds for current Chrysler, Ford, and GM to abandon the mid-size and full-size sedan markets.
Well I liked my ’77 Impala 9C1 so much, I decided to keep it all the way until 1989. By then I figure it’s time to get something new, but I after 12 great years, there is only one real choice for replacement – another 9C1. Of course by 1989, there was significant improvements, the L05 350 TBI engine makes 20 more horsepower and is significantly faster, and it has a TH700-R4 transmission to improve my highway mileage. By the late 80’s the 9C1 B-Body is the police car to beat and it pretty much dominates the MSP annual tests. And I quite like the updated looks to the front and rear.
I know a lot of people think the B-body wasn’t as good in the 1980’s, but up here in the great white North they stayed fully mechanical (no CCC, so no ECM and E-Q-Jet) until the later 80’s. An 80s Caprice with a 305, a TH700-R4 was a great car. Reliable, much better fuel mileage than the late 70’s cars, and very cheap and easy to fix. There were tons around, and most people had great luck with them. They were also heavily favoured by our local taxi companies. So even if I couldn’t get a 9C1, I’d still get a nice Canadian emissions Caprice.
But since this is MM, I will take the one below , thanks!
I will try again:
The 1980’s requires even more thought. I never cared for the GM ‘B’ & ‘C’ bodies after the 1980 aero restyle. The Panther body Ford did improve as the decade wore on, but they still remained boxy. MoPar’s early ‘80’s ‘B’ body ‘R’ bodies were handsome, but I like other buyers I would worry about buying a soon to be orphan. My favorite car in the ‘80s was the ‘87 – ‘92 Mazda 626 (Capella) 5dr hatchback, I also loved the ‘83 – ‘89 T-Bird, Taurus, Sable & Mark VII.
An ‘86 or ‘87 Lincoln Mark VII LSC that’s black on black would be nice, but I’d trade in my 1970’s Buick or my favorite GM ‘B’ body that was available all decade and didn’t get the 1980 look a 1987 Buick Electra Estate Wagon.
I think we’re talking only true big cars here which are all RWD by this point, not something like the downsized-twice ’85 Buick Electra Park Avenue which I quite like (maybe a coupe, just to be different), right? So I’ll go with a loaded-with-options 1980 Park Avenue sedan; last year for 350 V8 and brushed-silver gauges. Only other contender is a Chrysler New Yorker from the same year, but I have so little experience with these that I can’t commit to it so Buick it is.
To pick a good full size car in the 80s is a difficult task. The selection is dwindling. By this time I would have ascended the corporate ladder to district management, so would be looking for a nice but not overly extravagant car befitting my station in life and family hauling needs.
I dismissed the 1981 Imperial. The design of that thing is just ridiculous.
I looked at the 1980 Chrysler New Yorker, in fact JP and I test drove one together, but at 221 inches it was just a tad lengthy for me.
The 1983 Crown Vic did not get high scores. I had a relative who had one and they could not get rid of it fast enough due to breakdowns.
At 291 inches, the 1982 Lincoln Town Car always had a soft spot with me, but I didn’t see myself as a Lincoln man then. Certainly not now. I did appreciate their squarish hood ornament then, better than the elongated emblem used in today’s Lincolns. Today’s looks like it has been turned on its side unnaturally.
The 1983 Olds Delta 88 was one that almost made the short list. Nice styling, I’ve read that the 307 was a bit sluggish, so I thought maybe next time for the rocket brand. I may have waited too long.
The 1983 Dodge Mirada was 209 inches, it came with a 318, and the styling was – different. I thought on that one briefly.
The finalist was a 1983 Chrysler Fifth Avenue. 204″ and a 318 under the hood would have been a very nice choice. I see it has been picked by others above.
For me the winner was a 1985 Chev Caprice with the 5.0 Litre. At 215 inches, just 4 inches shorter than the Town Car mind you, it would have just fit into my suburban garage. Neighbours and friends would have nodded approval, and thought me cured of my Mopar fascination. To them I say, wait till the ’90s roll around!
1980 or ’81 Cadillac or an equivalent B/C/D body.
I love your taste in cars Dean!! Too bad Canada is so far away.. Here’s my ’81.
1987 Lincoln Mark VII LSC. Gonna have to think long and hard about the 90s.
Me too. Great choice
1980/1 Cadillac Seville with the Elegante package, two tone paint, and . It has to have the diesel. The diesel is great because you can yank it out and drop in a 500. No computers to worry about.
’88 Lincoln Town car, dark colour inside and out. Or an ’86 Pontiac Parisienne, also in a dark colour, not a fan of white or beige of any car really.
I already have it! ’84 Delta 88, the last of the great GM cars
I enjoyed my cutting edge ’86 Mercury Sable GS; but I got back every penny (and then some!) spent on the extended warranty usage: CV joints, catalytic converter, water pump, transmission/transaxle repairs and eventual replacement, A/C compressor, A/C evaporator, fuel injection repairs, power steering pump, warped brake rotors.
A Lincoln Town Car (sorry, Paul!) proved to be a much more reliable (if more old fashioned) than the curvy Sable.
During the early part of the decade, there were few large cars that interested me. It wasn’t until the middle of the decade when the full FWD onslaught was taking place that I found the smaller “big” cars interesting.
I was in love with the original Taurus/Sable, but highly disappointed that FoMoCo didn’t squirt out a perfomance model until 1988. By then, the big GM FWD B bodies had been released and I became a fan of those. I spent some wheel time behind my sister’s 1987 Bonnie SE with the 3.8L and four speed auto box. It was well equipped enough for me and in addition to moving down the road quite nicely, it got good gas mileage, too!
I will stick with another GM B-body, but I think I will wait until the Delta 88 is 12 years old and go for a 1989 Bonneville SSE, since uncle is paying for it. May as well get all of the toys…
Bonneville was H-Body
B-Body was RWD until it was cancelled at end of 1996 model year
Yup. I stand corrected… I was still thinking about the RWD B bodies.
OK, this one is a no-brainer for me…I’m a huge fan of the Ford Panthers, and I know I have lots of company on this site that share the Panther Love with me, so I have some esteemed company.
The 1987 Mercury Grand Marquis–final year of the truly old-school, Gothic-inspired Ford front end that seemed to be on EVERYTHING in the 1970s. The 1988-91 versions are nice, but they rounded out the corners and flattened things out, which I felt spoiled some of the character, but I get that they were only trying to modernize the design without alienating their core group of buyers. That year was the second year the excellent SEFI version of the 5.0 V-8 was offered–dual exhausts for me. The color is unimportant, but it must have the plush, crushed-velour cloth seats as opposed to the leather. I don’t get the hype about leather–too cold in winter, too hot and sticky in summer, and requires extra care cloth doesn’t need. Just a good vacuum. I love this Tu-Tone scheme and Turbine wheels on the attached photo.
I can sympathize!
Checker Marathon with oval opera windows!
Excellent pick. Same for me pls.
None of ’em!
I’m not a cabbie, I’m sure not a cop and I hope I don’t come across as a grumpy old man in my mid-40s (now, that is – the ’80s were ages 6-15 for me).
Taurus if I absolutely must, but what I really want would be a 5-door manual Acura Integra.
Oldsmobile 98 – last of the big blocks I believe, and made famous to those of us of a certain age via Public Enemy
Ford Thunderbird Turbo Coupe
I had one of these, but they’re really a MID sized car. Mine was an ‘88 (actually it was the ex wife’s car… my ‘88 T-Bird was a 5.0 LX with all the options).
All of my cars in the 80’s (and deep into the 90’s) were T-Birds, so by then, I’d gotten over my love of the Big America Car…
But here I go again, a Ford guy, and for the 4th decade in a row, I’m gonna pick from GM Cars… go figure.
If I have to trade in my Black over Silver ‘77 Caprice Classic Coupe (that I picked in our last episode of CC-MM), it would be one of these:
‘80 or ‘81 Pontiac Bonneville. These cars were very attractive, and even sporty for such a large broughamtastic car. My Dad had an ‘80 and it was beautiful, until a Chevette crossed the center line on Falls Road (MD-25) in Norther Baltimore County (Paul knows where I’m talking about) and totaled it! Hard to believe a Chevette would have enough mass to destroy a Bonnie, but F=MA, so there’s that. Thankfully everyone was ok.
Or keep the Caprice until ‘84 or later and upgrade to a nice Buick LeSabre. My Dad inherited his uncle’s last car which was one of these and it was very nice. By then I personally liked the Buick’s styling better than the Olds Delta ‘88, and the Pontiac Parisienne that replaced the Bonneville was too boxy and looked like a rebadged cop car Caprice, in fact, around that time I saw one in MSP (Maryland State Police) livery and was kinda confused, because every other State Trooper was in a Caprice, not a Pontiac. Maybe he was a high ranking sergeant or something.
Maybe I’ll FINALLY get a Ford when we get to the 90’s since the Panthers became awesome…. but then there’s that damned Impala SS taunting me. 😉
Chrysler Fifth Avenue, 318 4-bbl, which was a Thermo-Quad intil 1985…I seem to remember. Ironically, when I got married and arranged a rental car for my family, that’s what they picked up at the airport. Dad was impressed, but then his car at the time was a Cadillac Diesel.
If the oldsmobile 98 touring sedan would be considered a large car I’ll take it. My second choice would be the oldsmobile costom cruser.
Definitely a 9C1 Caprice, but only a 1989 with the LO5 350 TBI, 700R4 and 3.42 posi.
Absolutely, the best of a series of good cars. Though the LO5 TBI didn’t have much more horsepower than the earlier Quadrajet version, it had great driveability and was utterly reliable. The 700R4 was well sorted out by then as well. Only other 80’s large-ish car I would consider would be a 1980 Dodge Mirada with a 4bbl. 360.
1980 or 81 Cadillac Sedan De Ville or Fleetwood Brougham. The timeless design, but a decent Cadillac engine.
Failing that, a heavily optioned 1980 Buick Park Avenue with the Buick 350.
Otherwise some ’86+ Panther with EFI.
1984 Buick Electra Estate Wagon. Wood grained goodness.
The Impala. My mom had a ’78 with the 350 and it ran fairly well. I messed with it a little and had it running a lot better. Nothing from around that time could be hopped up for as little money as the 350 Chevy could. The car itself was fine. I would have mine in a seemingly never made bright red.
This decade pretty much passed me by. I had finished grad school and spent the rest of the decade starting a practice. I had bought my 68 Mustang in 1984 to restore. Had a couple of girlfriends and moved over to San Francisco by which time it was suddenly 1990. Outside of my 1986 Mazda 626 I was completely out of the loop on full big American cars. If I picked one I know it pretty much has to have power and be rear wheel drive leaving me open to what was available. I know the 9C1 Impala qualifies as I picked a 77 model for the 70s.
My number one choice would be to obtain my first car again, the 1984 Lincoln Continental Valentino Edition, which I purchased in 1988 with only 24K on the odo. But I believe it would be considered more mid-size.
For a large car, there was only one choice….
The 1985 – 1989 Lincoln Town Car Signature Series with the Coach Roof and real wire wheels.
A 1985:
1989 Eagle Premier LX. Has to be an early production model to avoid the dreaded motorized seat belts. These cars got mixed reviews when new. I bought mine from Budget Car Rental Sales in the SF Bay Area while stationed at the Presideo. Family was growing and hadn’t yet resigned myself to minivan life. Mine turned out to be one of the great ones. A very comfortable highway cruiser with surprisingly good fuel mileage for a big car. Some may quibble about classifying this as a big car, but the interior seemed roomier than the full size GM or Fords. Car in the photo could have been a duplicate of mine right down to the hubcaps, but it actually depicts an Eagle used in the movie Roadhouse. My car the star.
They were the same size as a Taurus but with a couple more inches of legroom in back, and apparently more aerodynamic than they looked. I thought the advertising campaign was terrible.
I drove across the country around then and saw a lot of these on the interstates, given that they didn’t sell that many. A couple years later and they all disappeared – I guess the P-R-V V6 was the problem. I did drive one once and thought all the flak about the weird turn signals etc. was ridiculous. The interior was a bit on the gray plasticy side.
Maybe AMC should have just gone for it and instead of spending money on a whole new body just build the Renault 25 it was based on. Of course Renault never figured out how to build a decent Renault up to that time, and neither did AMC.
If I must, I will pick a 1986 Dodge Diplomat with a 318. Slotted cop steel wheels with the vented dog dish hubcaps.
I’d go with any GM B body. Preferably a two-door so I can be different.
Can I pick a big *coupe*?
Pop had an ’81 Oldsmobile 98 Regency Brougham. Black over burgundy interior, leather, naturally. That car had doors longer than the state of Massachusetts. It was beautiful.
Oog. I’ve sort of been dreading when we’d get to the ’80s, because as many others have already said, the pickings are slim. By repeated bad experience I absolutely will not have any variant of a Ford panther car—I’ll leave those for people who don’t despise them; everybody will be happier that way.
A Mopar M-body? No, I still don’t like Aspens and Volarés, even with tweaked sheetmetal and new names; that front suspension was as pathetic in 1989 as it was in 1976, and the rest of the car was seriously outdated and undersized compared to the GM and Ford offerings.
Having rejected those, I’m left with a GM unit as the least-worst remaining option, and I’m almost as enthusiastic as that makes me sound. I find the ’80+ B- and C-bodies significantly cheaper and chintzier and uglier than the ’77-’79 cars. Mechanically, sure, there was some evolution; eventually there was throttle body fuel injection somewhat less primitive than a carburetor (Ford’s port fuel injection was far more advanced), and a 4-speed TH-700R4 will definitely return better fuel economy than a 3-speed TH-350—just don’t let’s talk about shift quality. I don’t want to hear about a TH-200R4 any more than I want to hear about a (“Metric!”) TH-200. And then there’s the failure-prone tape-drive window lifts, the leak-prone R4 air conditioner compressors, the unsafe door-mounted front seat belts, etc.
So yeah, mine will probably be a carefully-specced 9C1 Caprice, and it’ll probably serve me reasonably well, but I’ll be settling for it rather than eager for it.
This thread is fascinating in that the final R body Mopar gets oodles of love here every time one is featured, but it has gotten almost zero consideration here – as if everyone misread the question to be “What post 1983 big car would you choose.” Adding to my interest is that the 50s and 60s choices were for various Chrysler products waaaay beyond their market presence at those times.
So what is your take on the 80-81 R body in this mix? FWIW the M never seduced me in this league.
Negative love for the R-body from me. They were utterly despiccable junk, through and through. Sure, and that was a worthy underpinning that could be made to handle well by thoughtful upgrades. It was also most of two decades old when the R-bodies came out. Old stuff isn’t necessarily inferior, but c’mon; surely nobody’s going to seriously argue that the ’62 B-body was some kind of ne plus ultra pinnacle of vehicle chassis. Anyhow, all the chassis engineering merit in the world could not possibly compensate for the festering turds these pathetic excuses for cars were. It doesn’t matter how well a car can be made to handle by upgrading various parts, if the car is an unreliable pile of thrown-together garbage as delivered
newfrom the sales bank where it’s been sitting out in the weather for months:…and the said pile of thrown-together garbage rots and decomposes right before the owner’s very eyes.
And the cars weren’t just inexcusably poorly built, they were poorly designed, too. They looked like what they were: a hurried, halfassed copy of the ’77 GM B-body, but with misshapen details and faulty proportions (rear door, etc).
Engineering? Not much to speak of. I’ll not harp much about the gross inefficiency, zero-to-sixty-sometime-next-week acceleration, and lousy driveability—those were flaws not limited to Chrysler products of that time; the entire American auto industry knew fully well that fuel injection was the right way to do it, but instead they were cynically trying to turn public sentiment against emissions regulation by throwing cheap and nasty strangulation-type emission controls on leaned-to-the-max carburetors (instead they wound up turning public sentiment against the entire American auto industry).
In short: I don’t have strong opinions on the subject. ;^)
“In short: I don’t have strong opinions on the subject. ;^)”
I asked for an opinion and you did not disappoint. Perhaps the only way to love the R body was to have been a Mopar lover who never lived with one. I did live with the 1984-89 competition though, and didn’t love any of those either. The 80s was a terrible decade for those of us who favored the big stuff.
(Please excuse the missing first half of the third sentence. It should read “They were a ’62 B-body underneath? Sure, and…”)
Not sure if they count as a full sized car but I would go for a 1985-88 Toyota Cressida since they are Toyota’s largest vehicle on the market, they were definitely one of the better looking luxury sedans of the 1980’s.
These would be my favorites from this era:
1989 9C1 Caprice
1989 Buick Estate Wagon
1989 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham
1989 Lincoln Mark VII LSC
1989 Ford Crown Victoria P71
1989 Buick LeSabre
1985 Buick LeSabre Sabre Collector’s Edition Sedan
1983 Chevy Malibu 9C1
1983 Buick Regal sedan
1983 Toyota Crown four door hardtop
1980 Dodge St. Regis
Assuming I get to keep the Packard, Studebaker, Grand Prix and Monte Carlo from prior decades, I’ll take a wagon this time. My wife had an ’87 LeSabre Estate. That year they used the Olds 307 C.I.D. Best A/C ever! Very comfortable. Hers had the 3rd seat and limited slip axle.
I would like an 86/87 Buick Park Ave, red over red. No vinyl top please. My drivers ed class(in 87) had a green 86 and a red 87, 99% of my time was in the red one. I remember it being dead quiet, comfortable (heat coming out within a minute of starting it up-a big plus in Wisconsin in January) and the stereo sounded pretty good (another plus to a 16-year old) I hoped I ran across a gramma car at an estate sale, but all I ever see of these are either totally thrashed, or big wheeled subwoofer containers…
If we’re allowed to take what might theoretically be considered midsize cars, I’d go with an 88′ Lincoln Mark VII LSC; but the equivalent Thunderbird, Cutlass Supreme, or Regal Limited would all be nice. Of we’re not including them, we probably shouldn’t include the Diplomat/Grand Fury/5th Avenue.
The true full size cars are slim pickings, mostly to GM B & C and Ford Panthers. Guess I’d go with a Colony Park.
1980 AMC Eagle with – wait for it – yes ! The turbo diesel ! I’d have it converted to a five speed with overdrive..Then ship it to Vlodivostok and drive it all the way to Santiago de Compostela. Then ship it to Nova Scotia, and drive it cross country to Carmel.
There are quite a few, but i will choose a 1985 Cadillac Seville Elegante and a 1983 Chevy Malibu 4 door with police package. I would also love an AMC eagle 4 door 4 wheel drive all fully optioned with leather interior.
An AMC Eagle wagon would be my choice too, but I don´t think it counts as a big car. So I will choose a Chevy Caprice classic. For me (and perhaps others in my age) it is synonym for a US car. You could not only see them on tv every da, but sometimes on the street as well, because they were officialy sold here in Germany.
It’s time for a Jeep Wagoneer, at long last. We’ll call it a full-size station wagon, as Kaiser Jeep did when it was introduced, and it’s over the 200 inch mark that makes a car “big”. This 1984 model that recently sold on Bring A Trailer would be my preferred spec – no exterior wood trim and the lovely three-dial gauge cluster with all the luxury trimmings.
Second choice would be a Dodge Diplomat SE to combine an all-steel roof with the less fussy grille shape of the Fifth Avenue.