The 1961 model year brought significant changes to the Oldsmobile product line. For the first time, there was a compact car, the F-85, in the catalogue. The “big Olds” models, Dynamic Eighty-Eight, Super Eighty-Eight and Ninety-Eight were continued but significantly redesigned.
Underneath new, up-to-date sheet metal lurked a new perimeter-type chassis frame. The rear suspension replaced 1960’s semi-elliptical leaf springs with a trailing-arm coil-spring arrangement. While Old’s Rocket V-8 still owed much to its revolutionary 1949 forebear, for 1961, it had grown to 374 cubic inches and developed 325 brake horsepower, thanks to 10:1 compression and a Rochester four-barrel carb. The earlier four-speed Hydra-Matic, too, had given way to a new three-speed Roto Hydra-Matic, which featured a torque converter in place of the old fluid coupling. Despite having the same wheelbase, the 1961 Super Eighty-Eights were smaller than the ’60s, some five inches in length and three inches in width, making them significantly more maneuverable. Visibility improved, too, such that the driver could see all four corners of the car and thus park more easily, and elimination of the windshield’s “wrap-around” made entry and exit much easier.
This stunning 1961 Oldsmobile Super Eighty-Eight Convertible Coupe was purchased new by Raymond Coppola, of New Haven, Connecticut. As delivered by the Brown and Thomas Company, the local dealer, it came equipped with Hydra-Matic, power steering, power brakes, Deluxe heater, Deluxe radio, back-up lights, windshield washers, an electric clock, a tilt mirror, white sidewall tires, and undercoating. Interestingly, Mr. Coppola traded in a 1960 MG toward the $4,465.27 purchase price!
Today, the car shows barely 38,000 miles. The Sky Rocket engine is whisper-quiet and the Roto Hydra-Matic shifts as new. The white vinyl convertible top is new, but the maroon vinyl interior is original and nearly flawless, as are the engine compartment and trunk. A new master cylinder, new wheel cylinder and new brake linings have been added and brand new whitewall radial tires have just been installed. The car has had one professional repaint in the original Provincial White. The original sales invoice, owner’s manual and other documentation accompany the car.
Just 2,624 Super Eighty-Eight Convertibles were built for 1961, fewer even than the prestige Starfire model or the top-of-the-line Ninety-Eight. Rare when new, this superb example has no equal today.