Saturday, May 3, 2014

Cut-up Cutty

Fool's Gold
I love the Cutlass line. My very first car was an '83 Cutlass Brougham. My most regrettable loss is my former '67 442 Convertible, which was essentially a Cutlass Supreme. Here's another branch of that funky family tree:
 At the edge of Red Hook near the Brooklyn Battery (now Hugh Carey) Tunnel sits this Saturn Gold 1971 Oldsmobile Cutlass 4-door sedan. It is sprinkled with rust holes and faded paint but somehow still manages to looks capable and proud.
 Its a shame this one's missing it's magnificent grills, headlight surrounds, and body-colored schnoz that belongs in the middle as they're all part of this car's personality. Still, dig those two squared-off hood bulges that carry down to the grill openings and onto the bumper.
The swooping accent lines over the rear wheels along with the leading edge of the front fender that trails off into the rear door are styling cues that go back to the late '60s. The fact that the taillights are 2 pieces per side confirm this as a 1971 as opposed to 1972 when they were further divided into 6 total segments per side. Also I believe the Cutlass script on the trunk lid was on the left side in '72. The blue painter's tape sealing the top edge of the trunk is unique to this well-worn hooptie.
 Looks like a replacement door in Silver Mint Poly with heavy patina showed up to the party at some point. I love the chrome window surrounds and post on the sedan which dresses it up considerably from the base F-85 trim level.
 
A full set of original and correct hubcaps on blackwalls gives this beater as air of seriousness, as does the matching set of Maine historical plates. Imagine firing this beast up in it's home state and driving it over 7 hours to Brooklyn?

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