1977 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royal Brougham 350

Summary:

My third Olds ('74 Cutlass, '66 Vista Cruiser, 1977 Delta 88). Every one a winner, baby!

Faults:

What went wrong with this car? Let me count the ways.

Transmission (rebuilt twice).

Brakes (approx every 20K).

Tires (about every 35K).

Starter motor (100K).

Freeze plugs (90K).

Alternator (every 45K or so).

Front-end (120k).

Water-pump (100k) and so on and so forth... you get the general idea.

General Comments:

Did I love this car?

It cost me $1500 in 1989 with 60K on the engine.

I drove it for 100K and scrapped it for $500 under a California State buyback program for pre-1978 heavily polluting vehicles.

Damn, I loved that car. It was like driving your living-room couch down the freeway. It had some serious power under the hood too. Total respect driving that 20-year old jalopy round the hood.

Every-day was an adventure just driving that thing. Basically a reliable workhorse, but then-again, you just never knew what might go wrong with it. Always kept you on your toes. Drove a hard bargain, you might say.

Now I drive a 4-cylinder Toyota Camry with 100K trouble-free driving miles on it. Guess what? I'm totally miserable driving in this car, but that old Delta 88, now that was a car that had some serious personality!

C'est la vie! C'est la guerre!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 15th June, 2003

16th Dec 2004, 15:48

And yet you gave it a blue frownie-face?

26th Jul 2007, 07:04

I agree & disagree. I had a 1974 Olds Delta 88 Royal Brougham that was great! Yes, it was like driving your luxury living room couch, all souped up. But I never had ANY problems with mine. Tires at 35k would have been bias ply tires, should have went with steel belted radials. The 455 was kind of weak in the horse power department, but still made for good burn-outs & effortless highway cruising. I know the gas stations loved the 455, watch the speed go up & the gas gauge go down. I would buy another one in a heart beat, build more power into the motor & make a super cruiser out of it.

1977 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale 435 SBC

Faults:

The paint is faded. That's it.

General Comments:

Once the old 350 came out and the built 435 went in, there was no stopping this car. It's a 4000 pound car that can run 12.80's at 120. It has a 3.08 rear end in it too. It ignites the tires on command and will easily cook them for about four or five blocks.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 7th February, 2003

1977 Oldsmobile Delta 88 royal 350

Summary:

A very reliable gas guzzler

Faults:

Timing chain

Brakes

Seats are wearing through

Radiator.

General Comments:

I deliver pizza in this vehicle and add over a thousand miles a week to the odometer. The car gets o.k. gas mileage and it's a beast to drive, but it starts up and goes every morning, but I cannot complain about anything because I got the car for free.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 21st January, 2003

1977 Oldsmobile Delta 88 royale 350 4 barrel

Summary:

Big smooth cruiser

Faults:

Replaced the tires.

Replaced spark plug wires.

General Comments:

A wonderful cruiser with a smooth, quiet ride. Bought it for $100 and have only put about $200 into it for normal maintainance items such as tires, plugs and wires, distributor cap and rotor, exhaust pipe and muffler, thermostat, etc. It has the Chevy engine option unfortunately, as the Chevy engines tend to leak oil around the valve guides and cause oil burning. (smokey exhaust on startup). Surprisingly fast for such a heavy car. Has lots of body lean on cornering. Tows a heavy trailer easily. Love this old beater, hope it lasts a long time..

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 20th April, 2002

23rd Nov 2002, 15:06

I too own a 1977 oldsmobile delta 88, and it is great! It does have a lot of power due to the massive engine. And smokey exhaust, on startup, my valve cover gaskets have been leaking for quite a while, but it's dependable, it's big, and it's fast&furious. 1 thing I noticed is I need 2 get a bracket/ or some kind of plastic insertion in order to put on the front plate. whatever was there b-4 is no longer. If anybody knows what those plastic squares that the screw goes in are, please post your comment. I need 2 really bad.

Thanx.

22nd Oct 2004, 15:37

I own a 1977 delta 88 coupe. It's a great car. I bought it for $1800 from a used car place. It was flawless. I've done some damage to it though. I have driven that thing from Orlando to Cleveland three times with no problems. It won't die. I love this car!

8th Nov 2004, 07:39

I bought my olds for $400. It sat for three years, but started up after just a few cranks with some gas in the carb. What a beautiful car! Not body wise, got surface rust and a good telephone pole sized dent in the back left, but runs excellent! These cars can run any new car right into the ground when treated right. Goes through a little trans. fluid and less than a quart of oil each month, but never any major problems. So quiet, too! Can't beat a big old four door boat! A/C works, but other than that, no power, not even a tape player. Oh well!

Rogan.

28th Feb 2006, 18:37

I own a 77 Delta-88 with 403. She runs and runs and runs.

Why does exhaust blow out the valve cover?

I replaced the gaskets, but the passenger side cover still puffs quite a bit of exhaust. Could be bent cover. I will try a second gasket.

But why exhaust?

I replaced the PCV valve and tubing is not restricted.

The head doesn't look cracked. There is a patch on the valve cover where the paint burnt off. What does this indicate?

Danarothrock@yahoo.com.