1976 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser

350 V8.

http://york.craigslist.org/cto/4099153244.html

 

That's clean for the price and someone unVista'd it!

 

But this apparently is correct!


First, though, his ad is wrong, obviously, in that he calls it a Custom Cruiser.

But if you check the 1976 Oldsmobile Brochure, in the section where the Cutlass-based wagons are described, you discover that, yes, there was a "Vista" Cruiser available, but all getting a "Vista Cruiser" meant that year was that you were getting wood-grain siding. There was no actual roof-mounted window. It was the same for '77, the last year of that body style for the Cutlass-sized Oldsmobiles. From what I can tell in looking at the Olds brochures for these model years, '75 was the last year that a Vista Cruiser actually came with what Olds called the "Vista-Vent Roof."

Seems kind of silly to call it a Vista Cruiser if it didn't have some kind of roof-mounted window, but that's apparently what Olds did for '76 and '77.


Here's the relevant page from the '76 Olds Mid-Size and Compact Car brochure. Note what it says a the far right side at the very bottom as it's describing the features shown in the various numbered boxes: "5. "Vista Cruiser: The elegant Olds wagon with wood-grain vinyl trim."

No mention of a roof-mounted window anywhere.

Models that did not have wood-grain siding were called "Cutlass Supreme Cruiser."

 

Looks like a pretty solid wagon! Pretty good price too! Needs some interior pictures though.

 

When this version of the 'Vista Cruiser' first came out in '73, it did have the 'Vista Roof' standard - the 'Vista Roof' simply being a flip-up glass roof panel in a metal frame. It wasn't even retractable.

 

It does look like based on Olds ads after 1975, the Vista Cruiser pop-up sunroof was never again mentioned.

 

Looking fine!