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The 6000 STE was a cool car in it's day, not many cars had ABS brakes and electronic ride control in '87. The digital dash was awesome too.
Yeah, the 6000 had the most futuristic instrument panels of them all. I never cared alot for the exterior styling of them though... I always seemed to like the 4dr Century Limited and Cutlass Ciera Brougham, as well as the Celebrity CL. I remember when I was in middle school in 1987. In the 1985-87 era, my parents had a 1971 Lincoln Continental, 1972 Oldsmobile 88, 1974 Chevrolet Impala and dad had a 1969 Pontiac GTO, as well as a few other cars. In the mid 80s, these cars were only like 12-15 years old, but still in like new condition, but I always wanted my folks to buy a new car. We almost bought a new Regal in '85. It was not until late 87 that we finally bought an 80s car. Anyway in '87, I remember one of my best friends (I was in middle school) parents had bought a brand new 1987 Celebrity CL sedan, which was the first year for the modern day halogen headlights on these cars. It was a metallic red color with a very plush interior. I remember even as a kid that I thought it was a really nice car, but again, that was the 80s. In the early 90s when I was in high school I had a 1983 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera LS (I think it was an LS) that was a nice car. It had the 3.0L V6. Ironically I traded it in on another 1983 Oldsmobile, but this time it was a Ninety-Eight. That was a good car!
I also remember very vividly that in 1986 my dads brother and his wife bought a brand new 1986 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera Brougham like the one in the brochure page. I remember it was a super nice car and so comfortable, but I remember that they had to keep taking the car to the dealer because of a factory blemish where the front bumper trim met the fender. They (dealer) never could get it fixed to satisfy them. I think that a year later in 1987 they traded it in on a new '87 Ciera, but a base model this time, which I thought was strange. I would have rather had the nicer '86 with the blemish. What was even more funny about that is that he was considering trading in his mint 1969 Chevelle SS 396 that he bought new in one the then new '86 Oldsmobile!!!
Back then, it was not worth all that much, but now that SS is worth like $50K-$60K. He has turned down $50K about 3 times for it. Now the Cutlass is probably in a junk yard or already crushed and a new Toyota now... or it may still be around somewhere, but nowhere near worth wha the SS is worth.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Morphous01
WOw, that's ONE hell of a pic with that couple standing on what looks to be like a temple... Anyhow, these cars are bringing back so many memories!
I had a buddy from HS and college with a Century from that era and the driveline was a complete POS. It had a 3.0 V6 and a 3 speed auto. The engine and trans were both rebuilt at some point, then about 3-4 years after (maybe 30-40k miles later), the engine lost a crank bearing and the trans was already about dead. The carb always gave him constant problems... it was a Rochester Dual Jet that had all kinds of little electronic parts in it that constantly malfunctioned. No one could ever seem to get it fixed properly. Gas mileage was a constant 9-10 in the city and 15-16 on the highway, the same as my old Mustang 5.0 with a 4 bbl Holley 600.
Anyway it's too bad because the rest of the car (body, interior, electrical) was pretty decent. If he woulda bought one with a 3.8L and a 4-speed auto it'd probably still be running to this day.
Not a 1985, but rather a 1989 Celebrity. I bought one brand new and drove it into the ground.
Also had a '86 Cutlass Ciera wagon as a beater at one time as well.
Yeah, I see alot of the late 80s Celebritys still running around here daily. One I see everyday... delivering pizzas.
Speaking of Cieras, I was pumping gas this evening and a battered Ciera (it was a 1987) pulled up beside of me on the next pump. It was battered, but the engine was as quiet as a mouse.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tstone
I had a buddy from HS and college with a Century from that era and the driveline was a complete POS. It had a 3.0 V6 and a 3 speed auto. The engine and trans were both rebuilt at some point, then about 3-4 years after (maybe 30-40k miles later), the engine lost a crank bearing and the trans was already about dead. The carb always gave him constant problems... it was a Rochester Dual Jet that had all kinds of little electronic parts in it that constantly malfunctioned. No one could ever seem to get it fixed properly. Gas mileage was a constant 9-10 in the city and 15-16 on the highway, the same as my old Mustang 5.0 with a 4 bbl Holley 600.
Anyway it's too bad because the rest of the car (body, interior, electrical) was pretty decent. If he woulda bought one with a 3.8L and a 4-speed auto it'd probably still be running to this day.
Yeah the carburated early models had carb issues... our Omega with the 2.8L V6 had a 2bbl carb and it was a nightmare. The later Centurys had fuel injection on the 3.0L V6 engines... not sure which years, but I think it was the mid 80s.
Sister has an 89 Century, V-6 of some sort, slushbox per the usual GM practice. It's plain as a mud fence, but has been a reliable ride for her, IIRC she bought it nwe in 89.
Older guy at our gym has a similar Century, bought from someone's grandma who barely drove it. This may be the best remaining specimen outside of a museum - if anybody cares, which probably no one does.
Yeah, the later Centurys were much better cars. We have a friend with a 1990 Buick Century sedan. Its not the top of the line Limited model, but the base Custom model, but still has options like power windows, power locks, wire hubcaps and a nice cloth interior. It was handed down to her by her future "grandmother-in-law".
Its got about 99K miles on it and is a perfect running car. I think it has the 3.1L V6, which were super engines. I had a '94 Lumina years ago with the 3.1L, with about 300K.
Quote:
Originally Posted by M3 Mitch
Sister has an 89 Century, V-6 of some sort, slushbox per the usual GM practice. It's plain as a mud fence, but has been a reliable ride for her, IIRC she bought it nwe in 89.
Older guy at our gym has a similar Century, bought from someone's grandma who barely drove it. This may be the best remaining specimen outside of a museum - if anybody cares, which probably no one does.
Yeah, the later Centurys were much better cars. We have a friend with a 1990 Buick Century sedan. Its not the top of the line Limited model, but the base Custom model, but still has options like power windows, power locks, wire hubcaps and a nice cloth interior. It was handed down to her by her future "grandmother-in-law".
Its got about 99K miles on it and is a perfect running car. I think it has the 3.1L V6, which were super engines. I had a '94 Lumina years ago with the 3.1L, with about 300K.
Actually the 1989-93 Century's/Cutlass Ciera's have the 3.3 Liter V6 engines
Thats true... it came out the same year. I am not aware how widespread the problem was or even what it was, but I have seen a few gen 1 Q45s listed for same with engine problems.
AFAIK, the engines in those Oldsmobiles and Buicks were good cars, but these cars really did not compete with the Q45. Like you said, the Q45 competed with the BMW 7-Series and Mercedes S-Class.
And that was just it -- there was no American competition for the BMW 7-Series and the MB S-Class. The Olds 98 and its Cadillac counterparts were near the top of what Americans had to offer in terms of luxury. The only things that topped that the time would have been sleds like the Lincoln Town Car and a handful of Cadillacs. But none of them even tried to be serious competition for the top European offerings save the Allante. That's why my parents ended up with a Q45, because there was no American equivalent. In fact my mom didn't even realize Infiniti was Japanese or else she never would have bought one.
Hello. My name is Kristopher.
The message I want to leave is I own two Pontiac 6000 STE's and am partial to the blue 85 with the hood open. The car looks beautifull! I have one that almost looks as nice at that one, while the other is in the process of being restored. Anyone know of a place where I can get side window trim and a manually adjusted drivers seat for the car?
Most Sincerely,
Kristopher Gerbracht Juno Internet Service- Value-priced Internet Service Provider - ISP - Free, low-cost and fast Internet Access
I recall in 95 when I was in h.s. some kids drove those Cutlass Cieras. I never could understand why. Guess they were priced cheap? Who knows. I myself was driving RWD cars with V8's in them. Another guy I know drove one of those Pontiac 6000LE's.
I still recall at the same time I'd pick up a copy of the Trader paper and I'd always see those same cars in there being sold for cheap because the engines were bad....they'd throw rods and break cranks...if not transmission failures. Whoever said these were not GM's best cars is right on.
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I never cared alot for the exterior styling of them though... I always seemed to like the 4dr Century Limited and Cutlass Ciera Brougham, as well as the Celebrity CL. I remember when I was in middle school in 1987. In the 1985-87 era, my parents had a 1971 Lincoln Continental, 1972 Oldsmobile 88, 1974 Chevrolet Impala and dad had a 1969 Pontiac GTO, as well as a few other cars. In the mid 80s, these cars were only like 12-15 years old, but still in like new condition, but I always wanted my folks to buy a new car. We almost bought a new Regal in '85. It was not until late 87 that we finally bought an 80s car. 
Anyway in '87, I remember one of my best friends (I was in middle school) parents had bought a brand new 1987 Celebrity CL sedan, which was the first year for the modern day halogen headlights on these cars. It was a metallic red color with a very plush interior. I remember even as a kid that I thought it was a really nice car, but again, that was the 80s. 
... Anyhow, these cars are bringing back so many memories!
