>For 1977, GM made headlines with their unprecedented downsizing of the full-sized B-body platform, which shed 14" in length, 4" in track width, and 800 pounds of weight over the Brontosaurus-sized 1971-76 models, while also offering more interior and trunk space. Work on downsizing the platform had started shortly after the new '71 models arrived in showrooms in fall 1970, but the OPEC embargo caused GM to accelerate the program. The familiar two and four door sedans and station wagons under the same nameplates (Impala/Caprice, Catalina/Bonneville, 88/98, LeSabre/Electra, and DeVille/Fleetwood Brougham) continued. The Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham, as the corporate flagship, rode on the longer D-body platform.>The Impala/Caprice offered Chevrolet's old 250 I6 as the base engine, except in California where the Buick 231 V6 was offered instead, or the Chevrolet 305 or 350 V8. Pontiac engine choices comprised the Buick V6, the Pontiac V8 in 265, 301, 350, or 400 cid versions. Some cars however came with a Chevrolet 305 or 350 V8s or the Oldsmobile 403 V8 instead. Oldsmobile B-bodies had the Buick V6 or Oldsmobile V8 in 307, 350, or 403 sizes. Buicks used the Buick V6 and either the Pontiac 301 or Oldsmobile 307, the Buick 350, and the Oldsmobile 403 as the top engine. Cadillac engine choices comprised the division's 368 or 425 V8. The Chevrolet 350 V8 was limited to police cars after 1979.
>The B-bodies were a major success and the Impala/Caprice the biggest-selling car of 1978 in the United States, with over 600,000 built. In 1980, the B-body lineup received restyled bodies for improved aerodynamics and were de-contented in response to the severe economic downturn that began in mid-1979 with numerous optional features being dropped. The larger engines were also discontinued--the various 301/305/307 engines were made the top power plants, and Cadillac lost the 425 V8. Smaller de-bored 265 variants of the Chevrolet V8 were added. Buick gained a larger 4.2L V6 to supplement the 231. The Chevrolet I6 was replaced by new 229 and 262 V6s. Additionally, variants of the infamous Oldsmobile diesel V8 were offered. Four speed automatic overdrive transmissions replaced the old three speed units in 1982.>The Pontiac B-bodies, the smallest-selling of the lineup, were dropped after 1981. However, they were only gone for a year and in 1983, they returned as Parisienne in response to dealer demand for a B-body; the Parisienne was the Canadian version of the platform, had never been dropped there, and GM brought it down to the US for '83, resembling the Caprice more closely than the 1977-81 Pontiac B-bodies. The sedan and station wagon returned; two door models did not come back. The Parisienne was powered exclusively by Chevrolet engines as Pontiac's V8s had been retired.
>The Oldsmobile and Buick B-bodies enjoyed a considerable uptick in demand as the US economy recovered and were strong sellers again by 1984, however GM had decided to retire them in favor of the new, smaller FWD C and H-bodies. The last year for the B-body Oldsmobile 98 and Buick Electra was 1984, after which the nameplates were transferred to the C-body platform, while the 88 and LeSabre lasted one more year before giving way to the H-body in 1986. The Buick B-bodies used exclusively Oldsmobile V8s after 1981 as GM had decided to retire Buick and Pontiac's V8s to cut costs and simplify emissions regulation; it was thence decided that Pontiac would use Chevrolet V8s while Buick would use Oldsmobile's.>The Parisienne lasted through 1986 and was then replaced by the H-body Bonneville. After the discontinuation of the Buick, Pontiac, and Oldsmobile B-body sedans and coupes, the station wagon models for all three remained in production through 1990. The Chevrolet B-body lineup was simplified in 1985 when the Impala nameplate was dropped along with two-door models. Although dated, the Caprice continued to sell well, in part due to fleet sales, and it lasted through 1990 with minor changes until the B-bodies received all-new bodyshells in 1991.
>The 1991 B-bodies used bulbous new bodyshells that resembled the Step-down Hudsons of the early 1950s, although the platform was the same one used since 1977. The engine roster continued mostly untouched, although the Oldsmobile V8 was finally retired and Chevrolet's V8s became exclusively used across the board, fuel injection finally replacing carburetors. For 1991-92, the 350 V8 was still exclusive to police cars, but in 1993, it was brought back for retail customers. The Buick B-body regained a sedan model, which revived the Roadmaster nameplate last seen in 1958. Oldsmobile did not get a B-body sedan back, but its station wagon, the Custom Cruiser, was restyled along with the Buick and Chevrolet wagons. It was only sold for three years before being dropped in 1993.>For 1994-96, Chevrolet revived the Impala name for a special sporty B-body, the Impala SS, featuring blackout trim, bucket seats, a floor shifter, and a 350 V8.
>Cadillac lost its 425 V8 in 1980, leaving the 368 engine as the top power plant. For 1981, the short-lived variable displacement system was used which would deactivate engine cylinders to reduce gas useage depending on driving conditions; it proved unreliable and was soon abandoned. The Buick 4.1L V6 became available as a credit option; it was the first time a sub-eight cylinder engine was offered in a Cadillac in 68 years. It was dropped in 1983. For 1982, Cadillac replaced the 368 engine with a soon-to-be notorious replacement; the HT4100, which displaced 4.1L and used all-electronic engine control. The HT4100 had significant reliability issues and was often swapped with the Oldsmobile 307 V8.>The Cadillac C-body Sedan and Coupe DeVille were replaced by a new, smaller FWD model in 1985 while the D-body Fleetwood Brougham continued. In 1987, it received a mild restyle, renamed just Brougham as the Fleetwood name had been appended to a C-body model, and the engine roster changed to comprise the Chevrolet 305 or Oldsmobile 307, or the Chevrolet 350, and continued through 1992. It was then changed to just Fleetwood and got a new bodyshell for 1993 and was powered exclusively by the Chevrolet 350 engine.>GM retired the B-bodies after the 1996 model year to free up assembly line space for light truck production.
>light truck
>>29148813The 80s were absolutely brutal for Cadillac. Every product they had during that decade was an unmitigated disaster.
>>29148802The use of swapped engines in the other makes caused customer complaints and even threats of a lawsuit so GM had to include disclaimers that production necessities meant that (eg.) some Buicks would have an Oldsmobile engine in them. Mostly this was just the effect of GM's plans to retire the Buick and Pontiac V8s.
>>29148813The bathtub 91-96 Caprice and Roadmaster were pretty common cars; I'd even seen a Custom Cruiser wagon once or twice, but the Fleetwood was always rarer than hen's teeth.
>>29148802I love mine
>>29148822only little old ladies ever bought a Fleetwood, problem was the Town Car had long ago claimed its market niche for itself so the primary audience for those cars (the limousine business and little old ladies) bought Town Cars instead.
>>29148822I've seen most iterations of B-bodies from start to finish at some point or another but never seen an early 79-81 Panther.
>>29148806my parents got married in my great aunt's 84 LeSabre which they volunteered for the wedding as it was more suitable for it than their own 4 pot shitboxes. my mom said that was a nice car.
>>29148838Too bad. Sales were coming back by mid-decade and GM replaces them with a fucking Hot Wheel toy.
>>29148844These cars unfortunately proved the problem of planning five years ahead; work on them started during the second energy crisis and gas was supposed to be $5 a gallon by 1985. It didn't work out that way, but GM was stuck with the things.
>>29148817The C-bodies were pretty good starting in 88 when the original HT4100 was dropped but they were still a grandmabox.
>>29148849GM had an absolute terror of CAFE taxes back then; while Mercedes and Jaguar decided their well-heeled customers could afford it, GM really didn't want to pass the cost down to their not so rich customers. Moves such as the Olds diesels, HT4100, and variable displacement engine were ill-conceived and rushed attempts at getting down their fuel mileage.
>>29148802if you had a V6 Caprice it used the THM200 transmission, which was notorious because it was designed for the smaller Malibu and was not sturdy enough to handle the Caprice's greater weight and size.
I want to fucking know what these threads are. They started just showing up a few years back or maybe sooner, just a flood of posts about some old model or make (usually American) with a bunch of accompanying trivia and slight history. Are they bot threads with botted replies? Malaise era shitboxes aren't normally /o/'s strong suit except for a very small handful of people who all start and stop posting together, then. Are they copypasted from another website? Transcribed from Autoweek reviews or something? I NEED TO FUCKING KNOW.>no bro stop seeing things they're totally normal organic threadsFUCK YOUUUUUUU
>>29148802>>29148888>I want to fucking know what these threads are. They started just showing up a few years back or maybe sooner, just a flood of posts about some old model or make (usually American)its some piss-smelling autist from some flyover state spam-posting and samefagging about his shitty GM cars no one cares about. When you call him out on how GM is now owned by Shanghai (China) based firm, he seethes. People around the globe forgot about this era of GM and rightfully so. They ran and looked like ass- and were ass. They belong in the junkyard. The only people still keeping them around are blacks- and no person wants to be associated with them, so they don't daily these.
>>29148888i know, the OP should have posted about the Nissan Sentra instead.>miserable 80s shitbox :/>miserable 80s Japanese shitbox :O
>>29136204no i mean the OP is the guy from this thread arguing about his manure truck in his sister-fucking shithole town
>>29148900no one cares about your basketball-American Detroit cars in this weebsite
>>29148898you made this up
>>29148898nah we've always loved B-bodies here. if you want a turd try the J-bodies. these deserve to be forgotten.
>>29148898>>29144840didn't the OP (assuming it's the same OP) also make this Corrado thread?
>>29148906>>29148909shieeeeeet you right dawg. Eventually, people will appreciate this era of Chevrolet- you will start seeing them being popular on social media and YouTube! Folks will stop associating them with violent hoodrats and degens! Maybe we will someday see neighborhoods with these kinds of cars on their driveways again. They will stop buying imports for clout and buy these old cars again
>>29148913you're crazy
>>29148911it's not the same OP even though the thread looks superficially similar. this OP is a product of sibling incest who drives a manure truck in a flyover town has posted pics of it and posts about random 80s GM shitboxes.
>>29148918I want to believe you, but the common buzzwords are making me think you and this poster have some kind of rivalry going on.>manure truck>flyover town/state
>>29148918he's been here samefagging for years- trying in vain to convince Gen Z that these old rust cans are worth it. Whenever OP posts about his old cars I imagine him to look like this. Like give it up, we're not that dumb like you. There's reasons we dont find these cars appealing today
>>29148922literally he's in the >>29148904 thread linked here
>>29148918Stop interrupting actual schizo shit with your retarded brand fangoyism.
>>29148913gee in my experience most Caprice owners were little old ladies who drove them once a week to church and the Rite-Aid
>>29148924Maybe not a B-body so much but try and find an unmolested Monte Carlo/Grand Prix/Cutlass Supreme/Regal. Good luck.
>>29148909GM always knows how to build V8 vehicles but if it doesn't have a V8 or at least the option of one they don't care about it.
>>29148909>we've>we
>>29148930the buick V8 in the front wheel drive cars kicked ass when they came supercharged.
>>29148932buick V6*
>>29148929those were all turned into black/Mexican low-riders/pimp chariots though
>>29148924in such fairness i've seen 5x more surviving B-bodies than i have any contemporaneous Japanese cars
>>29148802does this thread make you want to crank up the AC/DC tunes to get into the whole vibe of that era
>>29148911there was a thread about a 1950 Buick but that's probably not him either as that car seems too old to be OP's usual interests
>>29148802yeah the B-bodies were really decontented in the early 80s to save money and after 79 were strictly grandma and fleet cars whereas they offered a lot of interesting and weird options in late 70s
>>29148909A family member of mine worked at a Chevy dealership back then and he said there was a definite gulf between the Caprice and the J-bodies in build quality, interiors, and general refinement so it was obvious which one GM cared more about.
>>29148949>more expensive car in brand's lineup is better than cheaper cardamn. who would've thought.
>>29148949>>29148909i've never seen an 82-83 Cavalier with the original frog-eye styling although I've seen countless later ones
>>29148802>>29148928>gee in my experience most Caprice owners were little old ladies who drove them once a week to church and the Rite-Aid>>29148929shieeeeeeeeeeeeet you right you right. Lets take a look at the grandmas enjoying these cars today on popular social media, twin. These cars definitely are associated with peaceful-minded individuals and have a common impression to the average American for being owned by people of reputable backround.
yeah they kept the Pontiac/Buick/Oldsmobile B-body wagons going long after the sedans were gone. no idea why, but nonsensical GM product decisions of this era were usually because of dealer demand or keeping UAW workers employed
>>29148960My dad almost bought a Roadmaster wagon once but decided it was too thirsty.
>>29148961Or, well, Estate Wagon I mean.
>>29148960that reminds me of some bad 80s family movie, like you could picture the characters driving that thing on their trip to Disney World where wacky hijinks ensue
>>29148960There were lots of B-body wagons still around in the 90s probably because this body style was produced to a late date and the last ones were <10 years old.
>>29148958You sound like a faggot with an obsession
>>29148960the 305 was a slug; the wagons really needed the 350 but that went away after the 70s. it got slightly better after 82 when they got rid of 5 mph bumpers and cut down on the weight a bit.
>>29148976They also continued using carburetors all the way to 1990 while Ford had EFI on the Panthers by 86.
>>29148979the B-bodies and Panthers were both museum pieces by the late 80s and not supposed to get more than the minimum funds invested in them, mostly kept for the fleet market
>>29148813>GM retired the B-bodies after the 1996 model year to free up assembly line space for light truck productionanother possibility was that it was the last year they could sell them without a passenger side airbag and there was no desire to invest the money in equipping them with that
>>29148986maybe but Ford did update the Panthers for that?
>>29148943you fucking suck at pattern recognition
>>29148802I feel the original 77-79 bodyshell was a beta version that had to be rushed out the door and the redone 80 bodyshell was what the designers actually intended when they had more time to work on it.
>>29148996no i'm pretty sure i know who the OP is and he's the manure truck inbred who posts exclusively about 80s GM shitboxes
>>29148802these and the A/G-bodies were the last good GM products before they started to come unglued in the 80s
the people yearn for big vehicle, its time for the cadillac deville to come back.
>>29148802there was a weird period during the pre-EFI era when there were "California" cars that had different engines than the ones used in other states due to that state's emissions faggotry.
>>29148996he's buck broken by a camaro shitting on his favorite japanese shitcans and so it lowered his IQ.
>>29148802>Pontiac engine choices comprised the Buick V6, the Pontiac V8 in 265, 301, 350, or 400 cid versionsthe 265 was a de-bored 301 offered only in 80-81 and they also got rid of the larger engine options. the Parisienne had the Buick 231 in 83-84 and then the bigger 262 V6 in 85-86 as the base engine along with the Chevy 305. as well as some 77-79 Catalina/Bonneville having Chevy or Oldsmobile V8s instead of the Pontiac ones.
>>29149016>as well as some 77-79 Catalina/Bonneville having Chevy or Oldsmobile V8s instead of the Pontiac onesthey probably had the Chevy or Olds engines 80-81 too. afaik Buick and Pontiac's V8s had the smallest production lines so it made the most economic sense to get rid of those. note that Buick big block V8s didn't come back after 76 while even Pontiac still retained one.
>>29149000Is the inbred manure truck anon in the room with us right now?
>>29148805Pontiac moved 81k Bonnevilles for 1980 and a pathetic 15k Catalinas. Bonneville production actually increased to 91k cars in 81 and just 10k Catalinas. The Caprice/Impala were the volume sellers with over 137k in 1980 and over 200k in 81 (however at least 40% were probably fleet sales). Full-sized Buick sales were quite meager in 80 but had recovered to a healthy level by 81. Oldsmobile also recorded six digit figure B-body sales for both years (the late 70s-early 80s on the whole were windfall years for Oldsmobile with production records broken in some)
>>29148802Cool threads, brother.I haven't had a chance to read them yet, but I will be boomerang.
>>29148997Isn't that every car?
>>29148888I prefer this over another retarded bait thread
>>29149026Buick sold 32,000 LeSabres and 78,000 Electras in 80. In 81 it was 82,000 LeSabre and 75,000 Electra. So that's a total of 110,000 B-bodies in 80 and 157,000 in 81 although I don't know why the LeSabre and Electra numbers reversed for the two years. In any case for Pontiac that works out to just 101,000 B-bodies in 80 and 110,000 in 81, so you can see why it was not a hard decision to ditch them. Once they brought it back as the Parisienne sales figures for each of the four model years was 17,000 (83), 60,000 (84), 82,000 (85) and 85,000 (86) so there was an upward trend with the economic recovery from the early 80s recession.
>>29148979>>29148984You two should get a room.
>>29149043its just one dude talking to himself, samefagging as usual. Still a car driven by blacks today and will always have that stigma now
>>29149059you're so asshurt at the existence of this thread it's funny. especially when the OP has made many about Ford and Chrysler from various eras as well.
>>29149070>wanted an actual answer to the origin of these threads>some retard latches on to this specific one thinking it's some GM-loving boogeyman, completely missing the pointDespair.
>>29148816cute and sovl>>29148813still remains the best looking caprice
>>29148888I like Malaise car, they might be shit performance and stuff wise, but their designs sure are comfy
>>29149070>especially when the OP has made many about Ford and Chrysler from various eras as well.no he hasn't. he's focused specifically on malaise shitbox nobody except rednecks from Indiana who smell like shit cares about.
>>29149059ts shit tuff what you call it mayonaise car shieeeeet aint no old lady car tf you on >>29149074 the point is you a bitch lost in the sauce type delulu
>>29148802the whole OPEC era seemed really retarded because there had been a temporary interruption in oil supply for six months as the result of a Middle Eastern war that was seen as some apocalyptic happening so they had to downsize cars
>>29149244>the whole OPEC era seemed really retarded because there had been a temporary interruption in oil supply for six months as the result of a Middle Eastern war that was seen as some apocalyptic happening so they had to downsize carsit was mostly a convenient excuse to downsize cars since many of them by the 70s had clearly gotten too bloated (especially the 71-76 B-bodies). also the US economy went to shit and was no longer one of endless prosperity like in 50s-60s so the market had shifted to wanting smaller, more efficient cars.
>>29148928I don't live around blacks or know what they do with cars, just saying in my little all-white town the things were quintessential grandmaboxes.
>>29149256it was more like after the little old ladies died their ride got sold to blacks and pimped out
Impala/Caprice coupes in 77-79 had a unique wraparound rear window; this was dropped with the 80 restyle.
>>29149026Oldsmobile's collapse in the 90s is quite odd considering the division had been setting sales records during the 70s-80s.
>>29149278why not? it took Cadillac not quite 20 years to go from prestigious to a joke.
>>29148909they're kind of essential 80s Americana
The two door B-bodies look awkward, clearly one of those things that started as a sedan and the coupe was just extrapolated from it.
>>29148802Not my favorite generation of cars but better than anything chang makes.
>>29149383I had that exact car, it was awesome, except the driver's window track broke and the partially rolled down window would tilt forward when I hit the brakes. Eventually it fully broke and the window fell into the door, and since I was a dumb kid who couldn't fix that yet I had a body shop jam it closed for good for free. After that I had to open the door to order at drive throughs or talk to police that pulled me over. I had shiny wheels on it and worked until 3am so I got pulled over a lot, but they let me go every time. Point is, that door is loooong.
>>29149383>>29149608A car of eminent beauty
>>29148806>>29148805>>29148802its too bad these cars are shit to drive because i love how they look
>>29149636i know. my dad got a ride in a Mark IV once when he was in college and he said it was super-comfy but ran like shit and kept stalling out.
And gets stuck there since 1981 electronics are not good enough to make this shit work.
>>29149730cutting one wire disabled the variable displacement control
>>29149217>no he hasn't.he's doing it right now>>29149418you're the only nigger with an IQ below 90 who can't draw the connection.
>>29149750the manure truck guy doesn't care about European cars, that's a completely different poster
>>29149751you're so fucking dumb it hurts
>>29149751^This. We know exactly who he is and about his pathetic sister-fucking flyover state existence.
>>29149217Just kiss him already you awkward fuck
>>29149758>he's even samefaggiing
>>29149256>>29149257exactly, I dont want to be associated with blacks so I would never drive one of these era cars
