Oldsmobile Cutlass History

The Cutlass began for 1961 as the top trim of the compact F-85 series and grew into a series of its own. Its greatest success came as a body-on-frame intermediate on GM's A-body, where it became one of the most popular cars in America.

For every year from 1976 to 1983 the Cutlass was the best-selling car in the United States; in 1977 GM built over 630,000 of them. By the 1980s 'Cutlass' had become a sub-marque spanning several distinct cars at once — the compact Cutlass Calais, the mid-size Cutlass Ciera and Cutlass Cruiser wagon, and the flagship Cutlass Supreme.

The classic Cutlass faded through the 1990s; the name was revived for 1997 on a rebadged fifth-generation Chevrolet Malibu, and Cutlass production ended on July 2, 1999 — closing one of the most successful nameplates in American automotive history.