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When Exactly in 1985 was the Oldsmobile Diesel V8 Dropped?

925 views 6 replies 4 participants last post by  jayoldschool 
#1 ·
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Just as the title implies... I wonder how many of you know exactly when in the 1985 sales year the Oldsmobile diesel V6 and V8 engines were dropped? I'd like to think it was January 1985, given the poor track record especially of the original 5.7L V8 diesel that caused many headaches to owners and dealers when originally introduced for 1978.

~Ben
 
#4 ·
In fact, 1985 was the only year the FWD DeVille/Fleetwood had it (the V6 version). And if the diesel program was discontinued in January '85, then that means that option would only have been around for four months in this line of cars (other C-body FWD's were the Buick Electra and Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight), if you look at the fact the 1985 model year sales began in September 1984.

It was the same 4.3L V6 (same as the 5.7L, with two cylinders gone) that, since 1982, had graced the hoods of some A-body FWD (and some G-body RWD) fare like the Buick Century/Chevy Celebrity/Olds Cutlass Ciera (and the FWD Cutlass Cruiser, which replaced the original RWD version after 1983)/Pontiac 6000. Unlike its bigger brother, however, it was made on significantly different tooling and had notably stronger cylinder heads (more head bolts per cylinder bank compared to the original V8 version), which ultimately made it somewhat more durable.

~Ben
 
#6 ·
I also want to point out that the new FWD DeVille/Fleetwood series (and possibly the other C-body FWD, the Buick Electra and Olds 98) were introduced in mid-1984 as early 1985 models, so availability of the 4.3L diesel V6 would have been roughly between March to December 1984, making that be 10 months' production in this line of cars.

~Ben
 
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