1991 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme 3.1

Summary:

Sleeper car with impressive performance if you invest a little time and money in it

Faults:

Fuel injectors were bad.

Rear shocks.

Interior hood opening pull broken.

Plastic manual seat adjusters broken.

Cassette deck broken.

Possible blown head gasket, not sure. Blows a huge cloud of white smoke under hard acceleration.

General Comments:

I bought the car for $500 for basic transportation to my job, knowing it needed work. Previous owner stated it stalled intermittently and had receipts for work done trying to fix problem. Had new front struts, they told me it needed new rear shocks. Tires were close to new and the AC works great (important here in the desert).

Spent $600 at a shop getting injectors, plugs and plug wires replaced. Now the engine runs smooth, and has impressive performance.

Interior was abused by previous owners, also it was broken into once and had some damage.

Now it seems to be a nice driving car, looks decent, give it just barely any throttle and it moves down the road like a V8.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 24th September, 2012

25th Sep 2012, 10:36

The 3.1L engine is known for blowing the lower intake manifold gasket. This could be the source of the white smoke you see.

26th Sep 2012, 15:39

That problem didn't surface until the late 1995 models.

1991 Oldsmobile Cutlass Base 3.1 V6

Summary:

Most reliable vehicle I've ever owned!

Faults:

Idled rough. Turned out to be an easy fix.

It hasn't given me any problems beyond that!

General Comments:

I bought this car as a junker, and it is now more reliable than my 2002 Chrysler 300! I drive this car more than I do the Chrysler, just because it's so much more reliable.

The seats are comfortable, and it even has 6 passenger seating! the cloth is durable, and yet surprisingly comfortable. The heat and AC kick butt too! This is a basic car, with manual windows, mirrors, and locks, but the car's reliability and comfort make that easy to overlook.

While it isn't the Maserati of older sedans, the 3.1 V6 gets you going on the on-ramps or when you're trying to pass someone. Also, the gas mileage is pretty impressive too! I can get 30 highway, if I'm driving it smooth.

I would buy this car again, in a heartbeat! This is definitely a nice, extra car. Watch out though, because it may end up being your daily driver once you drive it once!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 24th October, 2011

1991 Oldsmobile Cutlass 3.1 MPFI

Summary:

Nice, but expect repairs common to the old 3.1

Faults:

Transmission at 119,000.

Fuel injector at 119,000.

General Comments:

I have put aftermarket rims and tires on this car, as well as a stabilizer bar. It really does handle like it is on rails.

The acceleration is not as great as the 3100 in my old Ciera.

I bought this car because of the price... $150. I did know it had a bad transmission, so I got a newer one from the junkyard. What a waste. It is no good either... There goes a grand down the pot...

I have not hardly been able to drive it because it keeps breaking down on me!!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 29th September, 2008

1991 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera SL 3.3L

Summary:

A reasonably reliable family sedan

Faults:

Right from the beginning, the transmission was slow to engage in cold weather (below 0 C). Under those conditions, I need to warm up the car for several minutes in order to get the transmission to engage. Changing transmission oil, filter and adding oil additives didn't resolve the problem.

At about 240,000 km the blower fan failed and had to be replaced. Around that time the engine also began to leak coolant from the head gasket. I never really fixed this problem, but was able to control it by adding a variety of sealants to the radiator fluid.

At 245,000 km I had an intermittent problem with the engine electronics, which caused the car to stall when idling. The problem recurred a couple of times, but seems to have gone away since.

At, 275,000 km I had to replace the alternator.

Recently the radiator has developed a leak, which is most likely going to be the end of this car.

General Comments:

This car looks decent, has a pretty comfortable interior compared to similar GM products, and a fairly sporty dashboard layout (including tachometer). However, it's by no means a sports car. I drove it like you would, if you want to save the expense of having to replace a head gasket. That way, I didn't have to spend anything on the brakes either.

For a while I closely monitored fuel consumption, which was generally between 12-13 liters/100 km (around 20 mpg) using regular octane grade.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 26th September, 2007