There’s no denying the 80’s were, for the most part, lean times for muscle car and performance car enthusiasts. By the early 90’s, however, the American performance car market was showing a few signs of life, in no small part due to the invasion of import compacts that were becoming popular. One of those signs was the Oldsmobile Cutlass Calais Quad 442 W41.
According the interwebs, the Quad 442 had a 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine with four valves per cylinder and two camshafts, hence the 442 name designation. It made around 180 hp (134 kW), and was mated to a 5-speed manual transmission. Whereas the 1990-mid1991 Quad 442 used the W-40 option code, the last few months of 1991 saw the use of the W-41 code, in reference to a modified transmission and different side moulding. It was otherwise similar to the W-40 models.
Production of this car was very limited. Just 3789 W-40’s were made between 1990 and 1991, and only 204 (or 211, depending on whom you ask) W-41’s rolled off the production line in late 1991.
From the listing:
Ultra Motorsports is very pleased to offer this ultra rare 1991 Quad 442 W41. Oldsmobile only produced 211 of these 442s. These cars were produced by Olds to compete in IMSA road racing. In order to be approved for competition, Olds had to produce a minimum of 200 of these cars. The W41 was equipped with a 190 horsepower quad 4 engine. It also was equipped with a 5 speed manual transmission, and a transaxle that had a 3.94 final drive ratio. Road tests in 1991 claimed that the W41 could run the quarter mile in 14.93 seconds! Pretty impressive for a 4 cylinder engine! This particular W41 has had one owner since 1991. It was purchased at Tom Gill Oldsmobile in Columbus Ohio. The car retains all its original paint and interior. It has 43,000 original miles. The cars overall condition is very good. It has been garage kept its entire life, and it shows. The paint is very nice with only a few minor chips and dings, that would be consistent with the mileage. The interior is in excellent condition. Mechanically the car runs and drives great. It has been well taken care of its entire life and serviced regularly. The only known issue with the car is that the abs light is on. It is believed that a sensor in the abs unit is needing replaced. Overall this car is an excellent example of an incredibly rare performance Oldsmobile. On very rare occasion Ultra Motorsports will accept consignment pieces. This vehicle was accepted as a consignment piece due to its quality, originality, rarity, and pedigree as a one owner car with original miles. This vehicle comes to us from the private collection of a true 442 enthusiast.
Do you get the feeling this car was just slapped together with whatever plastic bits they had left in the parts bin? That’s because it probably was.
I’m not sold on the wheels, but they’re growing on me. I’ve been sitting on this post for a few days, and I like them more today than when I started writing last week. At this rate, I’ll have a set on my Focus by Friday.
For a interesting description of an identical W-41, check out this link.
Also, I found something interesting here.
Also also, this article is pretty good reading. Seems I’m not the only one who finds these cars intriguing.
We grew up with the usual collection of GM’s in the driveway – Dad is a GM fan. We even had a Cutlass sedan; I’m guessing it didn’t have a 5-speed, though, or a 14-second quarter mile. With 17 days left on this auction, the seller has a Buy it Now price of $12,500. Would you snap up this rare coupe for five figures?
[Source: Ebay]
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