1955 Oldsmobile Super 88 Holiday Coupe

- "Rocket 88" 324cid/202hp 4bbl V8
- Hydramatic Gearbox
- Beautiful Blue and White Color Scheme
- Fresh Engine Tune Up
- Stunning Example

(Please note: If you happen to be viewing this 1955 Oldsmobile Super 88 Holiday Coupe on a website other than our Garage Kept Motors site, it's possible that you've only seen some of our many photographs of the car due to third-party website limitations. To be sure you access all the more than 145 photographs, as well as a short start-up and walk-around video, please go to our main website: Garage Kept Motors.)

“With go-fast looks and 'rocket'-based marketing, providing power under the hood to back up the boasts was essential. Of course, Oldsmobile excelled in this area….” – Hemmings Classic Car, July 2017

The Hemmings writer continued to describe Oldsmobile's Rocket Power: “(The) V-8 that wowed the public with its overhead-valves and 135 horsepower when introduced for the 1949 models, grew to 324 cubic inches for 1954 and received top-end breathing enhancements to increase horsepower to 185 with the 'Quadri-Jet' four-barrel and 170 hp with the two-barrel. For 1955, a higher 8.5:1 compression ratio, higher lift hydraulic-lifter cam, and improved combustion chambers increased the power rating of the four-barrel, 324-cu.in. engine to 202 hp and the two-barrel version to 185 hp.”

Offered here is a 1955 Oldsmobile Super 88 Holiday Coupe--powered by the 324 V8--in ivory and medium powder-blue with the same color combination featured in the interior. Oldsmobile advertising people must have loved this combination because it alone was featured in a full-page magazine ad for the 1955 models. The car has been lovingly maintained and has amassed just 45,782 miles, fewer than 700 miles per-year on average. This stunning Olds is virtually guaranteed to steal the show at any cruise-in or weekend car show.

The car's exterior paint-- smooth, glossy, and even across the entire body-- shows extremely well, and the color combination is lovely, somehow capturing the free-wheeling spirit of the Fifties and the style Oldsmobiles were noted for. The same is true for the many unique style touches incorporated in the body. From one of the most attractive front grilles of the time with its individual chrome letters spelling out “Oldsmobile,” to the stylish shape of the chrome trim separating the two colors on its flanks, to the bullet-shaped taillights, the Super 88's uniquely attractive design is a thing of beauty. The Holiday Coupe hardtop choice is perfect. Badging and emblems—including the globe-design hood emblem, map-design trunk emblem, and “Super 88” rocket model designation—are all in place in well-preserved condition. Chrome bumpers and trim retain excellent shine; the rocket hood ornament is automotive art. The car has twin spotlights installed, a popular period upgrade. Lightly tinted cabin glass is free of cracks or damage; the “wraparound” windshield is particularly attractive on this model. Chrome faux-spinner wheel covers and wide whitewall tires complete the presentation.

Inside, treats for the eyes abound. The exterior color combination graces the car's door trim, dashboard, and seating. The brocade-appearing seat-upholstery pattern (in blue and ivory with ivory vinyl here) was unique to Oldsmobile. All interior surfaces—chrome, fabric, paint, instrument lenses—show what 66 years of loving care can produce. The driver's dashboard view is stunning. The world-design Oldsmobile logo in the center of the steering wheel, the chrome controls, the delicate column-mounted shifter for the Hydramatic transmission, twin circular-shaped dash treatments (one housing the speedometer, the other a clock and radio-speaker grille), the waterfall-design center panel repeated in chrome facing the front passenger all make for a beautiful view of still more automotive art, and out the windshield across the long hood. Powder-blue looped-pile carpeting covers the cabin floors.

Under the hood, the 202-horsepower, 324 cubic-inch Rocket V8 powerplant in its proper green paint (its 4-barrel carburetor beneath the large black air cleaner) shows the results of the same care bestowed on the rest of the car. The engine bay is complete and tidy with all components properly in place. The “Oldsmobile Rocket” embossed valve covers add a touch of the same flair seen elsewhere on the 88. Body trim tag remains mounted. Viewed from below, the chassis is complete and undamaged. A performance muffler is mounted.

While the more than 145 high-definition photographs and the short walk-around-and-startup video available on the GarageKeptMotors website showcase this remarkable '55 Oldsmobile in detail from every angle, including from below, we expect and encourage in-person inspections at our Grand Rapids, Michigan showroom. Please call to arrange an appointment in advance as our showroom is not open to the public. And feel free to get in touch anytime by phone or email if you have questions.

A longtime owner of one of these Oldsmobile Holiday Coupes, quoted in the Hemmings Classic Car article referenced earlier, provided his view on the car's appeal: “It's a perfect mixture of performance and luxury…. Anyone who has ever ridden in my Super 88 appreciates the quality, and the experience makes them smile. It feels brand new and transports you back to the 1950s. I love the colors and the interior. I'm very proud of the car, and I have no regrets buying it."

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