1978 Renault LeCar Black Beauty Edition / 1977 Oldsmobile Toronado XS

Wow. Talk about opposite ends of the spectrum...

This person has two cars for sale on eBay. One is a tiny LeCar, the other a huge Toranado.

The 1978 Renault LeCar (R5) is a Black Beauty Edition. These were limited edition LeCars. "Limited Edition" in this case meant 2500 cars. This car is #1704.

The Black Beauty came with special graphics, a plaque denoting its limited edition status and just about every option Renault offered in the US. Check out the very cool Formuling France steering wheel and funky 3 lug "mag" wheels. It, of course, has the giant vinyl sunroof, which, in my opinion, no LeCar should be without.

The seller says the car runs and drives well. The body appears to be rust free and all the special Black Beauty graphics are still on the car. It's tough to tell from the pictures, but the doors are either dirty or have a few scratches. Scratches could be a problem as you'd have to have the paint blended in around the graphics or have new graphics custom made ($$$$).

As I mentioned in an earlier post, an ex-girlfriend once owned a LeCar and I spent a lot of time driving it. It was a fun, if not fast, car to drive. Hers was a 1983. In 1980 Renault updated the car with a new front end, bumpers, dashboard and interior. I prefer the later ones, but if you like the look of the original R5, this Black Beauty is worth checking out.

Click here to see the eBay listing for this LeCar.

The 1977 Oldsmobile Tornado XS is as interesting as anything to come out of Detroit in the 1970s. In 1977 the Oldsmobile Ninety-Eights and Delta 88s were downsized and the Tornado was the largest car in the Oldsmobile lineup. It is massive. It's 227.5" long (In comparison, the LeCar is 138" long.), rides on a 122" wheelbase and weighs 4805lbs.

The engine is a 403ci, 200 HP, V8. While it is not slow, this car is built for comfort, not for speed.

The interior is typical what US auto manufacturers thought luxury interiors should be back in 1977... The front seats are sort of bucket seats, but instead of being sculptured for support, Oldsmobile put leather "pillows" on them, which gave you absolutely no support whatsoever. The shifter is mounted on the column and the dash is long and flat. It has a strip speedometer which goes up to 100 MPH.

What makes this car really unique is its lack of a C-pillar. The rear window is bent at a sharp angle and goes from B-pillar to B-pillar. (Good luck replacing that it it breaks. I did a quick search to find out what a replacement would cost... I could not find a glass company that had one, let alone a price.)

This is not my type of car, but like so many other cars I write about, it's a piece of history. Approximately 2500 1977 Tornado XS Coupes were built. I can't imagine that there are many left. This car has 48,000 miles on it and appears to be in very nice condition.

Find the eBay listing for this 1977 Oldsmobile Toranado here.