After the end of World War II, Oldsmobile had a reputation for building sturdy and very well engineered, if not exciting cars, but that soon began to change. With innovative styling and the introduction of the all-new compact and powerful Rocket V-8 engine in 1949, Oldsmobile had completely transformed its former image. Sales doubled by 1950 and rose to exceed 430,000 units in 1954, propelling the company to a solid fourth-place industry ranking.

Without a doubt, a great deal of this success was directly attributable to Oldsmobile’s mildly restyled 1954 models and their larger, more potent V-8 engine. The Series 98 remained at the pinnacle of the Oldsmobile model range and included a four-door sedan and the two-door Holiday hardtop, as well as the exciting Starfire 98 Convertible. The Starfire name first appeared on an Oldsmobile show car of 1953, which in turn may have been inspired by the fast and very powerful Lockheed F-94 Starfire interceptor used by the U.S. Air Force during the early 1950s. Period advertising declared, “Starfire – the Show Car that can be your car”.

Design aspects on all Series 98 models featured a hood that was approximately level with the tops of the front fenders. This long, low and wide styling theme continuing across the rear fenders to the tail panel. A fashionable new panoramic wraparound windshield, one of the most distinctive features of the limited-production Fiesta convertible of 1953, appeared for the first time on regular production Oldsmobiles. A dynamic, bright side-spear gave the cars a longer and more modern look, while forming an ideal framework for a number of available two-tone paint finishes.

The car is powered by a 324-cid, 185-hp overhead-valve V-8 engine with independent front suspension that has unequal-length A-arms and coil springs, live rear axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs, and four-wheel servo-assisted hydraulic drum brakes all configured on a 126-inch wheelbase chassis. The Starfire 98 came with many shared standard features of the 88 Series that include bumper guards, electric clock, lined trunk, dual horns, cigarette lighter, aluminum door sill-plates and turn signals. The 98 Series also had a padded dash, parking brake light, stainless-steel three-spinner wheel covers, courtesy-light package, windshield washer and Deluxe steering wheel with horn ring.

The fantastic car on offer is in excellent condition and is highly optioned; including power top, power windows, power steering and power brakes which provided even more passenger comfort and convenience. It also features a Continental kit, leather interior, correct wide-whitewall tires and factory tear-drop fender skirts. These cars are very rare, only 6,800 were built and a small percentage of this figure are still in existence. They are seldom found and almost never in the condition of this beautiful example.