First applied to a glamorous Motorama show car in 1953, the jet fighter-derived Starfire name returned for 1961 as a standalone top-of-the-line model designed to showcase the best Oldsmobile had to offer. The car’s Starfire V-8 was a 394-cubic-inch engine with hydraulic lifters and a 10.25:1 compression ratio, good for a reported 345 horsepower. The model came well-appointed with a long list of standard equipment, including all Super Eighty-Eight features plus bucket seats, power steering and brakes, and an aluminum-trimmed center console, which housed a factory tachometer and Hydra-Matic automatic transmission shift lever.

For 1962, Oldsmobile introduced a series of sweeping design changes across its entire product line. Full-size models were given a more substantial looking front end with the Starfire also receiving its now signature brushed-aluminum side panels. The nearly foot-wide side trim, oft referred to by enthusiasts as “rocket boosters,” was a definitive design statement that announced the Starfire as unique to anything else on the road. Power, performance, and stunning Jet Age style helped the Starfire overcome its status as Oldsmobile’s most expensive offering by rocketing to a production of 7,149 convertibles for 1962.

Wearing a handsome older restoration and cloaked in a stunning color combination, one of these opulent Oldsmobiles is offered here. Finished in stunning Garnet Mist complementing its signature brushed aluminum side panels, this Starfire features a two-tone Garnet Mist and burgundy leather interior. The signature Jet Age dash with two-spoke steering wheel and brushed aluminum console present wonderfully, as does the signature turquoise passenger-side dash plaque. A white power convertible top and 14-inch steel wheels with turbine hubcaps shod in thin whitewall tires complete the period look. Meanwhile, factory air conditioning is on hand to keep occupants comfortable.

A stylish, top-of-the-line cruiser that packs a powerful V-8 punch, this stunning 1962 Oldsmobile Starfire Convertible is a must for collectors seeking rare and significant examples from the American Jet Age.