[2][3][4] The Cutlass Ciera and its A-Body platform twins, featured MacPherson strut front suspension, body-color urethane bumpers, flush-mounted glass, front-wheel drive, and on many models, fuel injection.

Initially, the Cutlass Ciera and its platform mates were marketed as premium mid-sized cars, above the X-Body, from which they were derived, and the N-Body Calais, which would follow for 1985.

In order to keep both lines in production, General Motors rechristened the rear-wheel drive mid-sized platform as the G-Body beginning with the 1982 model year.

Originally for 1990, the Cutlass Ciera, as with the rest of the A-body range, was intended to be phased out in favor of the more modern W-body midsized sedans.

However, the Ciera, as well as its sister the Buick Century, continued to remain popular nearing the end of their initial runs.

Although reduced to two trim levels and two body styles, sedan and wagon, the Cieras remained the brand's best-selling line for 1996.

The base coupe and sedan were initially dropped after 1982 due to poor sales, leaving LS and Brougham trim as the only available from 1983 until 1985, excluding special editions.

During the spring of 1983, a special edition Holiday Coupe was added to the option list as part of the Oldsmobile Road Show sales promotion.

A 3.8 L Buick V6 became available and the Holiday Coupe package returned to the options list for its first full year[8] as did a 4-speed manual transmission for diesel models.

For 1987, the Cutlass Ciera was facelifted again with a new grille, an updated steering wheel had the Oldsmobile logo moved from the right to the very center, and the 2.8 L LE2 V6 engine was dropped in favor of the more powerful LB6 unit.

This model came equipped with a standard Buick 3.8 L V6 engine, 4-speed automatic transmission, sporty exhaust system, front bucket seats, and power windows.

[9] The Cutlass Ciera was updated for 1989, with the sedan receiving a roofline similar to the coupe, revised body side moldings, deletion of hood ornaments and addition of rear seat shoulder belts.

The 1991 Cutlass Ciera was given a new taillight treatment with body-colored frames to divide the lenses into three horizontal slots at the expense of the Oldsmobile rocket insignias.

The Ciera remained Oldsmobile's best-selling model line, with over 132,000 sedans and an additional 7,793 station wagons produced this year.

The 'Cutlass Ciera S', available in sedan or station wagon form, featured a driver airbag as standard equipment, along with anti-lock brakes, adjustable steering column, electric rear-window defogger, automatic door locks, and delay wipers.

For 1996, the final model year, the 'Cutlass' nomenclature was dropped and the car was now known simply as the 'Ciera SL', which continued to be available in 'Series I' or 'Series II' equipment levels.

As Oldsmobile attempted to reposition itself as a European-styled upscale make with new products such as the Aurora, the Cutlass Ciera continued to have strong sales.

Because the tooling for the A-body platform had long since been monetized, GM was guaranteed a profit off each Cutlass Ciera and Buick Century sold.

This package included a unique landau vinyl roof (RPO C10), opera windows, special rooftop trim, and painted pinstripes.

[12] It featured blacked-out trim, V6 engine, a center console with bucket seats, fog lamps factory body kit, alloy wheels, and performance suspension.

Available on coupe and sedan models, it featured a factory body kit, bucket seats with console, FE3 performance suspension, alloy wheels, full instrumentation, air conditioning, JA2 heavy-duty brakes, extra capacity cooling, and unique ornamentation.

Sharing much of its sporty appearance with the International Series, the XC is distinguished by orange body side stripes in place of the typical black and chrome trim.

Oldsmobile never officially produced a factory-built convertible of the Cutlass Ciera for public sale, but many dealers made them available via aftermarket conversions.

[13] These vehicles were Brougham (1983 to mid-1986) and SL (mid-1986) coupes, modified with leather interior and chassis reinforcement to provide the needed structural rigidity that was lost by removing the roof.