Sadly, there is still a lot of actual hate and disgust for the Cadillac version of the J-body. I'm actually surprised to see comments like the ones posted on a short blog entry I posted on Oppositelock about something not even related to the car, especially since it draws so many people when I take it to Cars and Coffee. No one can change my mind about this car though; I love it like a member of the family and think she's perfect.
Link to story about the driveway ramp I commissioned a local artist to create for me.
The story also began a heated J-body discussion on the OppositeTalk Facebook page.

Thanks for reading!




1988 Cadillac Cimarron

Just ignore the haters. No matter what you drive there's always going to be some whiney jealous idiot that will give you crap about it.

Posting hate increases that so coveted social standing in certain social circles, not any rational society. I don't know how many "haters" are childish pretenders or just make insincere hate for the fun of it. I'm pretty sure it's just to fit in and increase social standing in some perceived society where there's a "correctness" involved in opinions.

I'm a car enthusiast, I like all machines, even the quirky, odd, or bad ones. I like my dad's Cavalier, so there's some additional familial love for other J-bodies, Cimarron included. My dad would actually like to "upgrade" his Cavalier into a Cimarron, procuring the Cadillac parts and replacing the Cavie ones. We're 1 / every-other-Cavalier-part-th of the way there; one of the hubcaps is a Cadillac cap.

IMO the only legit ones to balk at a Cimarron would be Cadillac Purists - that being said - such high society as those look down upon all of us mortals with disdain for everything we are or stand for anyways.

I enjoy my vehicles to impress myself, not to garner affection and acceptance from anyone else.

Of course the Cadillac version of the J-Body was not widely accepted and had a small short production run - this just adds to the charm of these lovely cars now as they are even more rare and unique. All those Cimarron haters just make it easier for those that enjoy them to have an easier time finding one

Lastly, there never was anything fundamentally wrong with the Cimarron to begin with, short of the market segment it was offered into. The car itself was reliable and fully useful for the purpose it was built. At least it didn't suffer from major flaws like the infamous V-8,6,4 engine or GM's Diesel designs which caused may an owner lots of headaches. So with this in mind it is very easy to obtain and maintain - many parts off the other brand J-Bodies can be used for repairs too!



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Frankly, I'm getting very tempted to get a Cimmaron because I like J cars and I like the idea of a really decked out one. My reaction to people laughing or snickering ranges from not caring in the least to accepting it with pride.

As far as Cimarron/J-car bashing is concerned:

1. Were J cars GREAT cars? No, but they strike me as well designed but not ground breaking, enjoyable to drive but not, apparently, to the auto magazine writers who seem to prefer cars that can be raced on race tracks on the weekend.

2. The Cimmaron's only "sin" was, indeed, being a KIND of Cavalier for $10K more, and yet you WERE getting leather, often, and a larger engine and more chrome. And frankly, using ONE platform for multiple cars had been going on since, what, the 1940s at least.

3. I think the Cimmaron became a SYMBOL for those angry at the U.S. car industry for making cars, in the 1970s, anyway, that were NOT well built and did not seem to last. I think that was a combination of focusing too much on profits, trying to make profits at a time of increasing labor and material cost, and an inability to foresee the gas crisis and engineer around the government's understandable demand to focus on safety. I think people also were frustrated that the American auto industry didn't seem as advanced as the Japanese or Germans.

4. Once the media and/or a few pundits identify something as "out" and worthy of bashing, the masses - who generally don't know the details - follow suit.

There is no way the J body is as bad as some of the cars that proceeded it. I owned a Pontiac Astre and it was not a good car. I owned a Chevette and it was okay but had major design flaws, the steering system for one. But the J bodies were a good effort and the fact that I'm still roaring (well, maybe not roaring) down the highway in my 83 Skyhawk in 2015 says SOMETHING good about them. Yes, I paid a lot to get it "restored," but if the design were bad, that wouldn't make any difference.

Ignore the haters and enjoy your car.

I love my 82 Cimarron and have invited many to come compare the two since odds are these people who hate them, never even drove one. Let alone drove a cavalier of the same production year. I always tell people that mine isn't actually a cadillac cimarron but a cimarron by cadillac. So yes in deed it is just a rebadged cavalier with all the perks and options not even offered in a cavalier.

Lol cadillac purists.. they kicked me off the cadillac forum

That Catera/Cimarron forum is a joke. Since our cars are so similar to other J-bodies, this forum is the best place for references. Plus, they don't actually hate us here. Thanks for the kind words everyone; I'll just keep on putting those haters behind me.


1988 Cadillac Cimarron

Y'all do have the "high class" j-body. You're higher up on the j-body food chain with all those fancy options and bling compared to us lower class with just a "Cavalier" and all.

Ah, kidding aside.......the Cimarron is a classy j and I like some of the styling about them, but they've got waaaaaaaay to many doors for me.

Who cares what others say. Are you happy with it? Is it paid for? Do you have fun and enjoy it? If you answer "yes" to those questions, then SCREW what everyone else thinks. but that's just me.

Ok, I lied. I'd have a Cavalier 4door and put a Z kit, drop springs, 16 or 17in wheels, shaved roof rack, "roll pan" the rear for a smooth look, and of course tint the windows.

I will say the Cimarron was never appealing to me in the degree of what it was sold as overall.However the car def has real quality built into it overall to last from the 80's!!!! There will always be car people who hate or despise any brand or model of car no matter what period.I with out reservation will always talk about how cool my 85 cav is to anyone even if they do not care about the brand or model and I stand my ground proud.In short I just Love my car and when people see it in my garage and I pop the hood showing how well I have refurbished things and the original stock car it just blows them away.My car is a 4spd manual and will chirp the tires and move pretty damn quick for what it is.I just discount the hate side and move on.Jbodies are not junk as if they were they would not be still around 30+ years later and that is not a fluke.Gm did something right and that only proves my point.

Good post and funny comments ... (I like the plate too.) Just the fact that all the Js are older now almost makes them interesting by default in my opinion. I barely see any on the road at all so already you are standing out ... which is not boring. I'm sure some people consider things that aren't particularly fast boring, but to each their own. Also I'm always surprised how many people comment about mine. Part of the surprise is because I don't really expect anyone else to like them, but I agree with Orlen and Paul .. I like them and that's what matters to me.



• 86 Skyhawk wagon : 2.0SOHC swap, Megasquirt, 20SEH cam
• 93 Sunbird sedan : 2.0SOHC, Microsquirt, ported head, 10:1
• 88 Sunbird coupe : 2.0SOHC, turbo project car, giant tires

The Cimarron and Cavalier were GM cars produced when most American made cars were playing catch up to the imports in durability and MPGs. Most people in the late seventies and eighties were HIGHLY disappointed with anything produced by the big three. In my opinion the j bodys were the beginning of GM getting it right and they tried to push the Cimarron on America when true Caddy guys were not ready for it. Even the infamous GM diesels and the Caddy 4.1 are looked upon with more fondness than the Cavalier with a Caddy badge. That said, I love the car and can confirm after owning one that is was a nice riding car that felt much more together than any j body that I ever drove or owned. Would buy another one if I had room for sedan in my collection.

Who cares what ANYONE thinks!

I honestly think these cars were and still are completely misunderstood by folks, except for J-Body enthusiasts, like us.
Caddy built these cars to compete with German performance sedans and out of either laziness or simply lack of personnel who were reasonably versed in engineering that type of car, they used a quick fix by re-badging a GM workhorse platform and adding some luxury accoutrements to the car.
GM wanted to jump into a market segment that none of their brand names reasonably fit ( like BMW, Audi and VW for example), so they thought Caddy might do as a brand name for the new (to GM) performance/ luxury market.
I really think that it would have worked if Caddy took a Z-24, made it a sedan, got rid of the outside color scheme and graphics, went subtle & monotone in color and design, refined the ride, gave it a *little* more oomph, and put really nice leather interior in it with Recaro type seats and a really smooth sports type manual and automatic gear boxes.
GM took those type of buyers too lightly and thought they could get away with basically a re-badged economy car.
We love it because of the utility, reliability and refinement treatment of our beloved platform, but the automotive press and the type of consumer they marketed that car to saw it as a half-hearted effort and the sales numbers reflected that.
Hated? Maybe.. Misunderstood? Definitely.







~ Mike ~

Got skooled this evening on my cimarron. I did not know that the hood was not steel. I know my cav's see but the cimarron isn't. I'll have to check my spare hoods as I have an 87 cav spare good and an 83 cimarron spare hood. Compare the two and see if there is much weight difference. Then compare them to the Z24 hood.

you hit bthe nail right on the head mike, if gm would have upgraded the drive train and suspension the cimarron might have been a different story. the j-bodys wre pretty much the bottom of the totem pole and to just add a nicer interior and call it a caddilac was a big mistake. sedans are not my thing but if one came up that was in good shape and reasonablly priced i would consider buying it. two gm cars made in the late 80s and early 90s, the buick reatta and the caddilac allante i am very intrested in. i think they look great and you can pick a good one up for 4 to 8 grand. they have been kind of over looked but now people are starting to notice them and the prices are going up. if you do buy one though expect a hard time finding parts.

Esquire Magazine decides to show some hate for the Cimarron The 12 Most Embarrassing Cars they also decides to spread the "love" to the rest of the J car lineup.

Will it ever end!!! Every year some magazine or website lists the Cimarron on a worst cars list. It's like a broken @!#$ record any more...

Wouldn't the FWD Cadillac 4.9 V8 or Northstar V8 swap in? I know of one guy that did it in a X11 Citation.......................

Doug in P.R.


92 Pontiac Sunbird LE, 2.0, AT, Red / Black with Grey 155K miles. Hurricane Maria Survivor ! ( It takes a licking and keeps on ticking ! ).....in Salinas, Puerto Rico!