This question arose when I saw pictures of a white ’76 Olds 98 coupe (bottom left) posted on Cohort.
Was it the biggest during the Mega Coupe era (1971-1979)?
And the answer was a little surprising.
First, the fact that we’re looking at coupe versions of these cars is arbitrary and irrelevant in terms of length compared to their four-door counterparts.
But the two-door coupe tends to emphasize the length of its rear end, and there’s just something too much about a coupe this long.
Another reason I chose coupes was that I assumed the longest production car of this period was the Cadillac Fleetwood 60/Bravam, due to its extended wheelbase of 133 inches compared to the Deville coupe’s 130 inches.
In the following, after ranking these six coupes, we will explain more about it.
1974-1976 Cadillac Coupe de Ville: 230.7 inches
Surprising loser in this match.
1975 Oldsmobile 98 Coupe: 232.4 inches
1975 Imperial and 1976 Chrysler New Yorker: 232.7 inches
It’s huge, but the 1974 Imperial had its wheelbase shortened by 3 inches to 124 inches from previous years in order to share more of its underpinnings with the Chrysler.
I suspected that the Continental might win this race, but no such luck.
However, its bulk makes it look the bulkiest.
This may come as a bit of a surprise, but Buick’s slanted rear fender blades are probably the reason it’s the largest GM C-Bodies.
1973 Empire: 235.3 inches
Imperial takes the cake in several ways.
To be honest, it feels a bit big for the undercarriage, especially the very heavy front.
And its near coupe roof makes the trunk look almost absurd.
But if you love extreme extremes, the Imp is your car.
And the big surprise is that it’s not the only biggest coupe in the land.
It turns out that the Fleetwood 60/Brougham sedan is only 233.7 inches long, ranking only 3rd in this battle of the giants.
This makes the 1973 Imperial the longest mass-produced regular sedan/coupe.
It looks like a mid-size coupe has sunk into the bottom of a giant.
And if LeBaron wears his crown a little weird, he wears it proudly.