Olds used the F symbol for years. It began in 1928 with the F28, F29 (1929) etc. In
1933 F models were equipped with the 6-cylinder engine. The eight-cylinder models were
designated with an "L". This continued for years. Then in the late '50s, Olds
displayed a show car, the F88 with a retractable hardtop. They say that the F85 label on
the new model introduced in the fall of 1960 was a natural. In the early years, there were
models A, B, C, D, and E from years 1923 till 1927. Then the model F in 28. I am not sure why
they didn't go to a model G in 1960/61 but they didn't and why they used the 85 I can't
answer. In 1954, two Olds show cars were built for the 1954 GM Motorama show. One was the
Cutlass named after a fighter plane used in the Navy and the other was the F88, a dead
ringer for the 1954 Corvette. And the rest is history.
