(rock music)
- Hi, I'm Stephan Lombard
with Hagerty Classic Cars
and I'm at the Lingenfelter
collection in Brighton Michigan
with the landmark Oldsmobile,
the 1966 Olds Toronado.
The car's overall shape derives from
a 1962 painting by designer David North,
and when Oldsmobile greenlighted
a personal luxury car,
his design was chosen.
It was originally slated for
a smaller frame, the A-body,
but costs being what they were
Oldsmobile decided to
put it on the E platform,
shared with the Riviera.
It's not easy to make a smaller car big
and still retain the lovely proportions,
but Oldsmobile did an
excellent job with this car,
and there's a lot to like about
the first generation Toronado.
Part of what makes the Toronado so special
is its powertrain, or
unitized power package.
Oldsmobile was crafty
in combining
425 cubic-inch Rocket V8
with a modified TH400 transmission,
or TH425, and a planetary differential,
all packaged in the engine
bay driving the front wheels.
This same powertrain made its way
into GM motor homes of the 1970s.
The engine was topped by a
Rochester Quadrajet carburetor.
The combination put about 385 horsepower
and an impressive 475
pound-feet of torque.
By the end of the generation in 1970
the engine was upped to 455 cubic inches.
These powertrains are incredibly robust
and designers put about a
million and a half miles on them
before they every found
their way into the Toronado.
But something to be wary of
that some owners experience
were engine fires,
as temperatures tended
to climb under the hood.
Overall, the Toronado was
exceptionally well built,
and even the first year cars
didn't really experience
too many gremlins that you'd expect
from a first year car.
But, they are prone to
rust in certain places.
Commonly at the base of the A pillars,
so check for rust bubbles there
and around the base of the windshield.
And then moving back,
you want to check the top
of the rear spring mounts
if you can get under the car.
And finally, and most importantly,
(sudden record scratching)
ah, no.
It's all, all rust is
important to treat guys.
The more you know.
Finally, pop the trunk
(rock music)
and check the drains
for this rear window vent.
There are rubber tubes on either side
and they tended to get clogged with debris
that got down in the vent,
and if that happened water could
just sit on that shelf and rot it away.
A few more things to look for.
These doors, they're giant, they're heavy.
They're heavy on their hinges,
so check those hinges,
check the alignment,
check the fitment, the shut lines.
Make sure that they're not sagging.
Also, with so much power and weight
up front driving the front wheels,
these cars tended to eat through tires.
Firestone designed a special
tire just for the Toronado,
but modern tires are better equipped
to handle this kind of power.
Finally, these pop-up
headlights are vacuum actuated,
and like many of those
systems from the era
they can wear out over time,
so check the system and make
sure that it works properly.
There's no denying the appeal
of the Toronado's shape,
but Oldsmobile built it
as a personal luxury car
to compete with the Ford Thunderbird.
So let's hop inside and
see how luxurious it is.
(rock music)
Oh yeah, that is comfortable.
This Strato seat
with armrest is made for cruising,
so let's cruise.
(engine revs)
(rock music)
- Toronado was available
in either standard, or simply Toronado,
or Deluxe, and by a huge margin
most people bought the Deluxe.
And either car you bought
was fantastically outfitted.
Even in the standard car
that included things like
power steering, power brakes,
courtesy lights,
wonderful carpeting.
The Deluxe came with niceties like this
fold down armrest on your Strato seat.
Quite luxurious in a
luxury car of that period.
But also a center speaker in
the rear for the AM radio.
Options included things
like air conditioning,
which this car has, six-way power seats,
a power antenna.
So, really advanced feaures for the time
and not found in many cars.
If there is a knock against these cars
it's a minor, but important one,
in that, parts are hard to find.
So your best bet is to check out
the Toronado Owner's Association
and the Olds Club of America
and make nice with the people
who've been hoarding parts for years.
Something else to consider
is that even though this
has a Rocket V8 in it,
which was common to several Oldsmobiles,
it's specialized for this
particular application
so the oil pan is different,
and a few other pieces are different
so you can't just put a
different Rocket V8 in,
or take this engine out
and put it in another Olds.
To say that Oldsmobile
hit the mark with this car
is an understatement.
They went up against the Thunderbird
and this car trumps that car.
And it's no wonder that it was
the 1966 Motor Trend Car of the Year,
and that they said it's probably
the most comfortable road
car conceived to date.
It's hard to argue against that.
Now, if you'll excuse me
I'm going to luxuriate in my Toronado.
(rock music)
