This weeks winner is Brian Young with his front wheel drive 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado. While I would have preferred that the, NO PARKING ANY TIME sign not obscure any of the subject matter, it important to note that these sort of finds, and especially these sort of finds on the move, wait for no one. I dont know that I have ever seen one of these on the road. Here are some details for the Toronado: The Oldsmobile Toronado was a two-door coupe produced by the Oldsmobile division of General Motors from 1966 to 1992. The name Toronado has no meaning, and was originally invented for a 1963 Chevrolet show car. Conceived as Oldsmobiles full-size personal luxury car and competing directly with the Ford Thunderbird, the Toronado is historically significant as the first front-wheel drive automobile produced in the United States since the demise of the Cord in 1937. The Toronado was structurally related to the 1966 rear-wheel-drive Buick Riviera and the following years Cadillac Eldorado, although each had quite different styling. The Toronado continued to share its E-body platform with the Riviera and Eldorado for most of its 28-year history. The original Toronado began as a design painting by Oldsmobile stylist David North in 1962. His design, dubbed the Flame Red Car, was for a compact sports/personal car never intended for production. A few weeks after the design was finished, however, Oldsmobile division was informed it would be permitted to build a personal car in the Riviera/Thunderbird class for the 1966 model year, and Norths design was selected. For production economy, the still-unnamed car was to share the so-called E-body shell with the redesigned 1966 Buick Riviera, which was substantially bigger than North had envisioned. Despite the efforts of Oldsmobile and General Motors styling chief Bill Mitchell to put the car on the smaller A-body intermediate, they were overruled for cost reasons. Oldsmobile had been working on front-wheel drive since 1958, a project shepherded by engineer John Beltz (who originated the 442[4] and would later become head of the division). Although initially envisioned for the smaller F-85 line, its cost and experimental nature pushed the program towards a larger, more expensive car. Engineer F. J. Hooven of the Ford Motor Company, had patented a similar FWD layout, and Ford was seriously considering the design for the 1961 Ford Thunderbird. However, the time to develop and engineer such a design in such short notice made this a doubtful proposition. Oldsmobile spent seven years developing the Toronado. Prior to its introduction to the public, over 1.5 million test miles were performed to verify the strength and reliability of the Toronados front-drive components. The Toronado design was over-built; the GMC motorhome of the 1970s used a basically unchanged Toronado-derived drivetrain. Nevertheless, the Toronado won Motor Trend Car of the Year honors in 1966 Other known names considered during development included: Magnum (later used by Dodge), Scirocco (later used by Volkwagon). During its seven-year development period, several General Motors innovations and designs came about because of the Toronado: Heavy-duty Turbo-Hydramatic 400 three-speed automatic transmission (named THM425 in FWD form) Rochester Quadrajet four-barrel carburetor Spherical shaped exhaust-manifold flange gaskets, which provided freedom of movement in the exhaust system and prevented leaks Draft-Free ventilation system, which reduced wind noise considerably by eliminating the conventional front-door vent windows The unusual Toronado powertrain was dubbed the Unitized Power Package (UPP). It was designed to combine an engine and transmission into an engine bay no larger than a conventional rear-wheel drive car. To power the car, Oldsmobile engineers selected a conventional, although performance-boosted, Olds 425 cu in (7 L) Super Rocket V8 rated at 385 hp (287 kW) and 475 ft·lb (644 N·m) of torque. It provided an increase of 10 hp (7.5 kW) over the Starfire 425, and an increase of 20 hp (15 kW) over the standard 425 engine in the Ninety-Eight. The Toronados intake manifold was unique and was depressed down to allow for engine hood clearance. The Turbo-Hydramatic heavy-duty three-speed automatic transmission, (or THM400, TH400) came about during development of the Toronado. Called the TH425 in FWD form, the transmissions torque converter was separated from its planetary gearset, with the torque converter driving the gearset through a 2 in (51 mm) wide silent chain-drive called Hy-Vo, riding on two 12 in (30 cm) sprockets. The Hy-Vo chain drive was developed by GMs Hydra-Matic Division and Morse Chain Division of Borg-Warner. The chains were made from a very strong hardened steel and required no tensioners or idler pulleys because they were pre-stretched on a special machine at the factory. Although the rotation direction of the transmissions gearing had to be reversed, a large number of components were shared with the conventional TH400. Use of the automatic also obviated the need to devise a workable manual-shift linkage; no manual transmission was ever contemplated, as engineers deemed performance to be adequate with the automatic transmission and the fact that virtually all U.S.-built luxury cars during this period came with automatic transmissions as standard equipment. With this, the 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) time was clocked in 9.5 seconds.[6] The Toronado was GMs first subframe automobile, which means it was partly unitized, and used a subframe that ended at the forward end of the rear suspension leaf springs, serving as an attachment point for the springs. It carried the powertrain, front suspension and floorpan, allowing greater isolation of road and engine harshness (the design was conceptually similar to the Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird that would debut for 1967). For space reasons, Oldsmobile adopted torsion bars for the Toros front suspension (the first GM passenger car application of torsion bars), with conventional, unequal-length double wishbones.[1] Rear suspension was a simple beam axle on single leaf springs, unusual only in having dual shock absorbers, one vertical, one horizontal (allowing it to act as a radius rod to control wheel movement). Brakes were hydraulically-operated 11 in (279 mm) drums, which were generally considered the Toronados weak link. Being a rather heavy car, after several panic stops, the brake drums would overheat, resulting in considerable fade and long stopping distances. The 1967 addition of vented front disc brakes as an option provided substantial improvement.[6] The Toronados UPP enabled the interior to have a completely flat floor,[7] but interior space (primarily rear seat headroom) was somewhat restricted by the fastback styling. Although a coupe (or two-door hard-top), the Toronado featured elongated doors, allowing easier access for passengers boarding the rear seating area. Door-latch handles were even duplicated at the rears of the doors, to enable back-seat passengers to open the doors by themselves without having to reach over or around the front seat; this feature was also available on the other two E-bodies, continuing until 1980 on the Eldorado. Head rests were optional for $52.[3] Also optional was a tilt-telescopic steering column.[8] Drivers faced a highly stylized steering wheel with a double-delta shaped horn ring which framed the view of an unusual slot-machine speedometer, which consisted of a stationary horizontal needle and a vertically rotating drum on which the numerals were printed. All other gauges, indicators and controls were grouped within fairly easy reach of the driver. Despite an average test-weight approaching 5,000 lb (2,268 kg), published performance test data shows the 1966 Toronado was capable of accelerating from 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) in 7.5 seconds, and through the standing 1/4 mile (~400 m) in 16.4 seconds at 93 mph (150 km/h).[1] It was also capable of a maximum speed of 135 mph (217 km/h).[2] Testers found the Toros handling, despite its noticeable front weight bias and consequent understeer, was not substantially different from other full-size American cars when driven under normal conditions. In fact, many contemporary testers felt that the Toronado was more poised and responsive than other cars, and when pushed to the limits, exhibited superior handling characteristics, although it was essentially incapable of terminal oversteer. A special option code called W-34 was available on the 1968–70 Toronado. This option included a cold air induction system for the air cleaner, a special performance camshaft and a GT transmission calibrated for quick and firm up-shifts and better torque multiplication at 5 mph (8 km/h). Dual exhaust outlets similar to the 1966–67 model years with cutouts in the bumper were also included with W-34. The standard models did have dual exhaust systems, but only a single somewhat hidden outlet running from the muffler exiting rearward on the right side. For 1970 only, the W-34 option also included special GT badges on the exterior of the car. The W-34 Toronado was capable of 0–60 mph in 7.5 seconds and the standing 1/4 mile in 15.7 seconds at 89.8 mph (144.5 km/h).[3] The Toronado sold reasonably well at introduction, with 40,963 produced for 1966. The car also gained great publicity for the division by winning several leading automotive awards, such as Motor Trends Car of the Year Award and Car Lifes Award for Engineering Excellence. It also was a third-place finisher in the European Car of the Year competition. Sales for the 1967 model, which was most notably distinguished by a slight facelift, the addition of optional disc brakes, and a slightly softer ride, dropped by nearly half, to 22,062. A stereo tape player was optional.[9] It would be 1971 before the Toro would match its first-year sales mark. In 1967, Cadillac adopted its own version of the UPP for the Cadillac Eldorado, using the Cadillac V8 engine. The Eldorado also shared the basic E-body shell with the Toronado and Riviera, but its radically different styling meant that the three cars did not look at all similar. The firmness of the suspension, and thus the quality of the ride, was gradually softened through the years as well, hinting at what Toronado eventually would become in 1971. Interestingly, a heavy-duty suspension was offered optionally on later first generation Toronados, which included the original torsion bar springs that were used on the 1966. Manufacturers specifications: Engine: 1966–67 - 425 cu in (7 L) OHV V8, 1968–70 - 455 cu in (7.5 L) OHV V8 Power: 1966–67 - 385 hp (287 kW) @ 4800 rpm, 1968–70 - 375 hp (280 kW) @ 4400 rpm, 400 (298 kW) @ 5000 rpm with option code W-34 Torque: 1966–67 – 475 ft·lb (644 N·m) @ 3200 rpm, 1968–70 – 510 ft·lb (690 N·m) @ 3000 rpm, 500 ft·lb (680 N·m) @ 3200 rpm with option code W-34 Transmission: 3-speed automatic, Turbo-Hydramatic 425 (THM-425) Final drive ratio: 1966–67 - 3.21:1, 1968–70 - 3.07:1 Wheelbase: 119 in (3,000 mm) Overall length: 1966–67 - 211 in (5,400 mm), 1968 - 211.6 in (5,370 mm), 1969–70 - 214.8 in (5,460 mm) Overall height: 52.8 in (1,340 mm) Overall width: 78.5 in (1,990 mm) Track, front/rear: 63.5 in (1,610 mm) / 63 in (1,600 mm) Weight, shipping/curb: 4,311 lb (1,955 kg)/ 4,496 lb (2,039 kg) Weight distribution, front/rear (%): 60.3/39.7
Posted on: Thu, 22 May 2014 15:41:52 +0000
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