1970 Oldsmobile Toronado

The Oldsmobile Rocket V-8 engine of 1949, along with the Cadillac V8, was the first post-war Overhead Valve V-8 engine produced by General Motors. The Olds V8 would be part of the family for decades and holds the distinction of being many 'firsts' and 'lasts' in the automotive industry, including being the first mass-produced OHV V8.

The history of the Oldsmobile company dates back to the early 1900s, yet it is fair to say that at no time in its history, since the introduction of the Curved Dash, did the company make such an impact as it did with the introduction of the Rocket V-8 engine on September 15th of 1948. In 1966, Oldsmobile made another profound impact on the automotive marketplace with the introduction of a personal luxury car called the Toronado, becoming the first U.S.-produced front-wheel-drive automobile since the demise of the Cord in 1937.

Oldsmobile's attempt at building a front-wheel-drive car dates to the late 1950s and spearheaded by engineer John Beltz. It was initially envisioned for the smaller F-85 line, however, the development costs eventually led towards a larger, more expensive car. Engineer F. J. Hooven of the Ford Motor Company, had patented a similar FWD layout, and Ford had considered the technology to be used for the 1961 Thunderbird.

The interior featured a completely flat floor, thanks to the Toronado's UPP. The fastback styling, however, caused the rear seats to feel rather cramped.

The 1970 Oldsmobile Toronado 2-door Coupe remained the company's top-of-the-line model. Power was from the company's largest V8 engine, a 455 cubic-inch unit with five main bearings, hydraulic valve lifters, a Rochester four-barrel carburetor, and delivering 375 horsepower at 4,600 RPM. It was backed by a heavy-duty three-speed Turbo-Hydra-Matic transmission called the TH425 in FWD form. It used a torque converter that was separated from its planetary gearset, with the torque converter operating the gearset through a 2-inch wide silent chain-drive call Hy-Vo, resting on two 7.5-inch sprockets. This Hy-Vo chain drive system was developed by GM's Hydra-Matic Division and Morse Chain Division of Borg-Warner. Many of the components were shared with the conventional TH400, albeit with the reversed rotational direction of the transmission gears. Using the automatic eliminated the need for a workable manual-shift linkage.

Standard equipment included power brakes, power steering, foam-padded front seat, Deluxe steering wheel, and electric clock. The standard tire size was J78-15. Firestone had initially designed an 8.85 x 15-inch tire specifically for the Toronado called the TFD (Toronado-Front-Drive). Since the front wheels were now responsible for handling the steering, power, weight of the engine, and the bulk of the braking, these tires had a stiffer sidewall than normal, along with a unique tread and thin white pin-stripe.

The base Toronado had a factory price of $5,025 and the Custom Coupe listed for $5,215. Sales reached 2,351 for the base Coupe and 23,082 for the Custom Coupe. The GT option for 1970 was RPO (Regular Production Option) W34, which added the Rocket 455 CID V8 engine with 400 horsepower, performance cam, and larger intake valves. The special Turbo Hydra-Matic 425 automatic transmission was also included along with a higher stall speed torque converter. Styling included GT Badges on the hood located near the 'Toronado' emblem and the rear bumper cut-outs for the Standard Dual Exhaust System. The GT package was available with all standard and option exterior colors, and a few were given special paint. 5,341 examples of the 1970 Olds Toronado received the GT package.

By Daniel Vaughan | Aug 2020