To the untrained eye, a look at the 1968 Oldsmobile Toronado wouldn’t generate much interest, for it looks just like any other land yacht of the 1960’s. However there are muscle car fans that know what makes this car unique and therefore have an appreciation for it. Unlike the Cadillac’s and Lincoln’s of the time, the Toronado was the first full-size American car to feature front wheel drive since the late 1930’s Cord. To read more about this remarkable automobile, hit the jump.

Although the Toronado was introduced for the 1966 model year, it had been in the developmental phase for over 7 years prior. Because this was a such a heavy car, General Motors wanted to ensure that any front wheel drive setup would not only be powerful enough, but also durable enough to handle a car as heavy as the Toronado. The car featured three-speed heavy-duty split transmission that utilized a Hy-Vo silent chain drive to connect the torque converter to the gear set. In order to make everything fit under the hood of the Toronado, the intake manifold was specially engineered with a shorter height. Remarkably, the Toronado’s weight distribution came in at 54% front and 46% rear, not too bad for a 4,400 pound car. Powering the 1966 Toronado was a 425 cubic inch V8 that pushed 385 horsepower, giving the car some instant street credibility. The car also featured aggressive styling in the form of jutting fenders, hide-away headlights and a fastback rear window.

The 1968 Toronado was a more polished version of its 1966 brother as it featured less prominent front fenders and a split grill that was traditional of many Oldsmobile’s. Changes under the hood also came in 1968 as the 425 Rocket V8 was stroked to 455 cubic inches and came stock with 375 horses, 400 being available if the right options were selected. Now many of you will wonder why Oldsmobile would take an engine that was making 385 horsepower and drop it 10 horses to 375. The answer lies in the torque numbers. By giving an engine more stroke, the low end torque goes up and with the 455 making 510 pound feet as opposed to the 475 lb feet made by the 425, the 4,400 pound land barge could accelerate faster.

The car was fairly popular with the wealthy and Oldsmobile turned several Toronado’s into limousines. Once again this is Big_Blocker signing off.