Car Spot: 1976 Oldsmobile Toronado

It’s like driving from your living room

If you were looking for a luxury car, the mid-70s had lots to choose from. With just about every option available, you could fit comfortably into a Chrysler New Yorker and Cordoba, Lincoln Continental Mark V, Ford Thunderbird, Cadillac Eldorado, Buick Riviera, or this week’s spot, the Riviera’s twin, Oldsmobile Toronado.

Introduced in 1966 and manufactured through 1992, it lasted four generations, each one with more luxury than the one preceding it. Noted for its transaxle version of GM’s Turbo-Hydramatic transmission, it was the first U.S.-produced front-wheel drive automobile since the Cord 810/812 in 1937. It was a bold call for GM, as going with front-wheel drive on its cars was one of the reasons Cord went bankrupt. However, GM made it work, and the move is credited with giving the front-drive movement a kick-start.

This car was massive with a wheelbase of 119 inches and overall length of just over 214 inches tipping the scales at just under 5,000 pounds. It was considered a mid-sized car at the time. A mid-size now is around 3,400 pounds while the weight of a full-size SUV now would put it in the same league as the Tornado.

To move that behemoth down the road under the hood is Oldsmobile’s 455-cubic-inch V-8, and even though there were lots of emissions devices on them by 1976, they still had plenty of torque, despite the deceptively low rating of 215 horsepower. According to ProfessCars, it was capable of accelerating from 0 to 60 mph in 10.7 seconds and could do the quarter mile in 17.9 seconds. Not too bad for a land yacht. OK, now for the not-so-fun side. MPG basically sucked. The fuel in the 26-gallon tank disappeared quickly, as drivers could expect between 8 and 10 miles per gallon.

RELATED Spot: The Toronado’s competition, the Lincoln Continental Mark V

The inside was the definition of luxury. Since this is the Brougham, the seats came covered with velour, cut-pile carpeting, and door-mounted courtesy lights. Also included was GMs Turbo-Hydramatic transmission, variable-ratio power steering, power front disc brakes along with an electric clock, and deluxe wheel covers. Most Toronados were sold loaded with extra-cost options including air conditioning, AM/FM stereo with 8-track tape player, power trunk release, vinyl roof, tilt and telescopic steering wheel, cruise control, power windows, power door locks, power windows, and six-way power seats.

This year’s Brougham sold well. While the Toronado Custom was almost $300 cheaper at $6891 ($39,235.83 today), only 2555 units were produced. Meanwhile, the $7137 ($40,636.50) Brougham saw the bulk of production with 21,749 sold. Think about that last number because the average price of a new car now is 50 grand. I’m well aware of that currently shopping for one.

The ’76 Oldsmobile brochure had this to say about it: “… its distinctive combination of roadability and luxury has earned it a singular reputation among personal luxury cars … Toronado. Proud classic among luxury cars. A rare experience on the road. Can we build one for you?” Well, no, but if I were to buy one, it would cost around 10 grand.

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my latest find. I have plenty of others on our site, so go ahead and peruse to your heart’s content. Come back next Sunday for another one of my spots, along with some of its history. Have a great week.