Innovative Oldsmobile Toronado made front-wheel drive popular

Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

When Oldsmobile launched the all-new Tornado in the fall of 1965 as a 1966 model, the main pitch was that it was the first car made in North America that was front-wheel drive since the 1937 Cord.

The Toronado was Oldsmobile’s entry in the emerging personal luxury car segment, aimed at the Buick Rivera and Ford Thunderbird. The Toronado featured disappearing headlights, an unusual styling feature at the time that added to its exotic looks.

While several small cars in Europe had front-wheel drive, it was a first to see FWD on a large North American luxury car.

Oldsmobile — unofficially known as the experimental division at General Motors — was a pioneer for technological advancements for mass-produced cars in many areas: in 1940, the first fully automatic transmission; in 1949, the overhead valve V-8; and in 1962 a turbocharged engine.

When the Toronado was introduced in the fall of 1965, advertisements emphasized styling and technology.

sv1ambo, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

One ad said: “Only Toronado looks this new! Low-slung nose. Fastback fuselage. Concealed headlamps...Only Toronado rides this new! Smart setting for your solo in America's most distinctive car! Roomy, easy-to-enter interiors, flat floors carry six in solid comfort. And Toronado's luxurious, sporty seats beg you to buckle up and be gone! Only Toronado drives this new! 385-hp V-8 engine feeds power to front wheels via Turbo Hydra-Matic. Toronado pulls (rather than pushes) you through tight turns. Improves traction, increases road stability. And vibration is almost obsolete!”

Another ad said: “Ho-hum driving is out. Toronado’s in! Sleek projectile shape is in. Warmed-over style is out. Road-hugging front wheel drive, definitely in. Flat floors, full-view side windows, concealed headlamps, draft-free ventilation system, full-size room for six are all in. 425-cube Toronado Rocket V-8 is way out — front!”

The luxurious, stylish and innovative Toronado was very well received in the media.

Motor Trend magazine named the Toronado Car of the Year, saying: “Never in the 14-year history of this award has the choice been so obvious and unanimous. The Toronado is symbolic of a resurgence of imaginative engineering and tasteful styling in the U.S. auto industry.”

The Toronado made the cover of Car Life in November 1965 and was awarded the magazine’s Engineering Excellence award. Car Life said: “The Oldsmobile Toronado may well become the most significant car of the decade.”

In the annual Car and Driver magazine Readers’ Choice winners, the Toronado was named named the Best Luxury and Personal Car, “beating out such hallowed names as the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow and the Mercedes-Benz 600.” As well, the Toronado beat out the other 14 category winners to capture the overall best car. “Its selection as the Best All-Around Car is even more exciting, because it indicates that C/D readers realize the potential for the practical application of front-wheel drive in automobiles of all types. The Toronado is a pioneer in many senses.”

In its first year almost 41,000 Toronados were sold. In its second year sales fell to 22,000 units. But the Toronado was never intended to be a volume seller. Its impact was not in sales numbers, but on making the industry — and the public — aware of the benefits and practicality of FWD.

The Toronado grew in size during the 1970s to 220 inch long, and styling became more like a traditional luxury car. The Toronado was downsized starting in 1979, to 204 inches, and then in 1986 was was even smaller, shrinking to 187.5 inches in length. The final year was 1992.

Alexander Migl, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

After the Toronado, the next domestic automaker to offer a FWD vehicle was Cadillac, when it introduced the Eldorado in the fall of 1966 as a 1967 model. During the next few years, all major North American automakers offered FWD models, and by the 1990s FWD became commonplace.