This is a long, low, tough, cool car. The 1967 Oldsmobile Toronado seen here is in Great Falls, Montana where it’s been all its life. It’s listed on eBay with a current bid price of around $350 and no reserve! That seems like a ridiculously low price for such a decent, original car. But, there are a couple of issues with it, rust not being one of them since it’s from salt-less Montana.
As much as I like the looks of the full wheel covers, these rims are super cool, in my opinion. I used to lust over these Toronados as a kid, especially when they didn’t have the full wheel covers on. This car was owned by a farmer in Montana and apparently they lived on a gravel road, which isn’t too surprising. You can see that the body, overall, looks great other than a couple of spots, mainly from gravel wearing off the paint. But, there is a small dent in the RR quarter panel and some bondo on the RF fender.
This whole car design is great, especially the front end and grille treatment; again, in my opinion. It’s elegant, mean, chic, shark-like, honest, clean, tough, and cool all at once, sort of like Chuck Norris.. Of course, this one is like Chuck Norris with a hairpiece with that vinyl top. But, I’m not one to dislike a car because it has a vinyl top.
The interior is also honest and clean. This car hasn’t been restored so what’chu see is what’chu get! Wait, I said Chuck Norris, not Flip Wilson. I usually prefer brocade-like fabric seats over leather and that’s what this Montana car has. The dash and especially the speedometer is a work of art, which isn’t surprising on this car. You’ll need a couple of parts, like a door pull on the driver’s side door, but you should be able to track one of those down.
Olds made 21,790 Toronados in 1967 and they came with a 425 cubic inch Rocket V8 with 375 hp and a bone-crushing 475 ft-lb of torque! Chuck would be proud. This is a powerful beast, there is no question about it. Firestone designed a special tire for the Toronado called the “TFD (Toronado-Front-Drive) tire”, with a hefty sidewall and an elegantly-thin white wall. There are a couple of glitches with this one in that there is no title (it can’t be as hard to get one for this than, say, for a battery-powered minibike..) and also there are no keys! The trunk hasn’t been opened in who knows how long, there could be anything in there, or nothing. The seller is hoping that the other two original wheel covers are in there. I really like Toronados, they’re on my master wish list and have been for too long now. Are there any other fans of these tough, cool front-drive cars out there?
I love this- such brutal style!
They don’t use salt in Montana?
Ha! Their roads are flavorless.. I meant, on the roads, of course. Ha, don’t use salt in Montana.. that’s good stuff.
No we never have. It’s just snow, we use sand and just slow down and mind our P’s and Q’s. Besides it all just blows into North Dakota anyway.
Hi Rob. I second the statement on everything blowing into North Dakota. I’ve teased Howard about finding dirt and old car parts from Montana on his doorstep in Milwaukee. Montana DOES get wind…
We just throw a little gravel and occasionally some sand at the major intersections and let Mother Nature take care of the rest.
My mother had a 1969, the second year of the grotesque front grille/bumper. There was also a crease along the top of the rear fender to delineate the beltline and make a vinyl top less awkward. The smooth transition of the C-pillar was ruined by the arbitrary application of the vinyl tops like this one. Still, it’s an elegant car and it was a blast to drive. Cruising through a drive in on a warm summer night with the windows down, listening to the Chris Craft rumble of the exhausts is an automotive experience that everyone should have.
Going to Montana soon.. Gonna be a dental floss tycoon.
By yourself, you wouldn’t need no boss.
These guys make great videos
I’m digging the old bicentennial license plates.
Loved doing donuts with these in the winter time.
Having the front end swing around instead of the rear was a very weird feeling
My father and I owned 35-40 of the in the late 70’s thru the early 90’s. Till a neighbor complained. They were great cars but heavy. We always thought they would be as valuable as Corvettes one day……not! I’m still digging out and finding parts that I’ve had boxed since then. Have a grille for a ’67 right now on ebay. This one actually looks quite nice.
I’ve had many toronados, truly some of gm’s best engineering. We can differ on which year had the best design, but the improved brakes and suspension that arrived in ’70 made for a great driving car…400hp GT with buckets and floor shift is really fun!
This is the Toronado I prefer. Perfect.
one more…
Update: the eBay auction ended because this car was no longer available.