60K Miles: 1985 Oldsmobile Toronado

General Motors’ luxury-coupe triumvirate of the Buick Riviera, Cadillac Eldorado, and Oldsmobile Toronado was arguably, in terms of sales, styling, and market appeal, at its apex from 1979-85. While most of us love the 1960s examples of all those cars (’63 Riviera owner right here, looking for a ’66 Toronado), sales were consistently high for this entire generation, and although the Toronado was the least popular of the three, it still sold 42,185 units in 1985, the final year of this very successful bodystyle. Barn Finds reader Jack M. found this low-mileage 1985 model here on craigslist in Lyndonville, Vermont. It had been stored for over a decade before the current owner purchased it, and with just over 60,000 miles on the clock, it’s priced at a very reasonable $5,995.

All Toronados were luxurious, and this Toronado Brougham has the optional Claret Custom Leather Trim and the sporty leather-wrapped steering wheel. The seller says that it has “power everything” (even the antenna), and indeed the Toronado came standard with most of the luxury features a buyer would want: power steering and brakes, power windows, power locks, power driver’s seat, cruise control, and air conditioning. The leather seating surfaces appear to be in fairly nice condition, but there may be some issues right in front of the armrest.

Unfortunately, the seller hasn’t included any pictures of the engine compartment, but in this final year of the V8-powered Toronado, the Oldsmobile 307 with an electronic Quadrajet was standard equipment, as was a TH-325-4L four-speed automatic transmission. Four-wheel disc brakes were standard, as was an automatic level control for the rear, which used an electric air compressor to keep the car level when it was loaded. Some Toronado owners today unhook the system and simply use air shocks, but apparently parts are still available (or a similar system can be rigged to work).

Unfortunately, the craigslist ad doesn’t get into many details about the car’s overall health aside from saying that it is in excellent condition, stays covered in the garage, and is never driven in the rain. What we can tell from pictures is that the Toronado looks nice in black (with red pinstripes) and no vinyl roof, which is probably a good thing considering what can be hiding under one. As with most cars on craigslist, it’s really not something you’d buy sight unseen, but if you’re somewhere close by and can check it out in person, the price seems right. And while some consider the Toronado’s Riviera and Eldorado brothers to be more distinctively styled, the Oldsmobile shares their crisp styling that still looks great.