AW: Remembering Oldsmobile (10 year anniversary)

[kevm14]

http://www.autoweek.com/article/2014043 ... dailydrive

This is great. Makes me want to find an Aurora (first gen, or a V8 2nd gen). I assume the 4.0 Northstar was just as bad as the 4.6...

There are a LOT of embedded gems in this article so be sure to click on some. Too many to put in a single thread. But just one example that lead me on a journey was the Jetway Airport Bus which then lead me to the "10 Worst Cars Ever Tested" by British EVO magazine (fun surprise: the Viggen makes the cut).

See also: history of the Toronado. A really great article, well researched. http://ateupwithmotor.com/model-histori ... /view-all/

[kevm14]

Did not know this!

The V6 engine originally intended for Oldsmobile’s stillborn FWD F-85 was a clean-sheet, 60-degree design, developed by motor engineer Gilbert Burrell; it was not related to the 90-degree Buick Fireball V6. Retired Olds engineer Bill Thomas says Oldsmobile wanted to use the 60-degree V6 as the base powerplant in the 1964 F-85, but lost out to the cheaper Buick engine. According to engineer Jim Dawson, the Olds V6′s design later passed to Chevrolet, where it became the basis of the corporate 60-degree V6 family, launched in 1980. The first-generation 60-degree V6 was cast iron, but the second-generation 173 cu. in. (2,838 cc) version, seen here in a 1988 or 1989 Buick Regal, had aluminum heads and 125 net horsepower (93 kW).

The 60° 2.8L was derived from an unused Olds design dating back to the early 60s!!

[kevm14]

The GMC Motorhome history, as it relates to the Toronado, from the same folks that brought us the original article linked in the first post.

http://ateupwithmotor.com/model-histori ... /view-all/

Unexpectedly, this article includes a lot of info on some 70s safety technology: rear ABS and dual airbags.

Also, check out the motorized T-tops that didn't quite make production. Very neat.

I should also note that the unitized powertrain design (and THM-425 trans, which had a variable pitch torque converter initially) turned out to be quite solid in the reliability department. And on the very first try, they pretty much solved the torque steer issue, which is more than can be said about a significant number of FWD cars in the decades that would follow.

[Bob]

It's crazy that a 4 liter V8 was required to propel a midsize sedan to 60 in 8.5 seconds. I bet it sounded cool though.

[kevm14]

It was 4000lbs. The 4th gen Maxima was faster on less hp and cubes but was just 3000lbs.