1966 Toronado Misc Questions

[awalgrunt6]

Hi i just bought a 66 toronado and i have a couple questions

1. the radio is missing, what was it and can i get another

2. it came with electric headlight motors (uninstalled) how do i install them.

3. the wiring harness was replaced but its not completed. i need a diagram

4. i was thinking of replacing the engine gaskets and such. good i dea or no.

5. what coolant do i need?

6. what oil should i use?

thank you very much. im 16 and need a few pointers.

[Doc Hubler]

Wow, seems like you're essentially talking total restoration. Don't know if you know what you're in for. The electrical headlights, if you have such units, are replacements. Headlights were vacuum operated units originally.

If you are ok with an AM radio, I have one for that car (actually out of a 67). You could look for and obtain a Wonderbar AM/FM radio which was optional. SHould be hooked into rear seat speaker then.

Buy a factory service manual for 1966 Oldsmobile. It includes a special section for Toronado, although many items common to other 66 Olds models will be found in the main section (you'll find there isn't all that much shared with the other Olds family member of cars).

The only reason I can think of for complete replacement of the wiring harness is a likely big accident or fire with the electrical system. These are complex harnesses to rebuild. Better to rebuild the parts that tend to wear out, for example, if you have electric windows, those almost always have broken wiring harnesses due to the door action breaking the insulation on the wires and literally breaking the wires themselves or causing shorts to occur.

There are several service items you should do if you're replacing engine gaskets. I think you must believe there are pretty big problems to want to do that. Frankly, the best is to get the engine and tranny out of the car and get them serviced. Repair and replace parts as necessary. ONe of the most common, for an engine that has never been serviced, is replacing the old nylong timing gear and chain.

You're 16 which means you probably have a lot of go get 'em! On the other hand, you need a lot of money to properly restore a Gen I Toronado. Do the work in pieces and make a list of the most important and critical items. Don't tear into everything at one time. It will sit in pieces until you abandon the project, more than likely. Good luck!

[awalgrunt6]

Thank you very much for responding. And the only other question i have is about the lights. Is there a guide to installing the electric motors? I have the original vaccum ones as well

[Otto Skorzeny]

OIL:

Does the engine run? If so I wouldn't start tearing it apart. Put in new valve cover gaskets if they're leaking and possibly the oil pan gasket if it has a bad leak. Other than that, I would leave things alone unless there is a major problem somewhere.

How many miles are on this engine? I use 15w-40 in my '66 Toronado with 140k miles. If your engine has very high mileage, say 200k or more, or seems to have a lot of leaks or wear, go with a heavier viscosity oil such as 20w-50.

COOLANT:

First, flush the engine thoroughly. By that I mean drain all the coolant out and refill it with tap water. Run the engine with the heater on full blast while leaving the radiator petcock open and the cap off. Simultaneously keep a garden hose filling the radiator as it drains.

When all the fluid coming out of the petcock is clear water, shut off the engine and let everything completely drain out.

Refill the system with a 50/50 mix of Ethylene Glycol (green) antifreeze and water. Be sure and purchase the undiluted antifreeze, not the pre-mixed kind. I would recommend purchasing distilled water in gallon jugs to refill the system. This is because some areas have tap water with high mineral content which can cause internal corrosion. It's about 99 cents a gallon at the store.

The total cooling system capacity is 17.5 quarts w/o air conditioning and 18 quarts with a/c. That means you need to buy 3 gallons of anti freeze and 3 gallons of distilled water. You'll have 3 quarts of each left over that you can use later on to top up the system or whatever.

SHOP MANUAL:

The Oldsmobile Chassis Manual can usually be found on ebay. I recommend the hard copy rather than a CD. It's much more practical to have a book in front of you while you're working on a car than a computer.

Here are several. Some dope is asking over $100 for a copy while another has a buy it now price of $29. Another is listed for $10 with no bids.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=OL ... l&_sacat=0

[762]

the 1966 Oldsmobile Chassis Service Manual can be found here (for free)
http://oldcarmanualproject.com/manuals/ ... index.html

Also, the 1966 FISHER BODY SERVICE MANUAL
http://www.oldcarmanualproject.com/manu ... Manual.pdf

[bcroe]

Hi i just bought a 66 toronado and i have a couple questions
1. the radio is missing, what was it and can i get another
2. it came with electric headlight motors (uninstalled) how do i install them.
3. the wiring harness was replaced but its not completed. i need a diagram
4. i was thinking of replacing the engine gaskets and such. good i dea or no.
5. what coolant do i need?
6. what oil should i use?
thank you very much. im 16 and need a few pointers.

The very first thing to worry about is the brakes. That car was built with single circuit
brakes, so if ANYTHING fails you could lose all braking. If it has been sitting a while,
you might need to do what I am doing to my E car right now. Replace any rusty brake
lines; use stainless or the new nickel-copper alloy (much easier to work) so it won't
need to be done again. Replace all the wheel cylinders and hoses. If there is doubt
about the master cylinder, replace it too. If you really want to do it right, consider
an upgrade to dual master cylinder and front disk brakes. Most of the conversion
parts can be taken off a 70s Toro.

If the tires are old, get new ones. Check if your original timing chain has been
upgraded; if not, it could fail at any time and damage the engine. If the trans has
never been freshened, it should be out for all new "soft" parts, before a failure can
do serious damage. Any original hoses need replacement, and check the condition
of the gas tank. good luck, Bruce Roe

[brian66toro]

Congratulations for getting yourself such a great car at a young age.

Whatever you do, proceed carefully, and by all means take the advice on getting a shop manual and never hesitate to ask questions on the message board.

Join the club too and a local region. You will find that club members really like to assist a younger member and point him in the right direction.

Good luck to you!!

Brian