Mel Rodier

Hi All!

I'm new here, I made my first post yesterday on the Toronado forum.
I was wondering if you guys could tell me anything about the Rocket 350 engine, because the Toro I'm looking at has one. Are they good engines? Do they break down often or need a lot of repairs, and are they difficult to work on? I know the 307 is notorious for being difficult to work on. How easy is it to find parts for this engine these days? Do they have troubles with the Carburetors, or is it particularly difficult to start in cold weather? From what I've been able to gather based off my research, the engine seems to be pretty solid and reliable, but I'd love to hear more opinions or tips and tricks for owning one!

The car in question is a 1980 Toronado. Engine has 40,884 miles on it. I'd love to hear any opinions on that car as well! Here's a link to my other post in the Toro forum if you wanted to grab a look at it. There are some pictures of the engine on there! https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...stions-152088/

Any info you can give me would be very helpful!

Edit: My mechanic told me that the engine in the 80 Toronado was known to have issues. Is this true? I don't think the engine sticker says anywhere on it that it's a 350, so it's possible he thought it was a 307 or the 350 diesel.

JohnnyBs68S

WELCOME!
The weakest link in any Olds V8 is the nylon cam sprocket that should be replaced around 100K miles. I got 112K miles on my 350 before the timing got jittery enough to need a timing set replacement. At 120K now, still stock (except for distributor, water pumps, timing set, alternator replacements, heads and intake have never been off) it still runs strong and no smoke at all. I do believe the valve springs are getting weak, things start to rattle a lot above 4000 RPM (amazingly still has pull up to 5500 even w/ a 2 bbl). I suspect that some of the valve springs lost some strength during the nearly 10 years it sat waiting on a rear end rebuild between ~1996 and 2006. I do know the carb could use a proper rebuild, I believe I've got air leaks around the throttle shaft, but with a EFI in the plans when I rebuild it, I'll suffer with what I have. I'd say that with 41K on yours, you've got a lot of life left in it. Get it running and enjoy it.

Mel Rodier

Thanks for your response!

The car actually already runs great! I was asking about the engine because I wanted to know about any general issues these engines had, if any. Like I said, my mechanic told me that the engines in the '80 toro were known to have a lot of problems, and I'm basically trying to either confirm or deny that claim (hopefully deny!). I haven't actually bought the car yet though, I wanted to make sure that the 350 is a reliable engine before I make my decision.

Is all that stuff that was replaced on your engine replaced part of regular routine maintenance needed as the car ages, or was it replaced because there were faults in the engine? I'm still a bit of a novice when it comes to all this haha.

Thanks again for sharing

olds 307 and 403

A very reliable motor, the 76 and older especially. As said, the nylon timing gear is a crap shoot. I pulled a 76 Olds 350 that showed 153,000 miles on the car. No cracks in the nylon, just slop. Another unknown mileage 76 350, the same thing. Others are not so lucky. The gaskets at minimum should be done, do the timing chain at that time. We had non CCC Olds 307's in Canada, very reliable. They had minor issues and were even First Nations reserve cars, that meant no oil changes and flat out abuse. GM's crude electronic's were to blame for the difficulties to work on. Early OBD1 systems, not just GM's, were a royal pain to work on in shops. They didn't throw codes as often as you liked and it meant throwing on parts after following the flow charts and hope you were right. Some early sensors had intermittent issues that were hard to test. Later OBD1 cars allowed on the fly testing.

Mel Rodier

How much do you suppose it would cost to fix that timing gear if it's an issue on my car, and how difficult is it to find a replacement one?

Thanks for your response!

olds 307 and 403

Easiest out of the car, due to the bottom of the cover sealing against the pan. The timing set is easy to find, fits the Olds 260 through 455. Felpro offers a very affordable conversion gasket set CS81712 and add your timing set of choice. Summit has an affordable, Made in the US set.
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/s...ake/oldsmobile

rocketraider

While the 1980 engine is no powerhouse, and suffers from webbed main bearing supports in an effort to reduce weight, an Olds 350 is a very good engine if it's maintained properly and not abused by ignorant owners.

I have a 1974 engine in a 78 Custom Cruiser wagon that has well over 300k miles on it. I replaced its timing set as a matter of prudence when I put it in the car (108k on engine at that time). It uses no oil and runs quietly and smoothly.

Suggest purchase of the 1980 factory service manuals. Even an older 2020 mechanic was probably in diapers or kindergarten when your Toro was built. The manuals will help both of you understand the car and how to service it.

www.toronado.org

rocketraider

DO NOT GET HUNG UP ON THE TIMING SET.

At 41k miles it should not be an issue. Engine has to come out of a Toronado to do that job so do it when the issue arises.

oldcutlass

The engine itself is very reliable even compared to its older counterparts. Its the electrical system, the miles of vacuum hoses, sensors, and vacuum switches that make it more complicated to troubleshoot compared to the earlier engines. The timing chain set can easily be replaced with the engine in the car and the parts are readily available at any parts store. As most have said the engine it self is the least of your worries and if properly maintained will outlast the car.

olds 307 and 403

Agreed, he may never have to touch it the life of the car. Olds V8's are non interference engines, even if the gear skips, it won't have catastrophic failure unlike many modern motors. Buy it, there have been a few of these late 70's through mid 80's Tornadoes for sale, for cheap here as well.

rocketraider

Not in any 66-85 Toronado I've ever seen.

Sugar Bear

An '80 Olds 350 is not a powerhouse as stated; however, it is probably one of the best engines made in '80 by any major US manufacturer. I'd like to hear the mechanics SPECIFIC concerns or issue with this motor.

Good luck and enjoy your car!!!

Mel Rodier

I don't think he ever gave any specifics actually. My guess is that he probably got it confused with a different engine, as everyone else I've talked to has said it's a good engine.

Mel Rodier

I did talk to a second mechanic today who does more work with older cars, and he said that the engine was good, but that the transmissions on these cars weren't very good or didn't hold up well over time. Have any of you had issues with your transmission over the years?

OLDSter Ralph

I think you need to choose a"mechanic" carefully. The first one sounded less than knowledgeable. Look for one that is older and experienced with GM, at the very least.
....Just my two cents worth.

Mel Rodier

Actually, My mechanic is very knowledgeable and good at what he does. He's in his late 50's or early 60's and grew up around cars and inherited the family garage from his dad. My family has been going to him for decades, and actually I even worked for him one summer! He's a great guy and I generally trust him, I just think he made a bad call on this one, or maybe you're right and he doesn't know much about old GMs. It certainly didn't help that he had to judge the car based on pictures alone as it's an hour out from him.

I did locate a second mechanic near me who's more knowledgeable with older cars, so I think if it needs any engine work done, I'll probably take it to him instead.

I appreciate your input though

Fun71

Your first mechanic may not have been referring to the engine itself but to the overall system as noted below. On that era car, one bad vacuum hose could cause all sorts of issues that would involve lots of troubleshooting (meaning the mechanic's time) to identify and resolve. Not that the parts are expensive or hard to find, it just takes some experience to effectively identify the root cause of the issue.