So I saw this car on Facebook marketplace recently and the seller states it may be a w34 I'm skeptical because it doesn't seem to have the air cleaner but I'd like a second opinion. Cheers!




Transmission

Engine bay codes

Wondering if someone just slapped a badge on it.

 

Nope. It would have this trans ID tag.

 

It is also missing everything else under the hood specific to a W34. Yes, this includes the air cleaner and cold air ducting, but also the thermal switch in the radiator, and the special washer bottle mounted further back on the wheel well. But as said above, the OJ trans tag is the definitive sign that no, it is not a W34.

 

Still gotta love a 68 Tornado. I hope he has the rest of the front end

Didn't the W34 Tornado also have a hot cam in it? I seem to recall that is the cam grind I used in the engine that was in my 71 98.

 

Yes, the W34 had a bigger cam than the regular Toro. I believe the W34 cam had the same specs as the 68 HO.

 

After zooming in on the pic in the first post, it looks like someone put a 70 Toronado W34 (GT) hood on the car. This might be why the owner thought it could be a W34. The 68 Toronado did not have a "Toronado" emblem on the hood, and the W34 was not called a "GT" until 1970.

 

Actually the 68 H/O with A/C, 69 H/O, W34 and W33 cars, and 1970 442s with A/T (including W30s) all used the 285/287 cam. The 68 H/O used the 308/308 cam for non-A/C cars

 

Yea, I forgot it was 68 HO with A/C.

 

joe didn't that also include the 70 gt?

 

That's why I said W34 and W33 cars.

 

had to go back and reread that.

 

Punctuation is your friend. If I had meant only the 1969 H/O, 69 W34, and 69 W33, the list would have used a semicolon before the 1969 H/O and after the W33 with commas in between.

 

To confirm, all 69 H/Os got the 68 H/O A/C configured engine? C heads, 285/287 cam?

Also, was there any 67 Toronado W package? It seems like the 68 Toro was a much meaner animal than the 67. I prefer the looks of the 67, but might have to think about a 68 some day for the engine's sake.

 

All 1969 H/Os got the 285/287 cam but D heads. The only engine offered in the 1967 Toro was the 385 HP version of the 425.

 

Thanks. Now I know why our guy likes the W-34 so much. Quite the improvement. I'd like to have seen the two 68 H/O configs race the 69.

 

Personal opinion. Unless you're heading for the racetrack or drag strip, I'd say you should stick with your preference for the looks of 1967 (maybe 1966) Toro. Between the opening of the secondary barrels of the Quadrajet, the variable pitch torque converter, and down-shifting of the TH-425, there's plenty of reasonable performance in those first 2 years, making them a pleasure to drive including occasionally putting the hammer down.

 

I don't know much about the Toronados. What was the purpose of that switch in the radiator?

Rodney

 

It was a switch pitch torque converter in front of the transmission. It gives more mechanical advantage during acceleration. Here's a thread.

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...verter-147055/

 

I think Rodney was refering to the switch in the radiator in the pic in post #3. The 68 W34 used that switch to open the vacuum controlled headlight doors if the motor got to around 220 degrees to get more air across the radiator.

 

Right you are.