I am a 70s child so these videos bring back a lot of fond memories for me. I am sure that many of your GenX viewers/subscribers feel the same way. Thank you Adam for putting in all the time and effort to share your passion with us!
My first car was a used '69, dark green with white interior. I recall during Nebraska winters I would casually drive up icy, snow-packed hills, with stuck cars and trucks all over the place. People would look with amazement at how it could go through snow with that 455 sitting over the drive wheels.
"snow packed hills"? Leavenworth around 50th-60th(???) in Omaha? I took that plunge ONCE when it was ice covered in my 63 Corvette Roadster (my everyday driver in the late 70s).
Yes I was going to write this but first looked through comments to see if anybody beat me to it. I would gladly buy an Opel Gt but every one I see for sale is in horrible condition. Many have wonderful new paint but the interiors are ratty, the frame metalwork is corroded, etc.
i have one in orange and the back panel is black originally the system to rotate the lights is like when opening the hood in BMW´s 2002 from the 70´s . i used to love the interior design ,allthough the steering wheel could be a litle smaller
Several comments. I actually prefer the styling of the '68-69 Toronado's to the original 1966. The '69 Headlamps grille covers would always dependably open during the snowy great lakes winters typical of that era. Finally, with the disc brakes and the 455 the '69 Toronado was a superb highway cruiser. In '72, I had the opportunity to do a wintertime drive of my father's '69 Toronado from Traverse City, to Detroit/Windsor, then across a snowy Canada, to Montreal, for a skiing trip with our destination in Stowe, Vermont. The '69 also handled the snowy roads of Vermont's route 100 amazingly well. That '69 made wintertime travel speedy, safe, and effortless....and that drive and that subsequent ski trip were both amazing lifetime memories for me. Definitely the '69 Toronado was one of my truly great car experiences. BTW the manually operated rotating covered headlights of my later purchased, and much loved, 1970 1.9 liter OPEL GT always opened no matter the weather, encrusting ice storms never prevented the Opel GT headlights from opening. Adam, you have a great channel. Cheers.
I had a 1967 Thunderbird. This is the best arrangement, solidly mounted headlights that stay properly aimed, protected by metal covers when not in use.
my dentist had one of those with the suicide doors- he hated the car and put a brick on the accelerator and burned the thing to the ground. he couldn't prevail in a lemon-law case so he took the mr. mayhem approach....
@@tommurphy4307 sad. Yeah mine was a fordor landau. They were complex, and had about a mile of vacuum line, but a cool car from the Jet Age for all of that.
My wifes 89 Accord had pop up headlights. While that is not as cool looking as the 60s and 70s cars with hidden headlights it still gave the car a more aerodynamic look. Wish I still had that car as it was super reliable. The tin worm ate it up.
My dad had a 66 Riviera he bought new and I was lucky to drive later in the mid 70's. I can still hear the distinctive sound of those headlights in my head. They never had a single issue in the 20 years we had that car. I kind of think the 70 Toronado with the non-hidden headlights was pretty nice too.
I think the '68 Toronado was the best looking Toronado ever. I never cared for the sharp front end on the earlier models and on the '69 the slopes of the rear window and trunk lid differed more than they did on the '68 making for a more creased look. The honeycomb grille also looked better. The concept of rotating the grille out of the way rather than popping up or rotating the headlights themselves is a much better engineering solution. Moving power cables is never a good idea and with a moving headlight, there is a good chance of misaligned beams over time.
That’s actually beautiful. The only other car I can think of with well finished hidden headlights when activated was the 81 Imperial with the chrome bezel and rectangular lights while the Mark VI still had ROUND headlights. Someone else mentioned the 65 Riviera clamshell headlights those are beautiful also. Awesome video!
although this vid is about hidden headlights, I have to say that ordering a Toro with buckets and console, while cool in every other period car, was a mistake as it covered up the best feature, that flat floor. Best option was the Strato-bench and column shift, so that the flat floor really made itself known and your SO could snuggle up
The Opel GT was another unusual, but effective design for hidden headlights. Manually operation via “pistol grip” lever made these a somewhat unique process, with both headlights flipping L to R in unison. Not dependent on electricity or hydraulic action, these were fairly dependable until the gears attached to the headlight bezel wore out.
Those are cable and lever operated. No gears, but a multi-layered set of metal discs which allowed some deflection in the assembly. You do have to keep the three 8mm bolts tight and keep an eye on the condition of the flexible wires in the middle of the pivot. Over the years, the wire insulation hardens and cracks. I owned three and am familiar with them.
The 1930's Cords were also beautiful and had hidden headlamps. Albeit they were manually hand cranked and there was one crank for each headlight. The crank for the right headlight was on the right lower side of the dashboard. In other words, it was very convenient to have a passenger sitting on the right side of the vehicle asking them politely to crank up the right headlamp. 😂 Also, they were front-wheel drive, long before the Toronado.
When I was a kid in the late 60s sometime I don't recall the exact year my family rode from Oklahoma City to Chicago in a late 60's Toronado around Christmas time. I remember going through some pretty bad snow storms in Missouri and Illinois and the the front wheel drive Toronado had no trouble just plowing through the snow. It wasn't our car but a friend of my father's car who was making the trip and he decided to hitch a ride with him since we had family in Chicago. I don't recall those 68-69 Toronados but I remember the 66-67s well. I think it was one of those we made the trip in.
When GM was at the top of their game in innovation, and building these 3 different absolutely gorgeous cars!! My 6th grade teacher had a new 1969 Toronado, sky blue, and he knew that I liked cars, and would loan me his keys, to retrieve stuff out of it for our class. I really appreciated that he encouraged my appreciation for his beautiful car!
Hidden headlights went away long before headlight design made the very expensive modern advancements with HID and LED and whatever else. Modern headlight assemblies are much more expensive than hidden ones ever were. There is a lot more design flexibility now, and some look really cool. Most are just themeless blobs though.
My cousin had a 68. She had it for 15 yrs. The hidden headlights never failed. It was a black on black on black and it was one pretty car. It was also a sleeper. Her husband would pull up to redlights next to a mustang or charger and smoke check in em!
Major thing overlooked about the hidden headlights was that the round (later square) sealed beams were federally mandated. So to get a really unique look, you had to cover them. Today, yeah all about $.
ALL the sealed-beam automotive lamps were DOT-specified. i have aircraft sealed beams in the high beams on my old datsun 510. they are 65-watt clear glass and the vast majority of cops don't know the difference.
Of the various vehicles I’ve owned over the past 4+decades, I never did acquire a Tornado, of any year… really did want one (and yes, always liked the front end styling of 65’s & 6’s as well) but after seeing this ‘69, I’d be very content with this or the ‘68’s!! Of the years riding & driving &, eventually owning, my grandparents’ ‘75 GMC Palm Beach Motorhome w/Tornado front wheel drive w/Olds 455, @ an average weight of about 12.5K Lbs, i can definitely attest to how well those road/handled.. ample supply of HP & Torque!! Drove & loved that Motorhome all over the U.S. of A.’s western half! Fond memories, many. Can only imagine how that powertrain would feel in a car! Owned a ‘69 OPEL GT 1900; now THOSE headlights were ‘interesting’! Fun to flip out/in
1970 Charger as well. Only partial grilles would move though, only the sections covering the headlights. The '70 was the only year with the much-improved electric motor actuating the pop-up headlights, replacing the problematic vacuum-actuated function of earlier years.
The 1968 and 1969 Oldsmobile Toronado's were nice-looking cars (NO vinyl tops please!!!) even though the heavy-looking loop bumpers took away from the design. Loved that beautiful, veneered center console and ball shifter. That console should have been standard equipment in keeping with the Toronado's sporting personality over a Riviera or Eldorado which were more personal luxury than sporting. Those flip-up grilles had the potential to be detrimental to your air conditioning condenser, transmission cooler, and possibly the radiator, when they were flipped up in the night driving mode by leaving those components vulnerable to flying road rocks and debris. Bad design in my eyes. I even thought so at 7 years old. I was a child of both the 1960's and 1970's (born 1961), so I remembered these 1966 through 1970 Toronado's well. My two uncles sold Oldsmobiles up though 1972, when they switched the dealership to Lincoln-Mercury's in1973. (W.O. Bankston Oldsmobile - Dallas)
my dad had a 1969 ford country squire..had the hidden head lights the grill over the headlights retracted ..i was four when he got it..and i thought that was just the coolest thing!
They are cool. I never realized the configuration of these. They almost take on the look of the Firebird when the grills open. Truthfully I do not know that I ever remember seeing a ’68 in person.
Probably the slickest looking Toronados for the entire run of the nameplate. I think the weirdest and ugliest hidden headlights belong to the 80-83 Lincoln Mark VI. Especially when they had those optional touring lights on the headlight covers. Yuk 😝
I know Adam likes the original Toronado front end best, and I realize these models were probably trimmed down by cost cutters. But, I really like this design. The headlights are cool, and that overheat feature is cool also! I wonder how many technicians were tricked into thinking there was a headlight issue when the high temps were actually to blame. But, on the other hand, most owner probably didn't realize the light covers were up in super hot situations...
@@MarinCipollina You have more faith in people than I do. There are many "well-trained" professionals who don't know their you-know-what from their elbow about their field. I truly hope you and your loved ones always have doctors and nurses who DO know their you-know-whats from their elbows.
I've never been a big Mopar fan, but I think I'd have to give the top prize for style (particularly when open) to the 1966-67 Dodge Charger. As you can find on YT, their headlights were mounted in buckets that rotated 90° with electric motors. About half of the grillwork's vertical chrome bars swung up to be replaced by the lights with IDENTICAL chrome bars around them... When the lights were on, they literally looked like they were set into a fixed grill like any other Dodge. 👍
Great memories. My Dad would get Mom's Oldsmobiles used as he couldn't stand driving off a lot in a new car. Mom got 2 Toronados, I think a 68-honeycomb grille for both. My friends were impressed with the front wheel drive - no hump on the floor, and the rolling cylinder speed-dial. I enjoyed driving them
Thank you Adam. Thank you for another Oldsmobile Toronado video. I have a few things to say. The egg crate grille was offered in 1977 and 1979. It went back to a 1966 look in 1980. My 1992 Toronado has hidden headlamps and they are noisy when opening and closing but work fine. It also has the 1966 grille theme that runs to the taillamps like the 1966. Mine also has bucket seats. I owned three bench seat Toronados before the current 1992 model. The bucket seats became standard in the mid to late 1980's. Thank you again.
Wow! The length of that upper radiator hose looks like at least 3' long! My parents drove a 1972 Fury III wagon with every option available. 100mph easily which my mother did a couple of times when my brother was in trouble with women! The Fury had hidden head lamps with doors that opened. When closed the front of their wagon had a black grill with horizontal pattern if I remember correctly. It was the 1st car I drove with my learners permit! At 4'10" & 110# I did not fit well behind the wheel despite the cars tilting wheel. I preferred my bicycle! Later my father found an old Ford Falcon for me to drive but still had to have a boat cushion to see over the steering wheel. These cars you show have absolutely gorgeous exterior paint finishes!! I prefer my 1980`s S10`s as they fit my small stature perfectly with no cushions!
i liked the mid 60's falcons with the hardtop roofline. handsome car- was a lot like the comet hardtops which are more desirable now. just about anything with the K-code 289 and manual transmission is a keeper.
Actually this is one hidden design that makes sense. With the lights behind the grill, at least if the grill failed to open enough light gets through to be able to drive it til it's repaired.
If they failed, they failed open. Vacuum was required to keep them closed. I was continually chasing vacuum leaks that wouldn’t let the grills stay down.
Actually no, you couldn't drive it that way. Adam failed to mention that the backs of those honeycomb grilles had circles of solid black plastic so the shine of the glass and reflectors would not show through the grill in daylight...
‘69 Ford XL had “fail open” doors. Vacuum held them closed, heavy torsion spring opened them. I once crushed a tool carrier when I disturbed the vacuum tank…
My dad bought a 1968 model new. Olive hardtop without the center console. Dad planned a cross-country “break-in” trip LA to Pittsburgh. Guess what issue came up in Arizona? 😂 The lights were on but not very bright it seemed. Those moving grills weren’t moving! 😅 Dad flagged a local Oldtimer and he had some wood in his truck. They propped open the grills with chocks of wood!! The rest of the trip was fine - but always a little embarrassing pulling in somewhere! 😅😲
Strangest design in my opinion was the 89 Pontiac Sunbird.....that thing had 1/2 covered headlight doors, I remember paying a fortune to get the retractor motors from a junkyard for my fathers car when his failed to open.....thinking back it would have been easier and cheaper to just take the dang headlight door covers off😂🤣😅
The 68-72 Dodge Chargers had grill sections that would flip up to reveal headlights. When closed, it looks like the grill. The 68's had grill style around the lamps.
I actually think that the 1967-1969 Camaro Rally Sport had about the strangest hidden headlights that I remember. You talk about ice on cars here in the northern states and specifically the hidden headlights. Today we have a new problem. The LED lights don’t build up heat therefore they won’t melt ice and road slush off of them. I was watching a UA-cam review of a vehicle and it mentioned headlight heaters. Another option dealing with headlights was the useless headlight washers on the 1969 Chevrolet’s. My friend had a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Rally Sport equipped with the washers. I remember Chrysler products in the early 70’s had headlight washers with a brush that would go across the light to scrub it.
Great video, one of the few old-car channels currently worth watching on here. I didn't realise those 68/69 Toronado grilles were also thermostatically-controlled for cooling purposes. Interestingly, this was pioneered on the 1932 Rolls-Royce 20/25 where the vertical slats opened wider when a certain temperature was reached.
These cars are just so Beautiful. I remember them well while growing up in the 1960's. At the time these cars came out I was 11-14 years old. Riding in the Toronado is something I can never forget.
I always liked the lever-operated headlights on the Opal GT, especially because they flipped sideways. The Porsche 928 is another favorite, with the laid back headlights that pop up, and even have the nice little bullet housings that look nice. The C4 Corvette had neat ones too as they turned 180 degrees and had little aero housings to smooth them out. Finally, the Alfa Romeo Montreal had half-hidden headlights with little grille panels covering the top halves that retracted when the lights were activated.
The C5 Corvette was the last car to have pop-up headlights. I'm glad I've got my 2002 Corvette C5. Pop up headlights are really cool and I'm sure they'll come back someday.
i remember seeing them open and always wondered why they didn't shut- now i know why that is. darn it!- you guys forced me to learn something today- please don't do that to this old man.
Interesting. Always learn something from these first-rate vids. The grille that opened based on coolant temperature was way ahead of its time. A very similar concept to air/radiator shutters that are common place today.
67-69 Camaro with the RS option has doors that opened inwards towards the center of the car. The Riviera's 90 degrees was similar to the 63-67 Corvette.
I always enjoy your videos. I'd say we have similar tastes in automobile beauty. I owned a 1967 Ford Thunderbird 4-door. It also had hidden headlights with a door that rotated 90º up and out of the way to reveal the bulbs. It also had a defeat mechanism, which allowed one to be able to keep these doors open all the time.
This was a mesmerizing video! It took me back to the days when we had cars and didn't have to scoot around in Asian econoboxes like they do in the 3rd world.
Although a very different car than this channel concentrates on I really loved the Porsche 928 series pop-up headlights. Really cool. Great channel, thanks!!
I remember our 1968 Toronado having those flimsy plastic grill/headlight covers... They were right up there with the crappy Cougar vacuum-operated metal grills when it came to sticking... The '67 Riviera system was pretty bulletproof, will a single and very fast electric motor in the middle. I can still remember the hissing sound of pulling out the headlight knob on the Oldsmobile as well as the Lincoln...
Very good presentation… well narrated (no computer voice, thank you!), well researched. I am not a Toradao fan, but you kept my interest to the end. I learned a lot. Keep it up.
I thought pop-up headlights were generally stopped due to pedestrian safety concerns. Also, the Mercury Cougar from the 60's had the grills flip up to show the headlights.
Hi Adam, I am and have always been an art deco nut which is really strange for someone who grew up in the 70s. Favorite marque being any Packard before 1941, when most kids had a Ferrari poster on their wall. That being said, been a really big fan of your channel for a long time. Nobody gives big sedans any love, so glad you do. 1935 Cord Beverly and Westchester sedans had hidden lamps (maybe the first?) and they were cranked out by hand cranks on each side of the car. I think also that headlights were not turned off by closing the doors. I look at Olds Toro and Eldo and see a Cord trying to get out, the wheel design, front wheel drive, fast, sporty,. This is not surprising to me given that execs back then probably lusted over thirties cars in their youth. A friend had a 68 Eldo and I found it really (boomy?) inside, lots of road noise, not very Cadillac at all in my book. It had a mono leaf rear suspension like the Chevy II, so lots of noise transmission. I also thought there was something from the thirties trying to escape from my 1971 Grand Prix. (My first car.)
I'm confused. Early in this video, you explained that the 66 and 67 Eldorado "had panels that dropped down to reveal the headlights." Isn't that the same as the 68 and 69 Toronado, only flipped 180 degrees? The C4 Corvette had hidden headlights that rotated up, back and around almost 270 degrees so the "lip" of the cover skin wouldn't create air turbulence. That was the most bizarre hidden headlamp operation IMO. Thanks for this video!
In the early 2000s I bought a 1968 Toronado. I was the third owner. I sold it after 14 years because even though it was mechanically sound, the body rust was unstoppable. At that point it needed a frame-off restoration. So I had to sell it to somebody possessing more resources.
Good show. Remember the 1970 Opel GT on how the head lights would rotate. I listen to your channel frequently and enjoy your talks of automobile history. Thanks
Grew up, my parents had a 1968 White with black top Toronado. Greatest car I ever drove, needed 4 wheel discs and a better transmission. Headlights were the coolest
A hidden headlights story. The Channel Uncle Tony's Garage had a project where they swapped a Slant Six into a Miata (1). They called the Miata Blinky because if they turned the lights on one headlight would pop up normaly. The other one would pop up. Go back down and then pop up again. 1) Why? He's a Mopar fanatic.
In my opinion hidden headlights would make a lot of sense now when headlights are made of plastic that degrade and become opaque from UV exposure
Hadn't thought of that and since they are all made of UV vunerable plastic now it would be a nice feature.
Good idea but it also doesn't help that HIDs off put uv. Not sure about the LEDs
yes i agrere
Who keeps a car that long? Most cars won’t last long enough for the plastic to deteriorate.
Not gonna happen… No way to do federally mandated “Daytime Running Lights”…
I am a 70s child so these videos bring back a lot of fond memories for me. I am sure that many of your GenX viewers/subscribers feel the same way. Thank you Adam for putting in all the time and effort to share your passion with us!
Me too
He has all my dream cars. I just turned 60
I'm right there with you brother
Sup Boomers lol
Indeed.
The 65 Riviera's clam shell hidden headlights were fun to watch open and close at a car show a few weeks ago
Agreed, those were fascinating, a friend of mine's dad had a '65 Riv.
Owned a 65 GS Riviera, the linkage had a bolt that when loosen allowed the lite 'doors' to open if motor failed.
I remember a friend of mine years ago had a cougar with headlight hiders that slid sideways to open. I find that more odd than the flip type.
@@BLenz-114- 1st gen Camaro had similar slide option, maybe year or two.
I felt like Roadhouse brought attention to this as he bought them so no one could break the headlights.
My first car was a used '69, dark green with white interior. I recall during Nebraska winters I would casually drive up icy, snow-packed hills, with stuck cars and trucks all over the place. People would look with amazement at how it could go through snow with that 455 sitting over the drive wheels.
"snow packed hills"? Leavenworth around 50th-60th(???) in Omaha? I took that plunge ONCE when it was ice covered in my 63 Corvette Roadster (my everyday driver in the late 70s).
YES! I plowed snow with my '75 Toronado in '78 with the 455, and L size tires!
The '66 Tornado was a nice, cool, sleek looking car if a bit big & heavy...
And I remember seeing some people with their snow tires on the back!
They thought the car was RWD.
Manually operated flip-over retractable headlights on Opel GT (loved that car!)
@@sdstreiker Handle operated! No vacuum leaks to worry about
@@chuckymurlo5654 Saab Sonnet had a handle below the dash that you pulled to raise the headlamps. No motors either.
@@judih.8754 You beat me to it. Very clever (and reliable) system.
Yes I was going to write this but first looked through comments to see if anybody beat me to it. I would gladly buy an Opel Gt but every one I see for sale is in horrible condition. Many have wonderful new paint but the interiors are ratty, the frame metalwork is corroded, etc.
i have one in orange and the back panel is black originally the system to rotate the lights is like when opening the hood in BMW´s 2002 from the 70´s . i used to love the interior design ,allthough the steering wheel could be a litle smaller
Several comments. I actually prefer the styling of the '68-69 Toronado's to the original 1966. The '69 Headlamps grille covers would always dependably open during the snowy great lakes winters typical of that era. Finally, with the disc brakes and the 455 the '69 Toronado was a superb highway cruiser. In '72, I had the opportunity to do a wintertime drive of my father's '69 Toronado from Traverse City, to Detroit/Windsor, then across a snowy Canada, to Montreal, for a skiing trip with our destination in Stowe, Vermont. The '69 also handled the snowy roads of Vermont's route 100 amazingly well. That '69 made wintertime travel speedy, safe, and effortless....and that drive and that subsequent ski trip were both amazing lifetime memories for me. Definitely the '69 Toronado was one of my truly great car experiences. BTW the manually operated rotating covered headlights of my later purchased, and much loved, 1970 1.9 liter OPEL GT always opened no matter the weather, encrusting ice storms never prevented the Opel GT headlights from opening. Adam, you have a great channel. Cheers.
that TH425 was as solid as a ship's anchor.
'68 and '69 are still lookers, but the '66 was the best, IMO.
I had a 1967 Thunderbird. This is the best arrangement, solidly mounted headlights that stay properly aimed, protected by metal covers when not in use.
Plastic...
@@marko7843 My 1967 Thunderbird had metal headlight covers,, but anything that protects the lights from damage is good.
my dentist had one of those with the suicide doors- he hated the car and put a brick on the accelerator and burned the thing to the ground. he couldn't prevail in a lemon-law case so he took the mr. mayhem approach....
@@tommurphy4307 sad. Yeah mine was a fordor landau. They were complex, and had about a mile of vacuum line, but a cool car from the Jet Age for all of that.
I like the way the grill rotates out of the way and that (as you mentioned) they did make the headlight area look presentable.
That’s kool! I never saw the entire grill retract like that. 😎👍
That orange Ferd at 5:15 is me when I woke up this morning. Too much partying.
Thinkin that you want a Lincoln? After seeing that one, think again, that is one more thing to be concerned about when it fails.
Lmao i agree dude
My wifes 89 Accord had pop up headlights. While that is not as cool looking as the 60s and 70s cars with hidden headlights it still gave the car a more aerodynamic look. Wish I still had that car as it was super reliable. The tin worm ate it up.
65 Buick Riviera hidden light were the sweetest
I actually prefer this design. Thanks for sharing
The '68 is a stunner in my opinion.
My dad had a 66 Riviera he bought new and I was lucky to drive later in the mid 70's. I can still hear the distinctive sound of those headlights in my head. They never had a single issue in the 20 years we had that car. I kind of think the 70 Toronado with the non-hidden headlights was pretty nice too.
Those 3 cars are gorgeous
I think the '68 Toronado was the best looking Toronado ever. I never cared for the sharp front end on the earlier models and on the '69 the slopes of the rear window and trunk lid differed more than they did on the '68 making for a more creased look. The honeycomb grille also looked better.
The concept of rotating the grille out of the way rather than popping up or rotating the headlights themselves is a much better engineering solution. Moving power cables is never a good idea and with a moving headlight, there is a good chance of misaligned beams over time.
Love hidden headlights, so cool
Love it when you feature cars from this era. Thanks!
My family owned 3 Toronados over 5 years - a Lt. Blue 1969, Bamboo 1971, and a Brown w/ White 1972. Great cars!
That’s actually beautiful. The only other car I can think of with well finished hidden headlights when activated was the 81 Imperial with the chrome bezel and rectangular lights while the Mark VI still had ROUND headlights. Someone else mentioned the 65 Riviera clamshell headlights those are beautiful also. Awesome video!
although this vid is about hidden headlights, I have to say that ordering a Toro with buckets and console, while cool in every other period car, was a mistake as it covered up the best feature, that flat floor. Best option was the Strato-bench and column shift, so that the flat floor really made itself known and your SO could snuggle up
You are right. A Toronado, or Eldorado, with the flat floor and bench seats can sleep 4 comfortably.
like the early honda civics
Loved the look of the 1968 and 1969 Toronado. They are my favorite. I can't imagine the cost associated with model year changes back then.
The Opel GT was another unusual, but effective design for hidden headlights. Manually operation via “pistol grip” lever made these a somewhat unique process, with both headlights flipping L to R in unison. Not dependent on electricity or hydraulic action, these were fairly dependable until the gears attached to the headlight bezel wore out.
Those are cable and lever operated. No gears, but a multi-layered set of metal discs which allowed some deflection in the assembly. You do have to keep the three 8mm bolts tight and keep an eye on the condition of the flexible wires in the middle of the pivot. Over the years, the wire insulation hardens and cracks. I owned three and am familiar with them.
The 1930's Cords were also beautiful and had hidden headlamps. Albeit they were manually hand cranked and there was one crank for each headlight. The crank for the right headlight was on the right lower side of the dashboard. In other words, it was very convenient to have a passenger sitting on the right side of the vehicle asking them politely to crank up the right headlamp. 😂 Also, they were front-wheel drive, long before the Toronado.
It was dependent on muscle power and hope that nothing was in the way of the rotating pods.
@@rolandsolomon7728 there's a dirty joke in there somewhere....
This is so iconic, 60s tech, James Bond-ish, with the kind of style long-gone from today's charisma-free wheels.
When I was a kid in the late 60s sometime I don't recall the exact year my family rode from Oklahoma City to Chicago in a late 60's Toronado around Christmas time. I remember going through some pretty bad snow storms in Missouri and Illinois and the the front wheel drive Toronado had no trouble just plowing through the snow. It wasn't our car but a friend of my father's car who was making the trip and he decided to hitch a ride with him since we had family in Chicago. I don't recall those 68-69 Toronados but I remember the 66-67s well. I think it was one of those we made the trip in.
The Torrys design was ahead of its time. Back when GM had some awesome looking vehicles.
When GM was at the top of their game in innovation, and building these 3 different absolutely gorgeous cars!! My 6th grade teacher had a new 1969 Toronado, sky blue, and he knew that I liked cars, and would loan me his keys, to retrieve stuff out of it for our class. I really appreciated that he encouraged my appreciation for his beautiful car!
Hidden headlights went away long before headlight design made the very expensive modern advancements with HID and LED and whatever else. Modern headlight assemblies are much more expensive than hidden ones ever were. There is a lot more design flexibility now, and some look really cool. Most are just themeless blobs though.
the early camaro RS's had cool-looking hidden headlamps.
These are my favourite.
Love a '68 Toronado!
My cousin had a 68. She had it for 15 yrs. The hidden headlights never failed. It was a black on black on black and it was one pretty car. It was also a sleeper. Her husband would pull up to redlights next to a mustang or charger and smoke check in em!
all the so-called sleepers i've seen at stoplights have had at least ONE embarrassing encounter.
Major thing overlooked about the hidden headlights was that the round (later square) sealed beams were federally mandated. So to get a really unique look, you had to cover them. Today, yeah all about $.
ALL the sealed-beam automotive lamps were DOT-specified. i have aircraft sealed beams in the high beams on my old datsun 510. they are 65-watt clear glass and the vast majority of cops don't know the difference.
Of the various vehicles I’ve owned over the past 4+decades, I never did acquire a Tornado, of any year… really did want one (and yes, always liked the front end styling of 65’s & 6’s as well) but after seeing this ‘69, I’d be very content with this or the ‘68’s!! Of the years riding & driving &, eventually owning, my grandparents’ ‘75 GMC Palm Beach Motorhome w/Tornado front wheel drive w/Olds 455, @ an average weight of about 12.5K Lbs, i can definitely attest to how well those road/handled.. ample supply of HP & Torque!! Drove & loved that Motorhome all over the U.S. of A.’s western half! Fond memories, many. Can only imagine how that powertrain would feel in a car!
Owned a ‘69 OPEL GT 1900; now THOSE headlights were ‘interesting’! Fun to flip out/in
Mopar had moving grilles to reveal headlights. 68-69 Charger, I think
1970 Charger as well. Only partial grilles would move though, only the sections covering the headlights. The '70 was the only year with the much-improved electric motor actuating the pop-up headlights, replacing the problematic vacuum-actuated function of earlier years.
Really... That's funny because the original Charger hidden headlights, in the previous generation, we're electric.
The 1968 and 1969 Oldsmobile Toronado's were nice-looking cars (NO vinyl tops please!!!) even though the heavy-looking loop bumpers took away from the design. Loved that beautiful, veneered center console and ball shifter. That console should have been standard equipment in keeping with the Toronado's sporting personality over a Riviera or Eldorado which were more personal luxury than sporting.
Those flip-up grilles had the potential to be detrimental to your air conditioning condenser, transmission cooler, and possibly the radiator, when they were flipped up in the night driving mode by leaving those components vulnerable to flying road rocks and debris. Bad design in my eyes. I even thought so at 7 years old.
I was a child of both the 1960's and 1970's (born 1961), so I remembered these 1966 through 1970 Toronado's well.
My two uncles sold Oldsmobiles up though 1972, when they switched the dealership to Lincoln-Mercury's in1973. (W.O. Bankston Oldsmobile - Dallas)
my dad had a 1969 ford country squire..had the hidden head lights the grill over the headlights retracted ..i was four when he got it..and i thought that was just the coolest thing!
Agree with your take on this. The moving grill I’d never seen!
They are cool. I never realized the configuration of these. They almost take on the look of the Firebird when the grills open. Truthfully I do not know that I ever remember seeing a ’68 in person.
just my exact thought - it's Firebird!
Probably the slickest looking Toronados for the entire run of the nameplate.
I think the weirdest and ugliest hidden headlights belong to the 80-83 Lincoln Mark VI. Especially when they had those optional touring lights on the headlight covers. Yuk 😝
This car is beautiful whether the headlights are on or not. I can't say the same of most of the 1980s cars with hidden headlights
I know Adam likes the original Toronado front end best, and I realize these models were probably trimmed down by cost cutters. But, I really like this design. The headlights are cool, and that overheat feature is cool also! I wonder how many technicians were tricked into thinking there was a headlight issue when the high temps were actually to blame. But, on the other hand, most owner probably didn't realize the light covers were up in super hot situations...
No technicians were confused unless they were idiots. Dealer techs are trained on relevant aspects of the cars.
@@MarinCipollina You have more faith in people than I do. There are many "well-trained" professionals who don't know their you-know-what from their elbow about their field. I truly hope you and your loved ones always have doctors and nurses who DO know their you-know-whats from their elbows.
thanks- that explains why you see them open sometimes.
I've never been a big Mopar fan, but I think I'd have to give the top prize for style (particularly when open) to the 1966-67 Dodge Charger. As you can find on YT, their headlights were mounted in buckets that rotated 90° with electric motors. About half of the grillwork's vertical chrome bars swung up to be replaced by the lights with IDENTICAL chrome bars around them...
When the lights were on, they literally looked like they were set into a fixed grill like any other Dodge. 👍
Great memories. My Dad would get Mom's Oldsmobiles used as he couldn't stand driving off a lot in a new car. Mom got 2 Toronados, I think a 68-honeycomb grille for both. My friends were impressed with the front wheel drive - no hump on the floor, and the rolling cylinder speed-dial. I enjoyed driving them
Stranger hidden-headlights: How about an early 70's Opel GT? The headlights rotated on a spindle parallel to the centerline of the car.
Thank you Adam. Thank you for another Oldsmobile Toronado video. I have a few things to say. The egg crate grille was offered in 1977 and 1979. It went back to a 1966 look in 1980. My 1992 Toronado has hidden headlamps and they are noisy when opening and closing but work fine. It also has the 1966 grille theme that runs to the taillamps like the 1966. Mine also has bucket seats. I owned three bench seat Toronados before the current 1992 model. The bucket seats became standard in the mid to late 1980's. Thank you again.
My favorite is the '67. Gorgeous cars.
On that 68 when the grills move out of the way it looks like a 67 -69 Firebird.
Wow! The length of that upper radiator hose looks like at least 3' long! My parents drove a 1972 Fury III wagon with every option available. 100mph easily which my mother did a couple of times when my brother was in trouble with women! The Fury had hidden head lamps with doors that opened. When closed the front of their wagon had a black grill with horizontal pattern if I remember correctly. It was the 1st car I drove with my learners permit! At 4'10" & 110# I did not fit well behind the wheel despite the cars tilting wheel. I preferred my bicycle! Later my father found an old Ford Falcon for me to drive but still had to have a boat cushion to see over the steering wheel. These cars you show have absolutely gorgeous exterior paint finishes!! I prefer my 1980`s S10`s as they fit my small stature perfectly with no cushions!
i liked the mid 60's falcons with the hardtop roofline. handsome car- was a lot like the comet hardtops which are more desirable now. just about anything with the K-code 289 and manual transmission is a keeper.
Consoles seem to waste the flat floors.
Back in the 70's I had the opportunity to take a road trip in a 67 Toronado. Wonderful car. I used to own a 69 Delta88.
Had a 1969 Tornado and really liked that car.
Actually this is one hidden design that makes sense. With the lights behind the grill, at least if the grill failed to open enough light gets through to be able to drive it til it's repaired.
If they failed, they failed open. Vacuum was required to keep them closed. I was continually chasing vacuum leaks that wouldn’t let the grills stay down.
Actually no, you couldn't drive it that way. Adam failed to mention that the backs of those honeycomb grilles had circles of solid black plastic so the shine of the glass and reflectors would not show through the grill in daylight...
@@marko7843Really? Darn! Leave it to the engineers to mess up one of my good ideas! 😂
The electric motor on the 1970 Charger had a knob at the bottom you could twist to manually open the headlight covers, if the motor failed.
@@Coelacanth97 Be nice if modern cars had backup knobs and cables for when the tech glitches. 😀
Thanks for another great video = I always liked the 1965 Riviera with the "clamshell" opening for the headlights!
‘69 Ford XL had “fail open” doors. Vacuum held them closed, heavy torsion spring opened them.
I once crushed a tool carrier when I disturbed the vacuum tank…
My dad bought a 1968 model new. Olive hardtop without the center console. Dad planned a cross-country “break-in” trip LA to Pittsburgh.
Guess what issue came up in Arizona? 😂
The lights were on but not very bright it seemed.
Those moving grills weren’t moving! 😅
Dad flagged a local Oldtimer and he had some wood in his truck.
They propped open the grills with chocks of wood!!
The rest of the trip was fine - but always a little embarrassing pulling in somewhere! 😅😲
Strangest design in my opinion was the 89 Pontiac Sunbird.....that thing had 1/2 covered headlight doors, I remember paying a fortune to get the retractor motors from a junkyard for my fathers car when his failed to open.....thinking back it would have been easier and cheaper to just take the dang headlight door covers off😂🤣😅
I bought a new 1987 Sunbrid SE with that same design.
A continuing favorite; Adam, thank you for the in-depth video! I love the 1968 & ‘69 most.
I remember falling in love with the first 66 Toronado I ever saw when I was a kid. I still love that car.
the george barris toro roadster that joe mannix drove was badass.
The retractable Toronado grill was pretty cool! Beautiful cars 😍 Thanks for sharing these!
The 68-72 Dodge Chargers had grill sections that would flip up to reveal headlights. When closed, it looks like the grill. The 68's had grill style around the lamps.
I actually think that the 1967-1969 Camaro Rally Sport had about the strangest hidden headlights that I remember. You talk about ice on cars here in the northern states and specifically the hidden headlights. Today we have a new problem. The LED lights don’t build up heat therefore they won’t melt ice and road slush off of them. I was watching a UA-cam review of a vehicle and it mentioned headlight heaters. Another option dealing with headlights was the useless headlight washers on the 1969 Chevrolet’s. My friend had a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Rally Sport equipped with the washers. I remember Chrysler products in the early 70’s had headlight washers with a brush that would go across the light to scrub it.
those were great-looking cars. one of my lady friends has a nice '67 RS/SS ragtop- and no she won't let me drive it.
The retracting Toranado grill was pretty cool! Beautiful cars 😍 Thanks for sharing these!
I really love how much knowledge and detail you give us on all your videos. Excellent vids.
Great video, one of the few old-car channels currently worth watching on here. I didn't realise those 68/69 Toronado grilles were also thermostatically-controlled for cooling purposes. Interestingly, this was pioneered on the 1932 Rolls-Royce 20/25 where the vertical slats opened wider when a certain temperature was reached.
i'd like to have me one of those!
These cars are just so Beautiful.
I remember them well while growing up in the 1960's.
At the time these cars came out I was 11-14 years old.
Riding in the Toronado is something I can never forget.
I always liked the lever-operated headlights on the Opal GT, especially because they flipped sideways. The Porsche 928 is another favorite, with the laid back headlights that pop up, and even have the nice little bullet housings that look nice. The C4 Corvette had neat ones too as they turned 180 degrees and had little aero housings to smooth them out. Finally, the Alfa Romeo Montreal had half-hidden headlights with little grille panels covering the top halves that retracted when the lights were activated.
The C5 Corvette was the last car to have pop-up headlights. I'm glad I've got my 2002 Corvette C5. Pop up headlights are really cool and I'm sure they'll come back someday.
I didn't know about them opening when the engine got hot. That's cooler 😎 than the lights themselves,!
i remember seeing them open and always wondered why they didn't shut- now i know why that is. darn it!- you guys forced me to learn something today- please don't do that to this old man.
Interesting. Always learn something from these first-rate vids. The grille that opened based on coolant temperature was way ahead of its time. A very similar concept to air/radiator shutters that are common place today.
Very cool! Never owned a Toronado but loved the styling and looks.
67-69 Camaro with the RS option has doors that opened inwards towards the center of the car. The Riviera's 90 degrees was similar to the 63-67 Corvette.
I always enjoy your videos.
I'd say we have similar tastes in automobile beauty.
I owned a 1967 Ford Thunderbird 4-door. It also had hidden headlights with a door that rotated 90º up and out of the way to reveal the bulbs. It also had a defeat mechanism, which allowed one to be able to keep these doors open all the time.
unfortunately they had a lot of problems with that car. they had suicide doors, harkening back to the early 60's lincolns.
This was a mesmerizing video! It took me back to the days when we had cars and didn't have to scoot around in Asian econoboxes like they do in the 3rd world.
Fascinating. I love that look with the double lamps .. gt, touring,muscle type look.
It's interesting to know that things awesome are things strange. Great flick!😅
Imo - the 65 Riviera is the best looking car ever designed and with those clam shell headlights.
I'm not sure why, but I don't think I've ever seen those years and those headlights before. Thanks for sharing.
Love the clam shell head lights on the 65 Riviera. Thanks for the great video.
My gosh, the front end of that car is gorgeous! ❤️
My 67 TBird had a matching grill design around the headlights when opened.
My first car was a1970 Olds Cutlass Supreme with a center console automatic, the same shifter in that Toranado.
Great car and knowledge, thank you.
Although a very different car than this channel concentrates on I really loved the Porsche 928 series pop-up headlights. Really cool. Great channel, thanks!!
Thank you from Spain for this video!! so interesting 👍🏼👍🏼
I remember our 1968 Toronado having those flimsy plastic grill/headlight covers... They were right up there with the crappy Cougar vacuum-operated metal grills when it came to sticking... The '67 Riviera system was pretty bulletproof, will a single and very fast electric motor in the middle. I can still remember the hissing sound of pulling out the headlight knob on the Oldsmobile as well as the Lincoln...
Very good presentation… well narrated (no computer voice, thank you!), well researched. I am not a Toradao fan, but you kept my interest to the end. I learned a lot. Keep it up.
Your 1968 Ford LTD hideaway headlights are awesome too Adam 👌🏻
Beautifully styled cars and stunning video. So much information that you share so easily. You are a reference for these cars.
I thought pop-up headlights were generally stopped due to pedestrian safety concerns. Also, the Mercury Cougar from the 60's had the grills flip up to show the headlights.
If I remember correctly, the area behind the headlamp doors wad nicely finished on my parents’ 1967 Thunderbird 4-door Landau. But maybe I’m mistaken.
loved that car had one, man it would eat front tires, but l love the spinning speedometer that was so cool and a very comfortable 8 mpg car :)
Hi Adam, I am and have always been an art deco nut which is really strange for someone who grew up in the 70s. Favorite marque being any Packard before 1941, when most kids had a Ferrari poster on their wall. That being said, been a really big fan of your channel for a long time. Nobody gives big sedans any love, so glad you do. 1935 Cord Beverly and Westchester sedans had hidden lamps (maybe the first?) and they were cranked out by hand cranks on each side of the car. I think also that headlights were not turned off by closing the doors. I look at Olds Toro and Eldo and see a Cord trying to get out, the wheel design, front wheel drive, fast, sporty,. This is not surprising to me given that execs back then probably lusted over thirties cars in their youth. A friend had a 68 Eldo and I found it really (boomy?) inside, lots of road noise, not very Cadillac at all in my book. It had a mono leaf rear suspension like the Chevy II, so lots of noise transmission. I also thought there was something from the thirties trying to escape from my 1971 Grand Prix. (My first car.)
I have an Opel GT with strange manual hidden headlights.
Those are so cool!
I'm confused. Early in this video, you explained that the 66 and 67 Eldorado "had panels that dropped down to reveal the headlights." Isn't that the same as the 68 and 69 Toronado, only flipped 180 degrees? The C4 Corvette had hidden headlights that rotated up, back and around almost 270 degrees so the "lip" of the cover skin wouldn't create air turbulence. That was the most bizarre hidden headlamp operation IMO. Thanks for this video!
No. The Eldorado headlight doors weren’t part of the radiator grille
@@RareClassicCars I thought you were referring to the actual opening sequence. Sorry.
The moving covers were a good idea. Compared to actuating the lights, less moving mass and no risk of shifting headlight alignment.
the mid-60's corvettes had headlights with that problem.
Radial tires in these cars make all the difference in the universe,nevertheless the 1968 Toro is a magnificent piece
In the early 2000s I bought a 1968 Toronado. I was the third owner. I sold it after 14 years because even though it was mechanically sound, the body rust was unstoppable. At that point it needed a frame-off restoration. So I had to sell it to somebody possessing more resources.
Good show. Remember the 1970 Opel GT on how the head lights would rotate.
I listen to your channel frequently and enjoy your talks of automobile history.
Thanks
Grew up, my parents had a 1968 White with black top Toronado. Greatest car I ever drove, needed 4 wheel discs and a better transmission. Headlights were the coolest
A hidden headlights story. The Channel Uncle Tony's Garage had a project where they swapped a Slant Six into a Miata (1). They called the Miata Blinky because if they turned the lights on one headlight would pop up normaly. The other one would pop up. Go back down and then pop up again.
1) Why? He's a Mopar fanatic.
the monster motorsports miatas are now very collectible and they used the ford 5.0- insanely quick off the stoplight.