Anybody who knows me well can tell you one thing: My goal in life right now is to find a decent(ish) 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado and buy it. If I find one in a condition and price that align with my realities, I will have to be happy with whatever color comes along, but Oldsmobile offered a wide variety of them to buyers who were lucky enough to drive a new Toronado off the lot 60 years ago. Which one looks best to you?
This page from the 1966 Oldsmobile Colors and Fabrics Guide for salespeople lists the “Suggested Color Combinations” for the 1966 Toronado. There are more colors listed on 1966 Oldsmobile charts for all models, but I’ve used the dealer guide in an attempt to find an example of each hue offered on the Toronado. I only missed one.
While I feel that the Toronado’s unique styling with its lurid wheel arches and unbroken C-pillar/quarter panel interface looks great in almost any color, there are a few that I’ve never been that fond of; however, time and circumstances have begun to change my mind.
I’ll list the Oldsmobile color code in parentheses and each color’s sales name to the right. I haven’t been able to find any production breakout statistics by color for the Toronado, so any comments on a color’s popularity are speculative.
(A) Ebony Black
Although I’ve owned several daily drivers in black, I can’t say that it’s my favorite color on collector cars, especially on larger cars like the Toronado. Maybe others agreed; I don’t see many Ebony Black Toronados for sale or at car shows; however, I don’t see that many Toronados for sale or at car shows in any color. Black does look perfect on the Toronado’s E-Body stablemate, the 1967 Cadillac Eldorado (perhaps because the Eldorado is more formal in its styling, and black fits it as a tuxedo would). It might mask some of the car’s stylistic highlights in the case of the Toronado, whose lines are somewhat more gentle.
(B) Nocturne Mist
Unfortunately, I have not been able to find any pictures of a Nocturne Mist Toronado, at least of cars that are documented as being painted that color. It’s simply a very dark blue, and it appears to be very similar to Royal Mist, which you’ll find a little farther down the list.
(D) Lucerne Blue
This color looks good on anything. The 1966 Toronado in General Motors’ Heritage Collection is painted this color, and it’s an excellent shade to highlight the Toronado’s muscular lines without overpowering them. If I had an opportunity to choose a color, this would likely be it.
This profile view of the car shows the massive front overhang that is a visual indication of its front-drive architecture; the front and rear almost shouldn’t work together, but they do.
(E) Royal Mist
Royal Mist is a dark blue with a bit of a purple cast: It shows up as almost black in some lighting, but it looks good on a ’66 Toronado. This may be a good time to mention that I recently read Designing Dreams, a series of essays by GM stylist Dick Ruzzin, who was in the Oldsmobile studio during the Toronado’s gestation. Although it’s always assumed that the stylists had the Cord 810 on their mind when they worked on the Toronado, Mr. Ruzzin (in his comments at Dean’s Garage) only mentions the wheels as being influenced by that landmark machine, but I can’t imagine that the way the grille wraps into the engine compartment was completely accidental.
(G) Trumpet Gold
Along with Dubonnet, which we’ll see in a minute, Trumpet Gold was prominently displayed in advertising for the 1966 Toronado, and there’s no denying that the car was meant for the color; I have a Toronado Hallmark Christmas ornament and several diecast toys modeled in gold. This particular (non-diecast) car is a highlight at the R.E. Olds Museum in Lansing, Michigan. Dick Ruzzin mentions in his book that the car’s coved tail was modeled after a Ferrari, and this rear three-quarter angle is my personal favorite view of the car. A significant amount of detail and surface work went into making the gorgeous fender flares look harmonious from front to rear, because the quarter panels approach them at a more severe angle than do the fenders.
(J) Forest Mist
Forest Mist is a nice, deep green that looks great on the big Oldsmobile. The Toronado is indeed a big car at over 211 inches in length; Oldsmobile originally wanted to use GM’s new F-Body platform for the Toronado. It would have been a monster with the big 425 under the hood, but General Motors overruled that idea and made Olds share the E-Body platform with Buick and Cadillac.
(K) Ocean Mist
Ocean Mist is another color that I would be completely happy with; in fact, I bid on this very car in the middle of the night a few years ago, but my bid didn’t meet the reserve.
(L) Tropic Turquoise
Here’s another color that got away many years ago; I saw one for sale on eBay (not this one), probably back in 2006 or 2007. The ad showed fewer pictures than I was comfortable with, and the seller mentioned recent floorpan work. Regardless, it sold for $3,000 and it looked fairly decent overall, and I’m still kicking myself a bit for not going through with it. The color looks good, especially with a matching interior as this one has. Speaking of interiors, it’s best to find a Toronado with a clean one; parts are not impossible to find, but they’re not point-and-click easy, either.
(M) Autumn Bronze
This is a ravishing color on almost anything. I made an offer to a dealer this past spring on an Autumn Bronze ’66; it had very bad paint and I would have had to have it shipped, so my offer was a couple thousand dollars lower than what they were asking. The dealer declined and the car sold about a month later. This view shows how low the car is, and in profile you can easily see what Dick Ruzzin was talking about concerning the fender flares; they aren’t exactly the same from front to rear, but few of us would have noticed without his mentioning it.
(S) Champagne Mist
Champagne Mist is a sort of muted Trumpet Gold; both look great, but the gold looks a little “happier,” as my body shop friend might say if the color he painted your car didn’t quite end up being what you expected.
(U) Dubonnet
Dubonnet is a rich, deep red, and it was featured in many sales materials and ads for the ’66 Toronado. I spotted this one about five years ago at NATMUS, a museum in Auburn, Indiana (right behind the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum and worth a look in its own right). Once again, it’s a beautiful color on this car.
(V) Almond Beige
You don’t see too many Almond Beige Toronados, but this one popped up for sale in July of 2025 at a dealer called “Orphan Car Garage” in Abington, Massachusetts. It is exactly in the condition I am looking for, the price was $8,900, and by the time I saw it, a sale was pending. I was one day late.
With that being said, it is one of the last colors I’d want my Toronado painted, but I would have been completely happy to get used to it (although its green interior would take a LOT of getting used to in combination with Almond Beige).
(W) Silver Mist
Silver Mist looks fine; it’s not too far from Champagne Mist in this light. The redline tires complement the color well.
(X) Porcelain White
Just behind Almond Beige in my personal esteem is Porcelain White, one of two whites offered by Oldsmobile in 1966, but apparently the only one that was used on the Toronado. It’s all my fault; I’ve never liked white cars (except for early Corvettes and 1965-66 Shelby Mustangs), although I do believe that white hides the Toronado’s dramatic lines a bit too much. Nevertheless, this is a nice example that I spotted in the parking lot of a dragstrip this past September.
(Z) Frost Green
Frost Green is yet another lovely choice on a 1966 Toronado; I found this one 16 years ago at the Concours of America at St. John’s in Plymouth, Michigan (an event that is no more, sadly).
The Toronado is a car that I never grow tired of looking at, even though I’ve never driven one. It’s a highlight among many highlights in General Motors’ “Mitchell era,” and in combination with the equally breathtaking 1966 Riviera and 1967 Eldorado, it’s hard to choose a clear winner.
Of course, I’d take the Toronado, and I look forward to that day when I might be able to make it happen, but for now, car shopping is a lot of fun without the stress of shipping, storing, paying for, and maintaining a 211-inch-long Oldsmobile. So until that happy day when I get one of my very own, I can daydream about what color it will be painted.
Related Reading
Vintage Road Test: 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado – “Who’d Buy A Car Like That?” – Oldmobile’s Stylish, Innovative and Compromised GT (by Rich Baron)
Vintage Road and Track Review: 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado – Advanced and Regressive At The Same Time (by Paul N)
1966 Buick Riviera Versus 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado – Closely Related, Yet So Different (Part 1) (by Aaron Severson)
1966 Buick Riviera Versus 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado – Closely Related, Yet So Different (Part 2) (by Aaron Severson)
What a fantastic color selection they had back then! Real colors—and even those who prefer white, black, and silver were catered for.
Making a personal choice is really difficult. In the end, I think I’d order mine in Ocean Mist.
Ocean Mist is a gorgeous color; I wish it would have worked out with the example in the ad.
If I were ordering one of these Aaron, I’d have to go with (L) Tropic Turquoise (with the Turquoise interior). To my eyes, that car is perfect that way.
Honorable mentions: (J) Forest Mist and (U) Dubonnet
It seemed like back then, the majority of these were painted in (G) Trumpet Gold, or (S) Champagne Mist.
Anyway, hopefully, the right one will find you some day!
Thanks Rick,
I hope I find one too, but maybe not too quickly…another Volvo update is coming up soon. 🙂
I loved this, and there’s not a single unflattering color on a car that’s already stunning. This widely ranging color palette seems so optimistic and mid-’60s. I’ll echo RS Rick above that I hope you get yours one day!!
I’d take a diecast of any of these colors (good ’66 Toronados diecasts are expensive), but for the real thing, I’d lean toward Silver Mist.
Thanks Joe,
Corgi made a 1/43 diecast (I have two), and they are now reproducing them!
https://corgimodelclubusa.com/products/276-oldsmobile-toronado?srsltid=AfmBOorJlNxN3XtHbKty77wNa6kD51wTOq_EY6JDo4WrusABlxHq31CQ
My 6th grade teacher Mr. Domrow had a 66 Toronado painted Ocean Mist in the early 1970’s. His had a black vinyl roof. It looked OK to me then, but I have matured and decided that a black vinyl roof is a deadly sin on a Toronado. And the one I found a few years ago must have been Dubonnet (https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1966-oldsmobile-toronado-personal-luxury-oldsmobile-style/) but it looked almost black in the very early morning almost-sunlight.
I agree with you on almost every point. That Autumn Bronze is gorgeous, a color that made a big splash across the industry about 1966 and then disappeared. And yes, the beige paint with green interior is something that is hard to get used to – I never really did on my 68 Chrysler Newport in that combination.
Finally, I could deal with the white if I had to, as long as it does not have black or beige interior. Turquoise interior would be my pick. White is so mid-60s, but I have suffered white-out, owing to so many I have owned. It is good for hiding flawed body work, though.
Re: hiding bad bodywork
That’s one reason why I wish I liked white more; invariably, a car that my cheap self is going to buy is going to have some iffy bodywork. 🙂
Thank you for that awesome article. What a beautiful selection of colors!
You’re welcome!
What a fun exercise! I, too, love these cars – just majestic beasts. Hope you get yours soon!
Thanks Sam!
Indeed, the ’66 Toronado is a beautiful piece of art. As for our research into presenting the choice of colors: WONDERFUL! I note that a goodly selection hare colors denoted w a second name of MIST. My evil mind suggests more colors: Train Mist. Rain Mist. Dreary Mist. Now you know why when GM established is Art & Color Department circa 1924, I was not hired.
Thanks Thomas!
I think “Mist” was just Olds-speak for “Metallic.” Maybe “Red Mist” would work for those who get angry in traffic.
I thought Olds wanted to base the Toro on the “A-body”, not the “F-body”. The F-body didn’t go on sale until the ’67 model year, but the A-body was already in production, starting with the ’64 model year.
Either way, it ended up on the E-body; I’m mystified how Olds and Caddy used Front-wheel drive and 3/4 perimeter frames, yet Buick had Rear-wheel drive and “X-frame” on the “same” platform. I suspect they’re not as closely-related as might be assumed from the E-body designation.
I have two ’66 Toros. One in Tropic Turquoise, one in Porcelain White. The TT car has massive “frame” (actually structural support on the “unibody” rear section, which is also the support for the rear of the leaf springs) rust above the rear wheels, but rebuilt engine, good transmission, and rather poor interior, paint, and trim. The PW car has no engine or interior. Both are, realistically, “parts cars”.
I based the F-Body comment on what I read in the book, Schurkey; it was the first time I had heard of it, too. I know that Bill Mitchell wanted to use the A-Body platform for the Boattail Riviera, but I’m not sure about the ’66 Toronado.
A beautiful car in any color. Ideally, my garage would have a Deluxe, in Autumn Bronze with Bronze interior, or Trumpet Gold with Black, or Tropic Turquoise with Parchment, in that order of preference
As to the rear (and fender arches) of the Toro’s styling, I am always reminded of this 1962 clay models Virgil Exner made for a Fiat 1500 coupe proposal.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/did-this-1962-exner-model-inspire-the-1966-toronado/
Both Dick Ruzzin and Dave North responded with comments at that post saying they had never seen it before. I’m inclined to believe them, but I have also noticed some inconsistencies with the memories of various designers if just how certain cars were conceived and created.
Also, I don’t quite see any obvious differences between the front and rear wheel arches.
At the post I linked to above, Dick Ruzzin responded in a comment, which included this about the influence of the Cord 810. He kind of contradicts himself, but there’s no doubt the 810 did have a significant influence, including the grille. I think he’s trying a wee bit too hard to downplay that. It’s just too obvious.
THE CORD 810 INFLUENCE
At the beginning of the program there was a natural tendency to identify with the Cord 810, because of its front wheel drive and clean simple design, as an influence on theToronado. The Cord 810 was then and is now outstanding. Bill Mitchell made it clear that he did not want to see design elements from any “old cars” being considered.
Other than a strong and smooth design statement, the hidden headlights that were more Corvette-like and the final wheel design the influence became relatively minor. It never was an important factor. The wheels were originally designed in cast aluminum but at that time un-affordable even on a premium car.
We felt strongly that designed functional steel wheels without full hubcaps were the appropriate direction to take. That is when we turned to a picture that I had and we used the Cord wheel design for inspiration. The fine bright chrome blades in the grill opening could also be seen as like the Cord, it had fine metal blades wrapping horizontally across its front and onto the sides of its hood.
I think that the Cord 810 may have been an engineering inspiration more than a design inspiration. Stan Wilen and John Beltz were very close and there is no doubt in my mind that they both appreciated the Cord for its engineering achievement and as a strong design statement.
Dick Ruzzin
The rear arches are somewhat deeper than the fronts; it shows up in the rear three-quarter view and to some extent in profile, but you’d never notice it if you weren’t looking for it. I never thought about it until I read the book; there were some interesting insights that I hadn’t known.
This vintage Toro has never been for me personally, but it’s still a fantastic car design wise and for other reasons. Just not my taste in style.
However, I came here not about that, but about the fact that the chart shows 15 different colors!! Today we are lucky if the standard vehicle comes in 5 to 8 colors and some of those are just different shades of gray.
Bring back cars! Bring back color choices!
Amen Dan. (Same for interior colors while we’re at it, though not nearly as important as exterior).
I feel like there will be a turning point to the lame colors these days… It’s coming.
Let’s hope!
The Toronado was a stunning car in the day and remains so now… hope you get one, looks good in almost any color! My friend’s family had the blue one (at the top of your story). My favorite of those years was the 1966-67 Riviera…. worked the summer after I graduated HS for an auto dealer and it was my job to drive various cars into NYC. One of those drives was in a 1967 Riviera – I believe it was my best elapsed time into the city ever (hey, I was a teenager). That would probably be the car I’d want to add to the stable (but not if I want to stay married!).
The 1966-67 Riviera is not too far down the list compared to the Toronado; it’s a beautiful car.
The CC effect is strong: while walking the dog a few minutes ago, a Tropic Turquoise Toronado drove past us! I loved the colour, which is so 1960s.
I miss colourful cars. Now we are stuck with black, white, silver and grey. One of the reasons I bought my present car is that it is blue.
I understand it is cheaper to offer only a few different colours. Some automakers add like a $700 charge for any “specialty” colour.
There’s a GMC/Buick/Cadillac dealer within walking distance of my house, and last year, I noticed that on Buicks, every color I could find aside from basic white was an additional $400 or something like that.
Great overview, and seeing a Toronado in Ebony Black means thinking of….
I’m not exactly sure what to say about that, but whoever’s driving that Toronado, I’m not messing with them. 🙂
It’s quite a character in the 1993 movie ‘The Dark Half’.
https://www.imcdb.org/v021869.html
On the subject of color, I worked in deathcare for several decades and miss the different liveries funeral homes used to use. Now it’s black, silver or white. In St Louis there was Kriegshauser blue, light metallic blue with navy top, Kutis gold (which they still use, refreshingly enough), Alexander & Sons maroon, Hoffmeister used black lead cars and limousines, and the coaches were always jewel tones, green, blue or red, so you always knew when Richard Hoffmeister bought new coaches, Schrader blue, sort of a slate blue with navy sailcloth tops. There’s no variety any more.
Trumpet Gold or Autumn Bronze. Get two colors and you finally have a Baker’s Dozen which is your goal.
We have to save room for a 1940-41 Lincoln Continental, too. And probably a Studebaker GT Hawk someday (no big hurry on that one).
How refreshing to see such a range of colours.
Tropic Turquoise for me, thank you. Who’s paying? 🙂
That’s the question I always ask, too!
Frost green is my favourite – I think it would suit many cars. The Toronado is a remarkably timeless design.
I always think it’s interesting to look at brochures, as they show you how the manufacturer wanted the car to be seen.
http://outrightolds.com/PDFBrochure/1966OldsmobileToronado.pdf
I might be the only person on this website that doesn’t like the Tornado at all in any way.
Weird styling, weird exaggerated curves…
And then, it’s front wheel drive, heavy cast iron engine up front, automatic transmission, super heavy boat that performs and handles poorly.
Just my thoughts…
I was a teenager when the ’66 Toronado debuted, so witnessed all of the hype and of course fully bought into it. I still think it’s a stunning car, and that first year is the one to have.
I’m a fan of blue, turquoise or green in general, so Lucerne Blue, Tropic Turquoise or Ocean Green would be my choice in that order. Still, that Dubonnet looks great as well! I’d choose Parchment for the interior of each (not available with Lucerne Blue, so a blue interior in that case).
Good luck in your search!
Thanks! Sometimes the search is the fun part, so I enjoyed compiling this.
Its hard to pick just one, they are all nice, I actually like the Almond Beige, but with a Maroon interior please.
I aways think of Stephen King’s character, “High Toned Son of a Bitch” when I see these cars.
Johannes mentioned that above, too. I’m starting to feel like the only one who didn’t get that reference, but I’ve never been much of a Stephen King guy. I don’t like horror books or films.
Something I never thought of til today. So, the front overhang is CRAZY from the side profile, but when ya see the front, it seems like about HALF of that overhang is just in the “bladed” fenders.
Of course, Toronado NEEDS those fenders to complete the look. Just lookin is all.
1)Tropic Turquoise
2)Autumn Mist
for me .
White n Beige are my least faves. But seems to be the trend.
So many great color choices back then. Now you’re lucky to get 4 or 5.
If I were to buy an FWD Toronado, I’d be a bit concerned about repairability, I understand this FWD series of cars were thoroughly tested and proved very reliable.
Thanks for the great post!
I remember the multiple car magazine articles when these cars came out. It took me decades to find a “Deluxe” model that was super clean underside. For me, “White” or a light color did not allow you to see the sheetmetal lines. “Trumpet Gold” was too many out there. About 20 years ago I purchased a “Dubonet” inside and outside car with only 46,000 original miles. Yes it needed alitlle of this and that. I conside this the cleanest underside of my collector cars. I had it mediablasted and even the vendor commented on how clean the car was and how it came out.