Most 455's come with a cast iron crank, but for some reason (maybe the additional stress of being FWD) Olds put forged steel cranks in the Toronados. If I remember correctly, the HP is also up a little from the 455's put in other models of Olds for those years. The steel crank really isn't needed until you get up in HP a little but they are just nice to have. The cylinder heads may also be better in this model too.

We put a steel crank in the 455 we built for my Son's '29. These things are just torque monsters and even that big old Toronado was no slouch in it's day. Yes, the do love gasoline, but most big block anythings do.

If you really like the car then that should be reason enough to check it out. I think they are cool, and when was the last time you saw one running around?

Don