SRM

iTrader: (4)

As a teen I owned 2 TAs:

'79 w/400 motor out of a 75 pontiac, auto with 2:41 gears. Stock motor with headers and dual exhaust. Tranny I believe was a th350

'79 w/455 motor from a 69 pontiac w/minor work, auto, th350, 3:73's ttops, power windows, tilt

One thing I loved about the big blocks, they made a lot of torque!

chief455

iTrader: (21)

I love the true Pontiac motors also - nice cars!
Need to be clear though...
1. Pontiac V8 block size was neither big or small. Since 1955 all cubic inches were changed by bore/stroke. The only difference in the blocks to mention are the 421,428 and 455 had 3.25" main journal cranks while the 400 and smaller cubes had a 3.00" journal. All else is interchangeable - except the 301 the bastard son of smog laws.
2. The 455 was introduced in 1970 after the 428 was dropped.
I know - who cares, but....

Apostle

I care.
I was totally in love with Pontiac's motors until I got an LS1. Unbelievable. However, had Pontiac been allowed to keep their own motors and used the same technology, the torque would have been unreal. They already made gobbs of it to begin with. I also think it's funny when people refer to their Poncho motors as big blocks.

y2k_ta

iTrader: (80)

My old rides were an '82 Citation and an '88 Camaro.....if you can call them old.

chief455

iTrader: (21)

Amen, Brother

I love my LS1 also because the broad range of useable power and strong pull all the way up the rpms.
BUT - I just got out of my 69 Bird with the 'lil 455 and single carb with 3.73 gears. AAHHHHH!! What a feeling. For 30 years age difference the attraction still remains. I wish women had that staying power...

Just Floor It

Really?....So does that mean a 350(Pontiac) is the same size as a 455 on the outside?

Apostle

that would be a yes.

-=1984Dreamer=-

Man, ya learn something new every day

chief455

iTrader: (21)

Yes. Since 1955 the V8 blocks maintained the same outsde dimensions. Looking under a Pontiac hood you see a large motor - that could be a 210 hp 326!
After 1965 even the cylinder heads and intake manifolds interchange - regardless of cubic inches. The thing to keep in mind when swapping is what the result will be. Such as a 400 crank will fit into a 326 block and the rods are the same. But 400 pistons are a larger bore and different pin height. Using 400 heads on a 455 block is a bolt on. But early 400's had 72cc chambers which would make around 11.5:1 on a 455 with flat top pistons. This was a common swap when high octane fuel was around. Imagine a 400 with stock 8:1 compression from say 1978. Swap a set of late 455 heads on and due to the even larger chamber the ratio is now around 7:1 - oops!

Just Floor It

Hmmm...Thats interesting,

Thanks for the input