[77TA406]

I just picked up a 1962 Pontiac 389 for the low, low price of FREE. Heads are 538177 and the block is a 35M. Can someone tell me a little bit about this era of Pontiac engine? Block strenght, head performance capability, etc. I read somewhere, where early cranks had shorter snouts. Is this true or is the crank useable with current balancers and front covers. Any help or information would be greatly appreciated.
Chris

[Stuart]

It's a 287hp engine from an automatic transmission car, single 2 barrel carburetor, compression ratio of 10.25:1.

[gtoric]

The production log I have lists 35M as a 283 h.p, 389 c.i., 2bb, auto, for Taxi & Police usage. 25,653 units were made in '62.

[77TA406]

Thanks for the info. I see that same head # was used on many 389's right up to the 350 hp versions. Any info on block quality, web thickness, etc. How 'bout the crank? Are the early cranks worse/better than the 60's and early 70's N cranks. Just trying to determine if these parts are good for a future performance build.
Chris

[Ollie]

Are the motor mounts on the side? 62 bell housing bolt pattern is different.

[Firedup6975]

You might want to post this in the Tech forums, there are members here who don't post in the lobby but do in the tech forums. You might get more replies and help just sayin lol.

[Stuart]

Originally Posted by Ollie

Are the motor mounts on the side? 62 bell housing bolt pattern is different.

Motor mounts are the same as later blocks, as is the bell housing bolt pattern except for the starter - on a 62 it bolts to the transmission instead of the engine block. That's the biggest obstacle with a 1963 or earlier block, to use it you either have to have the proper bellhousing with provisions for a starter (for a manual transmission) or an adapter plate (for a modern automatic transmission.)

[77TA406]

Originally Posted by Stuart

Motor mounts are the same as later blocks, as is the bell housing bolt pattern except for the starter - on a 62 it bolts to the transmission instead of the engine block. That's the biggest obstacle with a 1963 or earlier block, to use it you either have to have the proper bellhousing with provisions for a starter (for a manual transmission) or an adapter plate (for a modern automatic transmission.)

Thanks for all the information. Anyone know if it is possible to drill and tap the block so the starter can be mounted in the same location as the later blocks?

[Stuart]

There's nothing really there on that part of the block to drill and tap into on the earlier engines. I suppose a machinist could come up with some sort of device to marry the early engine block to a late model starter, but one of the commercially available adapter plates is the most straightforward solution. You can get them from Wilcap or from Bendtsen's, http://www.wilcap.com/ or http://transmissionadapters.com/ but they're not particularly cheap.