I was able to remove the non-existent battery tray, and replace it with a high quality AMD unit. The vintage PA plate was the battery tray.
I also replaced the battery cables with NOS Delco units.
Next is to pull the distributor, change the oil, pre-oil the engine, clean the fuel system, replace plugs/wires/points, then see if this 455 is a good unit.
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1976 LeMans B09 Freeway Enforcer, 455/M40 Smokey
1977 Trans Am, 400/M21 Black/Gold Bandit. 44K actual miles
2017 Sierra SLT 1500 Z71 4X4
2019 Canyon SLT Crew 4X4
