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Old 05-13-2022, 12:08 PM
poncho-mike poncho-mike is online now
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Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: Raleigh, NC
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I knew a guy in the 1980s that had a 1966 GTO with a 400HO and a tripower. He was the original owner and claimed the factory built it that way. Eventually he slipped up and said he paid the dealership to install the tripower. It was disproved totally by accident because he accidentally let me see the original intake & carb. At one time he also owned a 64 Pontiac with a 421 tripower. He wrecked the car, but saved the engine. He was showing me the 421 when I saw the 67 intake and carb sitting on a nearby shelf.

There are some oddities. I parted out a 1969 GTO that the PHS shows it was sold to Pontiac engineering. It had a 428 with a 455 crank with the p/n stamped in. The head part numbers were also stamped in, and the block was a 428 4-bolt with no SR or any VIN numbers, and the carb had no stamped numbers. I suspect it was built as a test mule for the 1970 455. It also has a 12-bolt rear end.

I parted out a one owner 1971 Trans Am automatic with a/c that was a very early build. It has a 3.07 12-bolt posi. I suspect the 12-bolt was more of a case where Pontiac was trying to use up excess 1970 parts.

I had a 1972 Trans Am 4-spd with a SD short block assembly. The owner claims he blew up two engines under warranty and forced the dealer to put the SD short block in after the second engine blew. The block had no VIN or SR number at all, and was a January 1973 casting and used the SD distributor. Who knows whether he paid extra or actually forced the dealership to eat the cost, it really didn't matter.

The VIN number would tell you if the original engine was a 400 or 455.