[Sirrotica]

Originally Posted by 326HO-Lemans

Anyone ever hear of late 64 GTOs with factory 326HO motors instead of 389s?
Supposedly they ran out of 389 motors??

You have to stop and think this through, if none of the parts manuals (aftermarket, or factory) never had a notation about a GTO with a factory installed 326HO engine in them, it never happened. Also the many consumer agencies would have made it known that you didn't get what you paid for, when you bought your new 64 GTO. If they ran out of engines for the GTO, then the B body cars, that used the same engine as the GTO, would have also run out, they never got any 326 HOs in full size cars either.

Another thing that rings as a lie is they made substantially less numbers of 326 HO engines than they did 389s, where would the surplus have come from since 326 HO engines are about as scarce as hens teeth, and always have been a very low production option.

Pontiac did advertise a 389 engine in 1964, it's what made the GTO the first mass produced original musclecar. A homologation of parts from one car maker, that's what GTO stands for loosely translated. Take an engine intended for the full size car line, and put it in an intermediate chassis. Putting an intermediate engine in an in intermediate chassis is called a Tempest/Lemans.

I've never heard that rumor in all the years I've owned Pontiacs, raced Pontiacs, and made my living working on cars. I've always specialized in working on Pontiacs during the last 50 years and this is the first encounter with that rumor.`

I have run into GTOs with 326s installed after the owner kicked the rods out of the OEM 389 that came in the car, but those cars did originally have a 389.

I'd classify this as an unsubstantiated rumor, that has zero basis on truth.