With some great help from 64hardtop I think we have figured out what the engine in our car is. We think it's a 283 equipped with the (new for '64) 327 double-hump heads bringing compression up to 9.25:1. I checked the engine deck stamp last night and it's V299349. I'm gonna start checking myself but can anybody save me time? And if it is that block/head combo does anybody know if they raised the hp rating with the higher compression heads or was it still rated at 195. Whatever it is it does have duals and a 4 bbl now and with the Cherry Bombs it sure sounds sweet..(we had it out last night...)
I don't know my 283 heads real well so I could be wrong but I thought the 327 hump heads had a chamber size the same or close to the 283 head. If so, the compression would not change.
Your engine will be easy to decipher if you can get the casting number off the back of the block behind the driver's side head. Would you like me to post a picture of where to look for the casting?
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
I just read the page posted in the other thread. Now I have to dig into that. I may have learned something again! I didn't know there was ever a 283 with 327 heads in a B body. I thought it was only Corvette.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
..same here Carl. That shop manual page that Randy posted is the first time I've ever actually seen documentation stating that 327 heads were installed on some 283's. Yeah, I'd really appreciate the engine pic...thanks...my deck no. won't help me, eh??
I just did some reading and I can't find a 327 head with a smaller chamber than 60cc (common size on 283). I still am not convinced that statement about higher compression is correct.
I will go take a block picture and be back in a bit.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
...thanks a bunch Carl. I'm still pretty sure we have a 283 because the engine did look pretty original with the 2 bbl and single exhaust, it doesn't have a Thermo-Static fan and it seems to run fine on reg. gas. My sense is that if was a 327 a lot of things would be pointing in another direction. I'll have to get that rear block no.
With some great help from 64hardtop I think we have figured out what the engine in our car is. We think it's a 283 equipped with the (new for '64) 327 double-hump heads bringing compression up to 9.25:1. I checked the engine deck stamp last night and it's V299349. I'm gonna start checking myself but can anybody save me time? And if it is that block/head combo does anybody know if they raised the hp rating with the higher compression heads or was it still rated at 195. Whatever it is it does have duals and a 4 bbl now and with the Cherry Bombs it sure sounds sweet..(we had it out last night...)
64ragtop
does pad look like this??? this has engine munber and vin of vehicle
no idea were that came from, canadian pontiacs only used the numeric idetification systems on the small blocks and inline engine im not sure about the big blocks. i posted some codes in different places, i do know that 65s use the 64 numbers and i have seen some 63 using the system and 66 also follow the same codeing . if you look in the front of your servce manual it shows some of the codes and were they can be found. when i dig up more number ill post them. the first two are the transmition the next two are year and egine type the last for is the production run. as far as power pack 283 and 327 250 hp only. no 283 ever came with double bumps in canada unless someone replaced them the chamber size would kill what little compression a 283 has 9.0 if you are lucky. dont go by printed liturature they are optomistic at best. power packs come in two flavors big and small chamber the small chamber is 59cc the big is 64 or so. the earlier one can be smaller but im not dealing with that can of worms.and as far as running on pump gas i can run up to 11.5 comfortably on 89octane so thats really not a good indicator. Casting numbers tell you what engine it is and when it was cast stamp codes tells you were it belongs and what it was optioned with. a cheat sheet .
...thanks. Based on what you've said I'm still confused as to these double-hump heads and whether it's a 283 or a 327. I'm going to get that number off the back of the block to confirm. It just seemed strange to me that a 327 double-humper would come with a 2 bbl and single exhaust. But like I said to Carl, who knows who did what to it over 46 years..? It might not even be the original engine (but I thini it is...).
Strato-Flash (standard V-8) 283 - "V" or "9V" preceding engine serial # Astro-Flame (optional V-8) 327 - "D" or "9D" preceding engine serial #
1963 & 1964 - 283 & 327 - 250 HP - heads part # 3817680 1964 - 327 - 300 HP - heads part # 3817681
For 1965 - all 283s - heads part # 3817680 For 1965 - all 327s - heads part # 3817681
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Prince Edward Island
'64 Parisienne CS "barn find" - last on the road in '86 ... Owner Protection Plan booklet, original paint, original near-mint aqua interior, original aqua GM floor mats, original 283, factory posi, and original rust.
I find this stuff very interesting. Did the Canadian Pontiac ever change to a letter suffix code similar to the chevy codes ? So the V in 64ragtops number is for 283 ?
-- Edited by Beaumont4008 on Tuesday 30th of March 2010 06:01:33 PM
as far as the part book numbers are they are part numbers not casting numbers, if you pull your valve covers you find casting numbers it will give you a casting date and the casting of the head ie what the head is the last three numbers are whats important double bumps came in all sorts of incarnations 461 462 291 etc 461 are found up to 65 starting in 62. power packs for up to 65 are 896, so check those as far as V codes letter codes never have i seen them that a chevy thing the ones i have delt with 63 66 use the numeric codes. this is not to say they didnt switch prior to 63 or after66 but i dont deal with that group so anyone haveing an original engine chime in with your numbers.
I had a fellow in Seaforth talk about a 396 that had a Canadian Pontiac suffix...
I always presumed that the engines in Canadian Pontiacs and Beaumonts and Acadians were GM and used the same suffix numbers as GM used in their chevrolet products... IF they used a separate set of numbers (I don't know why they would) then, would that, ever be a neat list to have...
Carl1 says his motor is a Acadian motor maybe he has a non chevy GM suffix list??
..yeah, so as I pretty much suspected, it's a 283. Makes sense with the 2 bbl and single. I'll still check the rear engine no. I had no idea that GM installed the double-hump 327 heads on 283's. Just about everything I've read on this subject said they didn't. But you learn something new every day. The guy who sold us the car tols us emphatically it was a 327 because of the heads, and I didn't disbelieve him. And I'm sure he really thought he was correct..!
Thanks for everyone's help...you guys are all awesome. I'll let you know what the rear block no. gives us..
