1966 Pontiac LeMans V8 Swap - Lo-Po6 to H.O. 326

Some father-and-son resto projects are easy, others are a challenge, but a few will test the knowledge and skill of all involved due to their shear enormity. For 49-year-old Jim Roberts of Mount Laurel, New Jersey, and his son, Jimmy, this LeMans represents the latter.

Sure it's gorgeous now, this Cameo Ivory '66 ragtop fitted with a 326 H.O. engine, Turbo 350 trans, 2.93:1 rear, and bodywork so straight it tricks the viewer into believing this was an easy resto. Truth be told however, this $500, six-cylinder, two-speed/automatic LeMans was a mess when it was first purchased in 1997. Obtained from a high school friend, Jim realized the depth of its dilapidation only after he got his new Pontiac home. "I bought the car after seeing it in a poorly lit garage," he tells HPP. "When it was towed home, I couldn't believe how bad it was. We had to replace almost every body panel and the frame. The only pluses were the excellent floorpans and trunk. Although the car wasn't rotted, it was banged up, had filler three-quarter-inch thick on the passenger quarter, and the frame was bent under the passenger-side floor!"

This wasn't a project for the faint of heart or those lacking mechanical and autobody skills, not to mention intimate knowledge of Pontiacs. Did I tell you that son Jimmy is a bodyman by trade and Jim is an auto mechanic? Also, Jim has owned a '66 Tri-Power GTO since 1977 and has had GTOs (two '68s, a '67, and a '65) in his life at different times since age 19, so the qualifications for the job ahead were solid for both father and son.

A four-door parts car provided a 326 two-barrel engine and another two-speed Super Turbine 300 trans for the buildup. Combined with spare parts collected from past Pontiacs and lots of reproduction parts from Ames, the project was underway. A used frame was sourced from a fellow Delaware Valley Old Goat Club member and was restored. "My son and I did all the bodywork in our spare time," Jim tells HPP. "We had the new top installed and painted the car on July 4th weekend in 1999."

In March of 2002, Jim bought another '66 LeMans parts car without realizing it actually had a 326 H.O. engine in it. The powerplant sat in his garage for three years before it was sent to MAR Automotive Machine in Philadelphia for a rebuild. The YP-code block was bored .030-over and fitted with KB Silvolite pistons wrapped in Sealed Power rings and pinned to stock cast rods that connect to a factory crank, cut 0.010/0.010 to clean up the journals. A Melling high-volume oil pump sends oil to cool the Clevite bearings, and an 068-spec cam from Crane, featuring 288/302-degrees duration and 0.408/0.407 lift with the stock stamped-steel 1.50:1 rockers, and valvetrain was installed for a muscular idle and more power. The No. 95 heads received a three-angle valve job and were machined for PC seals.