Pontiac V8 Engines - Photographing Legends

Here's a glimpse of the final stages of engine production. Most likely on the "Engine Trim" portion of the assembly line, a worker is installing some of the last components this code-Y8 '73 Super-Duty 455 needs before being sent on for vehicle production. Notice the heavy overspray that's accumulated on the hooks suspending this engine and the standard-production code-ZN '73 400ci engine following it. This might be further proof that the Super-Duty engines were painted the same color as other mid-year '73 engines.

Pontiac provided this photograph to Hot Rod magazine for its March '68 article on the Division's overhead cam (OHC) engines. One of Pontiac's first "cammer" engines, this particular engineering mule was built in late 1963 using a basic 389ci block. It was fitted with unique four-valve cylinder heads that house dual-overhead camshafts (DOHC) and a special cross-ram intake manifold fitted with sequential-port fuel injection. The project never progressed beyond developmental testing, but it shows just how serious Pontiac was about performance in the early '60s.

It's rumored that three SOHC 421ci engines were produced in the early '60s and this particular unit appears to be one that Pontiac saved. It was presented to Chief Engine Engineer Malcolm McKellar upon his retirement and was nestled under the hood of his personal '63 Grand Prix for years. McKellar recalled that during testing, the SOHC engines seemingly produced around 625 hp and were capable of turning 7,000 rpm. Though difficult to depict here, what appears to be a series of typical Tri-Power carburetors is actually an experimental single six-barrel unit that Engineering tested for the '67 model year when GM banned the use of multiple carburetion.

Though the 301 was introduced in '77 as Pontiac's attempt at a lightweight V-8, aimed at maximum fuel economy, the Division's final high-performance V-8 came when a turbocharger was added to it. Generating around 200 hp, the 301 Turbo was limited to the '80-'81 Firebird Formula and Trans Am, and was backed by an automatic transmission and 3.08 gears. This particular 301ci Turbo is oddly equipped with a manual-transmission bellhousing. It was likely added for photographic purposes only.

Wildly popular with factory-performance enthusiasts today is Pontiac's tunnel-port Ram Air V. Featuring cylinder heads with large, round intake ports and separate, equal-length exhaust ports, and fed by a Holley carburetor, many novice hobbyists are unaware that such an engine was ever produced. Never installed into a production vehicle, some reports claim that a number of complete R/A-V engines were sold to the public through dealership parts departments. This photograph of a fully-dressed R/A-V engine is complete with carburetor, distributor, and exhaust manifolds.

Though we're told this color photo is from later, the '63 model year to be exact, it represents the point where typical engine production begins. The sand casts being positioned on the foundry line are used in conjunction with a formed mold to produce a raw cast-iron Pontiac block, which was sent to Plant 9 for complete machining. This included the cylinders, cam and crankshaft journal and lifter bores, oiling passages, and all surfaces that mate with other components, as well as drilling and tapping specific points to accept fasteners.

A line worker installs the crankshaft main-journal bearings. Notice by this point on the assembly line that the main cap and cylinder head locating-pins, coolant and oil passage plugs, and camshaft and bellhousing are already installe

The crankshaft and flywheel are dropped in place by a two-man team, and the main caps follow. You may notice the hand-written letters on the block that coincidentally align with each cylinder. These letters, which progress alphabetically beginning with "A," actually represent a categorized range of minute differences in bore diameter. The pistons are categorized in an identical manner and the letters serve to signal to line workers which size piston is required for each cylinder. A piston and connecting rod assembly of proper specification is then installed into each cylinder as the engine moves down the line.

The completed short-block gets rotated 180-degrees just before the cylinder heads are installed (shown in background). This particular worker is responsible for installing the valvetrain components and is shown setting the stamped-steel rocker arms in place.

The engine is nearing completion at this point as line workers install the cast-iron intake manifold, carburetor, and other ancillary pieces, such as the fuel pump and oil-filter housing. From here it is likely that certain components are masked off and the engine is painted. It is then finished, tested, and sent to the assembly line for installation into a designated vehicle.

This particular photograph is also associated with said Hot Rod magazine article and depicts a single OHC (SOHC) variant of Pontiac's DOHC mill. Developed around 1964 using a basic , the single OHC approach was thought to be much simpler to produce and maintain. The cylinder heads feature a traditional two-valve-per-cylinder layout, and accept typical intake and exhaust manifold arrangements. Under the black-wrinkle finished front cover resides a nylon timing-belt, which is commonly associated with virtually any modern production OHC engine.