Even while operating within the huge conglomerate that is (was) GM, the divisions all strived to retain some semblance of their earlier identity or develop a separate identity. Even with continued mounting to conform (within reason) to use standard tooling and
engines parts out of the GM bins they strove to be unique.
The Pontiac division made this effort “job one” with slightly different body parts and paint schemes (Trans Am paint schemes). What I think made them standout was the effort to stuff unique power plants in their offerings’ engine bays.
With this in mind, I selected Pontiac’s 326 CID engine. This short production run engine had some special Detroit steel wrapped around it. But we’ll get to its uses and an interesting note about its purpose as related to circumventing a rule or two.
- The 326 (restored)
This engine came about as a need to replace Pontiac’s aluminum 215 V8 engine. (It was actually built by Buick.) It was expensive to
build and not well received by the public, most just couldn’t get over the aluminum part and worried about durability and even about the ability for it to
say lubricated and whether coolant would eat way at the aluminum. Of course we not differently now where aluminum is desired in many, especially with heads.
- The 215 Aluminum (Buick built)
Coming up how – Pontiac used the 326 – a unique dealer trick that put this engine between the fenders of famous car and the difference between a 326 and a 327.
Thanks for reading.
Tim
Here’s a little known fact about the Pontiac 326. In 1963 the engine in the Tempest (not sure of other models) actually had 336 cubic inches. Chevrolet was “agast” at the boldness of Pontiac one upping them on the Corvette’s 327 so GM forced Pontiac in to calling it a 326 vice a 336. In 1964 the engine was really a 326. Any how that’s how I heard the story and at least part is true, the part that the engine was in fact a 336.
Another fact is that Pontiac never produced a “big block”. All Pontiac V8’s from the first Pontiac OHV V8 were dimensionally the same externally. One can argue about various GM engines being installed in the Pontiacs in the late 70’s and early 80’s but indeed those designed by Pontiac were not big block engines. Additionally Pontiac had several different cylinder head designs thus providing different power options. They would mix and match various heads and intake manifolds allowing for varying HP options while still using the same block, stroke and bore. This is especially true for the 389 and 421 engines.
hi, i’ve never heard of the chevy reaction in 38 years of studing GM’s history. pontiac was violating GM’s rule of limiting cubic inches of cars smaller than fullsize to one cubic to every ten pounds of car’s weight, so cars like pontiac’s tempest/lemans, buick’s special/skylark, old’s cutlass/f85, and chevy’s chevelle/malibu were limited to 330 cubic inch displacement. pontiac marketed the 336 as a 326, and after some time, someone in GM fiqured out the actual bore and stroke made 336 cid. pontiac had to change the 336 down to the 326. then for 1964, pontiac (thank you john delorean) created an option for the lemans, the GTO option, since the standard lemans engine obeyed the limit rule, there was nothing in the rule saying you couldn’t offer an optional extra cost, bigger engine. can you say 389 cid, 348 horsepower ?, oh yes, turn it on, wind it up, blow it out, GTO.
Thanks Charles. That’s great info. Thanks for stopping my blog.
At 70’s and 80’s Pontiac V8 was the popular car that has been also sold largely.