1966 GTO 421??

[Bobcat]

In 1966 the vin was not stamped into the block. The block number was a unit number that would only be on the paper work. Numbers matching was not an issue at the factory. The date codes are within an exceptable span with most purists. If you look your engine over the heads are not nessarily the same date and time and rarely is the head the same as the block date. The assemblers aren't going to take the time to check date codes or casting #'s. '66 Cars may have
one 092 head and one 093. What than? Tell me would you have noticed? I doubt it. If you had an early or late car you got a hadge podge of parts. They used whatever was in the bin and fit was used.

[copo9566aa]

Welcome Bobcat [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/burnout.gif[/img]
Cool and funny the world of Pontiac and Royal Bobcat [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]
Very special history [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beers.gif[/img]

[DaJudge]

Good info on both posts Bobcat. The official stance from the factory and publications are that no 421's or 428's were factory installed. Special dealers like Royal etc. installed these engines for customers as an upgrade or upcharge. Unless it can be substantially documented as such you would have to agree that a GTO with this conversion would be an incorrect restoration. I disagree with your expanation of non-matching vin numbers in cars and that if one was off the whole line would suffer. One engine may be outfitted for A/C and power steering etc for a vehicle. If the next vehicle in line had or was missing these options the accessory mounting brackets are different as are balancer pulleys and water pump pulleys. Pictures that I have seen show all accessories on the engine before installation into the chassis. The workers would create bigger problems for themselves and really slow down production if they followed your explanation. My friend owned a 70 RA III Judge that was an original paint car and never touched a real survivor by the strictest definition of the term. It had three build sheets and only three owners. The car was ordered as a RA IV but came through as a III. The last digit was a 5 like a IV block should be but was coded a RA III WS block. The VIN on the block and trans was one digit off from the VIN plate. When the VIN number on the block and trans was submitted to PHS it was run through every possible vehicle series . The VIN on the block and trans came back "does not exist" from PHS. The engine and trans never left the engine bay on this car ever. This is an example of a factory mistake that from what I am told happened more than once.

[Bobcat]

I forgot to answer your important question. I have no idea where you saw brackets and VIN's on enigines in the pre computer age. But the Pontiac plant used a guy by the name of Emanuel Labor. He would wait until the already installed drive train suspension etc. was about to be mated to the now desending body shell. ON the body cowl would be a paper with punch marks and a VIN number. He would set his metal hand punch and first head to the left rear frame behind the wheel arch, top rail and punch in that VIN number, as his cousin Manuel Labor would punch the same VIN number into the block. There would also be a VIN punched into the firewall behind the heater box as the body was mounted onto the frame. As the unit went down the line others would read the cowl sheet, frame sheet, interior sheet trunk sheet and put the other door post or dash VIN in with star rivets and the items, OLD CONCEPT here, would be read Manual and Emanuals cousins down the line. While at their respective places they read the sheet and hand pick from the bins behind them the item/ brackets needed to hand assemble the car. Wrong engine, right VIN #. Too simple isn't it.
There is a new book at Borders and Barns and Noble in their Automotive section showing the old assembly line and just how the lines ran. Go thumb through it, it's fasinating for people who are not firmiliar with auto plant manufacturing. It will hopefully help you better understand.
I'm affraid to even tell you about the foreman that would walk cars down the line to make sure options not ordered were put on cars for VIP's or friends. Or in the case of many special Royal Pontiac cars, they made sure that sound deadening and dumb dumb where omitted. And no, these were not caught in final inspection back than. No one had time to look over the entire list. And NO Jim Mattison would NOT have record of this in his Historic Services.
The inspectors just made sure the cars ran off the line. Only one in maybe 20 cars probably more where pulled for assembly quality inspection and moved into the 100% (Reliablity) garage behind the plant. That was more for defects than to catch add ons. Like miss matched shocks. Leaky intakes, not working heaters, lights or air conditoning. The guards would just make sure that nothing loose was in the cars unless they saw hand written instuctions, like headers in trunk for the '67 Z-28's.

[Steve_Hoog]

More excellent info [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

[Belair62]

Great info....where the heck have you been ?

[Steve_Hoog]

OK Coppo I wanna know the story behind this gem of a photo, cough up the goods [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

[Pantera]

That is great I have never seen the fixture that GM used to pickup the motors. Makes it easier to understand the brackets that came on the motors from the factory. I had something totally different in my mind.
[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/worship.gif[/img]

[Steve_Hoog]

Sorry Copo... I was in such awe over the pic, I didn't scroll down to see the caption.