Thank you for explaining the whole "big block" Pontiac thing. As I die hard Pontiac guy, it's like hearing nails on a chalkboard when people say it's a big block!
Glad You're doing a Pontiac. I've been a Pontiac guy for 30+ years. currently building a 92 formula with a turbo 5.3. Next will be my 80 trans am that'll be getting a 455.
Also, when that jerk in the corner pipes up(the air compressor), go silent for a bit to catch the noise, then you can use your audio editor's noise reduction with that noise you captured as the profile and you can pretty much kill it off and keep going if you don't want to re-shoot. You can do this when you start filming somewhere with constant noise you can't control too, like fans, pumps, etc. if you just capture 5 seconds or so of ambient noise. Keep an eye on your stereo levels in post too and turn any mono segments into stereo. Lots of UA-camrs miss these two.
@@TheMerc1950 hey either way, pursuit of audio perfection or measurement perfection is a lifestyle, not a single goal, Hahah. The dang 10 thousandths variations are rough
I'm really happy to see you figured out the sound. It makes the production value loads better. I feel you need a helper though. Put a cardboard cut out of Lucky up in the backround with a button in his hand so when you high five him it says some random Luckyism like "cookie break" or something.
Agreed! I just found this channel, love the concept of the build, and Tony has always been one of my favorites to listen to. This channel will go far with good builds and Tony at the helm.
Some people used to call these boat anchors right from the factory.. it looks like someone actually sold you their boat anchor.. for the record I love BOp engines and beside the extra expense of building a 600 hp 400 they are totally worth building. This thing is going to be awesome.. and now i don't want to watch anything else but this 400 build..
those who used that label are fans of RPM and don't know what "torque" means, tho obviously the SD and RA4's were ready to rev as well. Pontiacs back before the internet were easy torque monsters right out of the junkyard. grab 6x heads, cut certain exhaust manifolds open and port, and a few other tricks and you had more off-idle torque than the average street mouse running a tunnel ram and looking hairy but then can't turn better than 15's. big issue is going to be the armasteel 'rods and the exposed lifter bores. sorta like screwing with Cad472's--a great way to get diesel like torque in your truck before the 502 rat became common.
I'm so glad you're keeping it a Pontiac engine!!! My dad is a HUGE Pontiac fan!! He probably had 20 of them back in his day and is one of the few people that can still work on them. It's getting hard to find someone who can still work on those old Pontiac engines. my first car had a 400 Pontiac engine in it.
The sound is way better. Love it. I am alittle sad you left motortrend. You were the only reason I watched hotrod garage. That show will never be the same now.
I had driven Chevy small blocks most of my life and then I got a 1968 Firebird with a Pontiac 350 HO and the low end tourque surprised me even when the cam had a flat lobe at 100,000+ miles. Even though I had worked at Pontiac dealerships since 1971 and driven many models that surprised me. Money and hard times got it after about five years and my rebuild and I miss that car today.
I've gotta tell ya, I'm pretty much a Mopar guy but, I love to see somebody doing something different for a change! No LS engine! Keeping it all Poncho just seems right! Even your Olds Cutlass build! Keep it up! BTW, your sound system is MUCH better!!👍👍
I love builds like this. Too many car guys are too concerned with doing this the best and most efficient way, sometimes it's just way more fun to work with suboptimal equipment and make something truly special and unique. This is far cooler than LS swap #1,356,783.
I was hoping you'd mention the 481988 vs 500557 as well as the 6X variations since the beginning and you finally mentioned it in the last minutes lol. definitely note worthy details when it comes to Pontiac builds. Love the Pontiac stuff, keep it up!
Nice, I have 77 557 400. .30 over with 1967 #670 heads 10 thousands under on the deck height.. it's going in an 81 Leman's 4 Dr with street strip built th350 and an 86 Grand national 8.5 10 bolt 3:42 posi...fun is. Here's a tip I do. I cut the cast iron intake water jacket off where the thermostat is. Bolt that on by itself if you want change intakes you can without draining coolant.
Yesss..thank you Tony! I have 8 Pontiac 400 engines sitting in TA parts cars in my yard. Nice to see a Pontiac build for the regular guy 😀 Looking forward for the next episode
Just discovered your channel, way cool you are doing a detailed build on a Pontiac V8. I had a 79 Grand Prix back in the day with the shit 301, but I always wanted to swap a 400 in its place. I look forward to your next episode on this build.
I dont remember the old ones having an open area like that by the cam like a Buick motor to save weight but I could be mistaken I had several 400s and a 389 apart and worked on them but that was almost 40 yrs ago
I've gotten all my Pontiac parts and work from Sonny's the Godfather of making Hugh power and high reving BAD AZZ PONTIACS. love the show and really love you are keeping it Pontiac power
love these old birds! can't help but notice you welded a metric nut onto a '70s Pontiac which is downright sacrilege but oh well I'm happy to see people still working on these things! Thank you Tony for taking the time to share it with us.
Last year I responded to a add on Craigslist for Pontiac parts. When I got to the storage barn I found it full of 64, 65, and 66 GTO parts including headliner, stainless, doors oem glass and numerous other goodies including a complete rebuilt 389 done 40 over with all the machine shop specs including torque and hp from the dyno To add icing to the cake there were two 74 400 complete engines that rotated. I've got plans to dump the 389 into my 74 Catalina that has a solid 400 making factory 175 hp. The whole deal cost me1500 and I loaded up two truckloads and a tandem trailer of vintage Poncho stuff. I need a bigger shop I look forward to more from your channel.
Hey great job on the sound, much better. Glad to see you doing a Pontiac motor. Built a bunch of these in the 70's. They are really interchangeable and the heads flow really nice. The valve stem height is very critical, the rockers torque down and have no adjustment. The first one I built was a 326 Tempest with a bigger crank and cam made it a lot of fun. Great job, keep it coming. Going to miss you on Hot Rod Garage, but Alex Taylor is going to be a great asset also.
Thank you Tony for picking a Pontiac. I've had a few Pontiac motors. I love em !! I know them and how they act and respond too what ever you can do too em.there very easy too build up. You can make tons of low end torque that I've seen twist parts into a pretzel shape !!! Yes your right about they don't like too rev very high! But all the positives they bring too your table more than make up for that!!! I've had 326 , 400 , 428 engine's my favorite was my 68-69 428 yk engine. STOCK 370 -390 HP. No mods! If you can't do anything with that your not trying!!! Now that motor was in my 77 TA. I paid 600.00 bucks for. Now after I fixed EVERYTHING THAT WAS DONE WRONG ... AND THERE WAS A TON . The rearend I discovered it was a Detroit locker. I had a buddy check it out just too make sure I wasn't seeing things or just plain delusional . But he said I was right on the money . After looking at the numbers on it we found a 241:1 gear set in it . He was well we should change that . I said whoa and thought no leave it in. Let's build around it so when I built the turbo 400 for it . I had it built for that final drive gear in the rear. So to speak. I was on a very limited budget. Had lots of friends that knew way more than I did. That had built more cars than I've seen pictures of.so working for them I was able too trade labor for work.many hours of junkyard hunting for all the stuff I needed. This was when the SD 455 TA'S had ben around for awhile so you could find parts CHEAP! NOW NO WAY!! when I got it put together it WOULD OUT RUN JUST About ANYTHING ELSE ON MY STREETS. 100 mph my tach read 2600 rpm and I had over 3 " of gas pedal left before it was on the floor .top speed was over 150 but I not too many roads would handle that in my state. And most of the law enforcement in my area knew my car. And would follow me everywhere. Just waiting for me too screw up I got a lot of tickets in that car BUT IT WAS THE MOST FUN I EVER HAD. I Didn't. RACE A 1/4 MILE . I RACED 10 - 30 MILES WHOEVER GOT There FIRST WON. SOMETIMES IT WAS A GENTLEMEN'S BET AND SOMETIMES IT WAS BIG MONEY!! I VERY RARELY LOST!!! I'm 63 now and miss that car so much. I've thought about building 1 more.just too show THAT OLD SCHOOL MUSCLE CAN HOLD ITS OWN. AND BE VERY COMPETITIVE!! good luck and I will be following this.
I'm just putting the finishing touches on a 389 to replace my worn out 400. The 400 will get a full performance build. The 389 is a stock build to use for a couple years. Good luck on your build, it's great to see more Pontiacs being represented!
You can get well over your goal naturally aspirated with a decent 461 and have it very street able too. The sounds are good, we hear you loud and clear Tony. Either way you go congrats on a cool Pontiac build, we salute you!
However after thinking about it, the car originally was built to be a Pontiac powered street freak so you are doing it and it’s creator some real justice by keeping the original hood that will accommodate a cool blower. I for one don’t care for them (big blowers,not a hardcore drag guy)but I fully get it and appreciate your plans. She’s gonna be killer I do know that because you are definitely the real deal and have shown us you are on many occasions!! Keep up the great work Tony! We are So glad you are doing a Pontiac by the way!! It’s definitely time!!!
Your making me want to build up my 400 Pontiac in my 77 Trans Am. I know it has 6X heads and a 8 stamped on a boss above the exhaust port. Now I need to check the block casting # to see if it’s a 988. The torque is amazing for a TH350 / 2.41 rear end ratio. Thanks for the info. 👍
@@normnielsen He's planning on making it a 461 Stroker out of it, adding ported Aluminium heads, a ported Aluminium intake manifold, and a custom made cam to make some power.
Seen you got a pontiac 400. 1975. I have a 1975 pontiac 400 trans that came out of a 1975 trans am. I'm in the commerce tx area. It is a working transmission. Free of charge if you want it swing by the shop here it's all yours bud. Love the content..
Sounds great Tony. I really appreciate you progressing your channel and putting in the time to teach us and take us on your journeys. Love learning about all the old school cool stuff!
Back in the 70s a buddy had a 1967 firebird formula 400 with a 3 speed standard and a hurst factory shifter that thing would go in smoke billowing circles at the drop of a hat with 4 people in it just awesome
Ford has the same problem with WP/Timing cover bolts, I recommend getting some aluminized or stainless bolts for the long ones that go through the timing cover, literally changed my life
I have to say, I really appreciate that when you went into the fast forward, you didn’t put some over bearing tune that blasted in my speakers that made me turn it down!
Tony Sir, welcome to the Poncho Power world! Congratulations on the progress and success of your channel as well. Very impressive! Also in the world of Pontiac you already said the most important thing you could "There are no big blocks and small blocks" ... or Pontiac people will typically fry you ;)
Nice upgrade with the mics, now you need to run a gated compressor and some light EQ in post. Cheaper mics tend to miss bass frequencies or sound like the mic is too far away, so you’ll sound a bit sharp and sibilant. Bring those highs down and the bass up. Compression makes the volume of your voice even throughout the video even when you’re moving around, and using the gate feature will keep some of the noise out- like breathing, cable noise, scratching, footsteps, etc.
Hell yeah! Love these old Pontiac motors, and Butler Performance is the best place for anything go-fast Pontiac! I mean if they can help Big Chief from street outlaws make 1xxx+ HP I'm sure they can get you the stuff to make a mere mortal 7xxhp lol.
If you want to go the road less travelled, high performance a 1980-1981 Pontiac 301 FYI, not all Pontiac V8 are externally the same. The 301 is a low deck engine derived the Pontiac 303 racing engine. The 301 was the last true Pontiac V8. Cheers.
@@countryroadautopartsusa6466 I had no idea. i still have a 1981 black grand am. bought in 1993 with 230,000 miles on it drove it home sat a brick on the gas pedal it ran for almost 30 minutes . walk out of my shop to check on it and it had run out of gas. told the boys working for me to go ahead and pull it and put 1971 455 in it so my wife can drive it 16 miles to work every day. that way she would keep her ass out of my 1967 GTO with 1969 428. it worked to.
I have an all original 301 In my 1980 Grand Prix SJ. 64,000 original miles I love it but I'm looking for something bigger to build but Pontiacs are hard to find In the DMV area
I just got the opportunity to work on a 1977 Pontiac firebird number matching 350 hasn't been turned over or started for 10 years or more. I did all the things to insure that it isn't rotated dry. I rotated it by hand several times then with the starter. Thank you for the video.
Love that you are going Poncho for the Firebird. I just picked up a 70 Tempest T-37 and it came with a 400 Pontiac. Can't wait to follow your build and eventually build mine! And the new mic sounds very nice (insert Borat)!
followed you here from roadkill. im a LS guy and love seeing modern power in old school cars but i definitely enjoy learning about the old school stuff. anything with a bunch of cubic inches and boost is awesome in my book.
Hey man I'm looking forward to the pontiac build and am happy to see you using the pontiac. I turbo'd a factory built 389 with later 6x heads and stock manifolds and it managed to put down 591hp and 770tq to the wheels at 10lbs. These wake right up with boost!
WAY better sound! Glad you showed most of the gritty, grimey process of pulling one of these things apart. Super cool that Butler is on board, this is going to be super cool!
Welcome to the tribe!......you passed the initial initiation of over paying for and tearing down a sludgy 70s pontiac smog engine, congratulations that you didnt break your foot dropping the insanely heavy factory cast iron intake manifold & you didnt forget to get the all timing cover bolts out before trying to pry it off, you sir are in the club😉👍 Part 2 engine assembly involves fighting a persistant timing cover to intake coolant passage leak, not over tightening the valley pan untill it distorts and wont seal, and the advanced level "how the hell tight does the balancer bolt need to go....my torque wrench does not read that high" 😄
In 1995 i tore down a 327chevy that was worse locked up...than that one... stoke bore....060 barely cleaned it up. But i got 8 yrs of amazing service and a hard life out of it. (7,500 rpm with stock rods!) I ❤️ love how you have such an organic environment to work in.. as compared to hotrod garage... where it looks TOO EASY and $$$$$. I respect ❤️ YOUR garage much better from a real hands on perspective. I like the humor in the editing. Im sorry for the disgusting condition of that Pontiac engine... but i greatly value the genuineness of it. Makes for a even sweeter victory. Btw the new microphones sound superb 👌 hot rod from Western Kentucky
Thanks for sticking with a PONTIAC !! They’re the strongest most durable engines ever built. Look what Big Chief on street outlaws run. They’re bad ass engines. Pure Out Natural Terror In A Car
I'm a Pontiac guy...1966 Tempest...bought when I was 19 years old..I'm now 55 year's old... I built a 1975 400 for it back 20 sum odd years ago....406...solid cam... Forged pistons...with the tri port ,6x heads.. Still runs strong today..210 shot of nitrous ...put to it many, many times. 411 gear...she runs great to this day. .never been apart since built...I did it all myself. After whites auto did all machine work... Stock crank n rods out of a 350.....
Sounds good. I going to keep following this build. I've done a couple of old pontiacs back in the day, so, this brings back some good memories. Good luck Tony.
This reminds me of Jan. 1979 when I pulled the 400 out of my GTO to rebuild it for drag racing. I did have the benefit of starting with a running engine.
Great video, Thank you for going step by step and showing us what it's really like to take apart and see the in side of a 400. I'm about to do the same thing to my 78 T/A 400 and I have NO idea what I'm doing, this gives me hope and an idea what it will look like, thank you again
Sounds a ton better. I love this video because it reminds me of every car project I've ever started... bolts 1, 2, and 3 come off easy. Bolt 4 take 5 hours and three trips to the store.
The lesson from the battle of the bolt is always have strip sockets nearby. they work really well and have saved me on plenty of occasions working on rusty garbage. You can get them for cheap at most local auto part stores
I built myself a 461 out of a 74' block with the 6x-4 heads. It's a very stout set up and I got everything from Kauffman Racing. Icon forged .030 flat tops, forged eagle h-beam rods, and an Ohio forged crank matched with a crower cam. Stock heads with that set up with a .480 lift intake & exhaust made 403@4800 and 492@3800, I can't imagine it supercharged but I'll be watching to see how you do it because I'm looking to make more power too! Side note - kauffman makes their own oil filter housings that hug the block more for better header clearance and they take the same filter as a 99-06 5.3l, and as far as the rear end goes a 69-70 Ford Torino 9" is a direct drop in and the location of everything matches up to the stock 10 bolt in the 70-81 firebirds but it'll raise the rear 2". Hope you see this and can't wait for more updates!
Good sound, GREAT build!! I used to have a '76 Formula that had a '74 SD-455 in place of the as-built 400. The original owner bought it new where he worked - Royal Pontiac {Pontiac's equivalent of Yenko Chevrolet}. They had a couple spare "unit exchange" SD-455's on hand, so they swapped out the 400 for the 455 - and kept ALL the warranties intact!! 12 years later, he sold it, and I bought it. It was the first car I ever drove that scared the crap out of me when I got on it; if you weren't careful, it could easily kick you sideways during the shift from 2nd to 3rd!!! In addition to the SD-455, it had a full-on Ram Air system, and a 3.73 Posi. True dual exhaust; those 3-inch pipes made some bee-yoo-tee-full music when I was be-bopping down the highway. Only track-raced it twice - 13.12 @ 102mph. And aside from it's orange paint and black stripes, it was still somewhat of a sleeper - no spoilers, fender flares, or shaker scoops to call attention to it. I even went so far as to have a pair of T/A style split exhaust tips powdercoated in black, to further the illusion......
Sweet , I been racing Pontiacs since the mid 70s. 1972 455HO in my 75 firebird , many late 60s early 70s blocks and parts in my shop. I have a 455 cast in July 1969. Going to be cool watching where you go with this build.👍👍🏁🏁
Installing the header bolts on a 79 firebird will always rank as a top 5 worst header installation job of all time for me. Can't wait to see it finished. Really Awesome!
Thank you for explaining the whole "big block" Pontiac thing. As I die hard Pontiac guy, it's like hearing nails on a chalkboard when people say it's a big block!
Chevy = big blocks & small blocks
Ford has big, small, and mid blocks.
@@madmod the Ford mid block is the 351 Cleveland
@@Nostradamus_Order33 And the tall deck 351m/400
I giggled every time Big Chief called his Pontiac a Big block.
Wow, I must be dreaming!!! An engine build and it’s not an LS. Kudos Tony for building this Pontiac engine. This is gonna be interesting to watch.
"I'm TAngelo96, he's MobileTechLucky"
Just a little nostalgia.
Good stuff, Tony. Looking forward to your progress on this build.
Yeah.. but i respect this garage more than that other one.. this one is ORGANIC ❤️
In 1976 my friend and I rescued a 67' Firebird 400 from the junkyard. We 'borrowed' three core motors to get it running.
The world needs more Pontiac content!
Some of us do only or mostly Pontiac content... heh. LS engines are great for trucks.
@SweatyFatmy truck has a pontiac Guy
Glad You're doing a Pontiac. I've been a Pontiac guy for 30+ years. currently building a 92 formula with a turbo 5.3. Next will be my 80 trans am that'll be getting a 455.
Sounds much better, don't forget to run some compression in post to make sounds levels even ;) Keep up the awesome work!!!
Also, when that jerk in the corner pipes up(the air compressor), go silent for a bit to catch the noise, then you can use your audio editor's noise reduction with that noise you captured as the profile and you can pretty much kill it off and keep going if you don't want to re-shoot. You can do this when you start filming somewhere with constant noise you can't control too, like fans, pumps, etc. if you just capture 5 seconds or so of ambient noise. Keep an eye on your stereo levels in post too and turn any mono segments into stereo. Lots of UA-camrs miss these two.
This guy engineers.
@@threadtapwhisperer5136 sure don't. Just watch plenty of guitar channels ;)
@@TheMerc1950 hey either way, pursuit of audio perfection or measurement perfection is a lifestyle, not a single goal, Hahah.
The dang 10 thousandths variations are rough
So much better with the audio! Great video!
I'm really happy to see you figured out the sound. It makes the production value loads better. I feel you need a helper though. Put a cardboard cut out of Lucky up in the backround with a button in his hand so when you high five him it says some random Luckyism like "cookie break" or something.
1000% improvement, dig the channel.....really looking forward to this channel growing
Agreed! I just found this channel, love the concept of the build, and Tony has always been one of my favorites to listen to. This channel will go far with good builds and Tony at the helm.
This has been your best video ever. Thank you for keeping it alive. AWESOME VIDEO MR. TONY
Some people used to call these boat anchors right from the factory.. it looks like someone actually sold you their boat anchor.. for the record I love BOp engines and beside the extra expense of building a 600 hp 400 they are totally worth building. This thing is going to be awesome.. and now i don't want to watch anything else but this 400 build..
those who used that label are fans of RPM and don't know what "torque" means, tho obviously the SD and RA4's were ready to rev as well. Pontiacs back before the internet were easy torque monsters right out of the junkyard. grab 6x heads, cut certain exhaust manifolds open and port, and a few other tricks and you had more off-idle torque than the average street mouse running a tunnel ram and looking hairy but then can't turn better than 15's.
big issue is going to be the armasteel 'rods and the exposed lifter bores. sorta like screwing with Cad472's--a great way to get diesel like torque in your truck before the 502 rat became common.
This is awesome to see someone building a pontiac block, especially being the same one I have.
Great to see Pontiac getting the attention it deserves will follow this build closely !
Awesome Tony….miss you on motor trend
The sludge kept it from rusting.😀 Gonna be in the tank for awhile, but so far so good. Killer paint job.
Yup, huge audio improvement... thanks Tony!!
I'm so glad you're keeping it a Pontiac engine!!! My dad is a HUGE Pontiac fan!! He probably had 20 of them back in his day and is one of the few people that can still work on them. It's getting hard to find someone who can still work on those old Pontiac engines. my first car had a 400 Pontiac engine in it.
Tony has accurate knowledge
Totally dig the Pontiac build. Nunzi Romano would be proud. You can make some decent power with that 400!
Nunzi? I haven't heard that name in years...!
Best engine builder I know told me to avoid the Pontiac 400 for the lifter valley weakness reason Tony mentioned
Butler now builds the best now
@@tommyamann5913 They make after market braces for that
@@bradleysample3246right on. You know your stuff. I'm running a 462 YS block.
The sound is way better. Love it. I am alittle sad you left motortrend. You were the only reason I watched hotrod garage. That show will never be the same now.
Oh yeah, the sound is definitely MUCH better! Also, I'm really pumped for this build. Should be great.
I had driven Chevy small blocks most of my life and then I got a 1968 Firebird with a Pontiac 350 HO and the low end tourque surprised me even when the cam had a flat lobe at 100,000+ miles. Even though I had worked at Pontiac dealerships since 1971 and driven many models that surprised me. Money and hard times got it after about five years and my rebuild and I miss that car today.
I've gotta tell ya, I'm pretty much a Mopar guy but, I love to see somebody doing something different for a change! No LS engine! Keeping it all Poncho just seems right! Even your Olds Cutlass build! Keep it up! BTW, your sound system is MUCH better!!👍👍
I love builds like this. Too many car guys are too concerned with doing this the best and most efficient way, sometimes it's just way more fun to work with suboptimal equipment and make something truly special and unique. This is far cooler than LS swap #1,356,783.
My good friend Dil Brandow is soooo proud of you for building that Pontiac motor!
I was hoping you'd mention the 481988 vs 500557 as well as the 6X variations since the beginning and you finally mentioned it in the last minutes lol. definitely note worthy details when it comes to Pontiac builds. Love the Pontiac stuff, keep it up!
Nice, I have 77 557 400. .30 over with 1967 #670 heads 10 thousands under on the deck height.. it's going in an 81 Leman's 4 Dr with street strip built th350 and an 86 Grand national 8.5 10 bolt 3:42 posi...fun is. Here's a tip I do. I cut the cast iron intake water jacket off where the thermostat is. Bolt that on by itself if you want change intakes you can without draining coolant.
THANK YOU for the lav mic..... finally back to hearing you in properly vs all the echo :)
Yesss..thank you Tony!
I have 8 Pontiac 400 engines sitting in TA parts cars in my yard. Nice to see a Pontiac build for the regular guy 😀
Looking forward for the next episode
Audio quality is perfect. Well done.
Just discovered your channel, way cool you are doing a detailed build on a Pontiac V8. I had a 79 Grand Prix back in the day with the shit 301, but I always wanted to swap a 400 in its place.
I look forward to your next episode on this build.
I dont remember the old ones having an open area like that by the cam like a Buick motor to save weight but I could be mistaken I had several 400s and a 389 apart and worked on them but that was almost 40 yrs ago
Big thumbs up 👍on the audio. I'm really looking forward to this engine build. I had the same engine in a '73 grand am. The one car I wish I still had.
Thanks!
I've gotten all my Pontiac parts and work from Sonny's the Godfather of making Hugh power and high reving BAD AZZ PONTIACS. love the show and really love you are keeping it Pontiac power
love these old birds! can't help but notice you welded a metric nut onto a '70s Pontiac which is downright sacrilege but oh well I'm happy to see people still working on these things! Thank you Tony for taking the time to share it with us.
Last year I responded to a add on Craigslist for Pontiac parts.
When I got to the storage barn I found it full of 64, 65, and 66 GTO parts including headliner, stainless, doors oem glass and numerous other goodies including a complete rebuilt 389 done 40 over with all the machine shop specs including torque and hp from the dyno
To add icing to the cake there were two 74 400 complete engines that rotated. I've got plans to dump the 389 into my 74 Catalina that has a solid 400 making factory 175 hp.
The whole deal cost me1500 and I loaded up two truckloads and a tandem trailer of vintage Poncho stuff.
I need a bigger shop
I look forward to more from your channel.
Hey great job on the sound, much better. Glad to see you doing a Pontiac motor. Built a bunch of these in the 70's. They are really interchangeable and the heads flow really nice. The valve stem height is very critical, the rockers torque down and have no adjustment. The first one I built was a 326 Tempest with a bigger crank and cam made it a lot of fun. Great job, keep it coming. Going to miss you on Hot Rod Garage, but Alex Taylor is going to be a great asset also.
Thank you Tony for picking a Pontiac. I've had a few Pontiac motors. I love em !! I know them and how they act and respond too what ever you can do too em.there very easy too build up. You can make tons of low end torque that I've seen twist parts into a pretzel shape !!! Yes your right about they don't like too rev very high! But all the positives they bring too your table more than make up for that!!! I've had 326 , 400 , 428 engine's my favorite was my 68-69 428 yk engine. STOCK 370 -390 HP. No mods! If you can't do anything with that your not trying!!! Now that motor was in my 77 TA. I paid 600.00 bucks for. Now after I fixed EVERYTHING THAT WAS DONE WRONG ... AND THERE WAS A TON . The rearend I discovered it was a Detroit locker. I had a buddy check it out just too make sure I wasn't seeing things or just plain delusional . But he said I was right on the money . After looking at the numbers on it we found a 241:1 gear set in it . He was well we should change that . I said whoa and thought no leave it in. Let's build around it so when I built the turbo 400 for it . I had it built for that final drive gear in the rear. So to speak. I was on a very limited budget. Had lots of friends that knew way more than I did. That had built more cars than I've seen pictures of.so working for them I was able too trade labor for work.many hours of junkyard hunting for all the stuff I needed. This was when the SD 455 TA'S had ben around for awhile so you could find parts CHEAP! NOW NO WAY!! when I got it put together it WOULD OUT RUN JUST About ANYTHING ELSE ON MY STREETS. 100 mph my tach read 2600 rpm and I had over 3 " of gas pedal left before it was on the floor .top speed was over 150 but I not too many roads would handle that in my state. And most of the law enforcement in my area knew my car. And would follow me everywhere. Just waiting for me too screw up I got a lot of tickets in that car BUT IT WAS THE MOST FUN I EVER HAD. I Didn't. RACE A 1/4 MILE . I RACED 10 - 30 MILES WHOEVER GOT There FIRST WON. SOMETIMES IT WAS A GENTLEMEN'S BET AND SOMETIMES IT WAS BIG MONEY!! I VERY RARELY LOST!!! I'm 63 now and miss that car so much. I've thought about building 1 more.just too show THAT OLD SCHOOL MUSCLE CAN HOLD ITS OWN. AND BE VERY COMPETITIVE!! good luck and I will be following this.
I'm just putting the finishing touches on a 389 to replace my worn out 400. The 400 will get a full performance build. The 389 is a stock build to use for a couple years. Good luck on your build, it's great to see more Pontiacs being represented!
Loving this, no ls, good old iron, olds stuff to, so overlooked so underrated.
You can get well over your goal naturally aspirated with a decent 461 and have it very street able too. The sounds are good, we hear you loud and clear Tony. Either way you go congrats on a cool Pontiac build, we salute you!
However after thinking about it, the car originally was built to be a Pontiac powered street freak so you are doing it and it’s creator some real justice by keeping the original hood that will accommodate a cool blower. I for one don’t care for them (big blowers,not a hardcore drag guy)but I fully get it and appreciate your plans. She’s gonna be killer I do know that because you are definitely the real deal and have shown us you are on many occasions!! Keep up the great work Tony! We are So glad you are doing a Pontiac by the way!! It’s definitely time!!!
I’ve always thought Tony was a TV natural. Awesome to see him with a utube channel . I will no doubt be watching.
Your making me want to build up my 400 Pontiac in my 77 Trans Am. I know it has 6X heads and a 8 stamped on a boss above the exhaust port. Now I need to check the block casting # to see if it’s a 988. The torque is amazing for a TH350 / 2.41 rear end ratio. Thanks for the info. 👍
Go with 3:73 gears you'll twice the torque but hang on.
Sound is much better! My tired ears thank you, after these many years of motorsports and rock 'n roll.
This so called Smog motor is going to be a beast when its all done.
I'm curious. Never seen or heard of one built for big power.
@@normnielsen He's planning on making it a 461 Stroker out of it, adding ported Aluminium heads, a ported Aluminium intake manifold, and a custom made cam to make some power.
Seen you got a pontiac 400. 1975.
I have a 1975 pontiac 400 trans that came out of a 1975 trans am. I'm in the commerce tx area. It is a working transmission. Free of charge if you want it swing by the shop here it's all yours bud. Love the content..
Sounds great Tony. I really appreciate you progressing your channel and putting in the time to teach us and take us on your journeys. Love learning about all the old school cool stuff!
Back in the 70s a buddy had a 1967 firebird formula 400 with a 3 speed standard and a hurst factory shifter that thing would go in smoke billowing circles at the drop of a hat with 4 people in it just awesome
Make sure you don’t forget the hidden rear oil galley plugs. Many new builds have failed due to that.
Soooooo happy to see blue collar, junk yard, driveway,regular guy builds👍👍. Keep up the good work.
Ford has the same problem with WP/Timing cover bolts, I recommend getting some aluminized or stainless bolts for the long ones that go through the timing cover, literally changed my life
I have to say, I really appreciate that when you went into the fast forward, you didn’t put some over bearing tune that blasted in my speakers that made me turn it down!
Tony Sir, welcome to the Poncho Power world! Congratulations on the progress and success of your channel as well. Very impressive! Also in the world of Pontiac you already said the most important thing you could "There are no big blocks and small blocks" ... or Pontiac people will typically fry you ;)
You’re my favorite guy on that paid channel. So glad I discovered your personal channel. I’m all-in!
The audio is great! Such a huge jump in production. Keep it up dude.
Going to miss you on Hot rod garage but I wish you the best and success where you're at now you'll get better as time goes on
Nice upgrade with the mics, now you need to run a gated compressor and some light EQ in post. Cheaper mics tend to miss bass frequencies or sound like the mic is too far away, so you’ll sound a bit sharp and sibilant. Bring those highs down and the bass up. Compression makes the volume of your voice even throughout the video even when you’re moving around, and using the gate feature will keep some of the noise out- like breathing, cable noise, scratching, footsteps, etc.
Sound is much better. I enjoy seeing the realities of working on old junk and the cut always are fun
Hell yeah! Love these old Pontiac motors, and Butler Performance is the best place for anything go-fast Pontiac! I mean if they can help Big Chief from street outlaws make 1xxx+ HP I'm sure they can get you the stuff to make a mere mortal 7xxhp lol.
I need a friend like you in my life to keep me motivated. Thanks for the video!
Tony that paint is outrageous 😂 love the build keep it up much love from Australia 🇦🇺 🙌 sound is mint btw
Sound is very good. LOVE that you're building a real Pontiac engine.
That engine has the look of "it leaks so much oil, topping it off is the same as an oil change" attitude 😂
I'm glad you got the big block small block thing out of the way. Great car I'm surprised the paint looks so good after all them years.
If you want to go the road less travelled, high performance a 1980-1981 Pontiac 301 FYI, not all Pontiac V8 are externally the same. The 301 is a low deck engine derived the Pontiac 303 racing engine. The 301 was the last true Pontiac V8. Cheers.
That was built for racing
@@Nostradamus_Order33 Yes, the 303 was a race only motor from which the 301 was derived.
@@countryroadautopartsusa6466 I had no idea. i still have a 1981 black grand am. bought in 1993 with 230,000 miles on it drove it home sat a brick on the gas pedal it ran for almost 30 minutes . walk out of my shop to check on it and it had run out of gas. told the boys working for me to go ahead and pull it and put 1971 455 in it so my wife can drive it 16 miles to work every day. that way she would keep her ass out of my 1967 GTO with 1969 428. it worked to.
I have an all original 301 In my 1980 Grand Prix SJ. 64,000 original miles I love it but I'm looking for something bigger to build but Pontiacs are hard to find In the DMV area
The 301 is not derived from a 303. It is the short deck version of a Poncho V8. And totally unsuited for hi-po builds.
I just got the opportunity to work on a 1977 Pontiac firebird number matching 350 hasn't been turned over or started for 10 years or more. I did all the things to insure that it isn't rotated dry. I rotated it by hand several times then with the starter. Thank you for the video.
The battle of the bolt was epic, I would have definitely lost my cool and messed something up 😂
Tony is the best. I wish we were neighbors! All Power, All the Time!
Love that you are going Poncho for the Firebird. I just picked up a 70 Tempest T-37 and it came with a 400 Pontiac. Can't wait to follow your build and eventually build mine! And the new mic sounds very nice (insert Borat)!
900 bucks for that lump doesn't sound too good but the audio sounds great. Still, keep up the great work!
900bucks for a old 185hp gas guzzler v8 that he does't even know if it's running, that's a lot of money
followed you here from roadkill. im a LS guy and love seeing modern power in old school cars but i definitely enjoy learning about the old school stuff. anything with a bunch of cubic inches and boost is awesome in my book.
Hey man I'm looking forward to the pontiac build and am happy to see you using the pontiac. I turbo'd a factory built 389 with later 6x heads and stock manifolds and it managed to put down 591hp and 770tq to the wheels at 10lbs. These wake right up with boost!
BoxO RULES!!! best tool sets ever!! so glad they are there, i have a set for my dirt bike
WAY better sound! Glad you showed most of the gritty, grimey process of pulling one of these things apart. Super cool that Butler is on board, this is going to be super cool!
Welcome to the tribe!......you passed the initial initiation of over paying for and tearing down a sludgy 70s pontiac smog engine, congratulations that you didnt break your foot dropping the insanely heavy factory cast iron intake manifold & you didnt forget to get the all timing cover bolts out before trying to pry it off, you sir are in the club😉👍 Part 2 engine assembly involves fighting a persistant timing cover to intake coolant passage leak, not over tightening the valley pan untill it distorts and wont seal, and the advanced level "how the hell tight does the balancer bolt need to go....my torque wrench does not read that high" 😄
Tony!!!!!
Once Tony got comfortable in front of the cameras at HRG he really shined
In 1995 i tore down a 327chevy that was worse locked up...than that one... stoke bore....060 barely cleaned it up. But i got 8 yrs of amazing service and a hard life out of it. (7,500 rpm with stock rods!) I ❤️ love how you have such an organic environment to work in.. as compared to hotrod garage... where it looks TOO EASY and $$$$$. I respect ❤️ YOUR garage much better from a real hands on perspective. I like the humor in the editing. Im sorry for the disgusting condition of that Pontiac engine... but i greatly value the genuineness of it. Makes for a even sweeter victory. Btw the new microphones sound superb 👌 hot rod from Western Kentucky
Thanks for sticking with a PONTIAC !! They’re the strongest most durable engines ever built. Look what Big Chief on street outlaws run. They’re bad ass engines.
Pure
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sounding good. I have a Pontiac 400 in a 1973 Grand Am. I am paying close attention to your build.
I'm a Pontiac guy...1966 Tempest...bought when I was 19 years old..I'm now 55 year's old...
I built a 1975 400 for it back 20 sum odd years ago....406...solid cam... Forged pistons...with the tri port ,6x heads..
Still runs strong today..210 shot of nitrous ...put to it many, many times.
411 gear...she runs great to this day. .never been apart since built...I did it all myself. After whites auto did all machine work... Stock crank n rods out of a 350.....
Killer jump suit, killer audio, killer project. Keep crushing life TA
My dad had a 65 GTO with a 400, so cool to see that engine again
Sounds good. I going to keep following this build. I've done a couple of old pontiacs back in the day, so, this brings back some good memories. Good luck Tony.
Tony the soud quality of those new mics are on point. Excellent channel
This reminds me of Jan. 1979 when I pulled the 400 out of my GTO to rebuild it for drag racing. I did have the benefit of starting with a running engine.
Great video, Thank you for going step by step and showing us what it's really like to take apart and see the in side of a 400. I'm about to do the same thing to my 78 T/A 400 and I have NO idea what I'm doing, this gives me hope and an idea what it will look like, thank you again
Sounds a ton better. I love this video because it reminds me of every car project I've ever started... bolts 1, 2, and 3 come off easy. Bolt 4 take 5 hours and three trips to the store.
UA-cam just told me Tony was here, so glad I found this channel. Big fan Tony
The lesson from the battle of the bolt is always have strip sockets nearby. they work really well and have saved me on plenty of occasions working on rusty garbage. You can get them for cheap at most local auto part stores
I built myself a 461 out of a 74' block with the 6x-4 heads. It's a very stout set up and I got everything from Kauffman Racing. Icon forged .030 flat tops, forged eagle h-beam rods, and an Ohio forged crank matched with a crower cam. Stock heads with that set up with a .480 lift intake & exhaust made 403@4800 and 492@3800, I can't imagine it supercharged but I'll be watching to see how you do it because I'm looking to make more power too! Side note - kauffman makes their own oil filter housings that hug the block more for better header clearance and they take the same filter as a 99-06 5.3l, and as far as the rear end goes a 69-70 Ford Torino 9" is a direct drop in and the location of everything matches up to the stock 10 bolt in the 70-81 firebirds but it'll raise the rear 2". Hope you see this and can't wait for more updates!
gets some "free all" .... best rust removing stuff I've ever seen man
Finally someone is working on a Pontiac!!! Can’t wait to see the next video!
Good sound, GREAT build!! I used to have a '76 Formula that had a '74 SD-455 in place of the as-built 400. The original owner bought it new where he worked - Royal Pontiac {Pontiac's equivalent of Yenko Chevrolet}. They had a couple spare "unit exchange" SD-455's on hand, so they swapped out the 400 for the 455 - and kept ALL the warranties intact!! 12 years later, he sold it, and I bought it. It was the first car I ever drove that scared the crap out of me when I got on it; if you weren't careful, it could easily kick you sideways during the shift from 2nd to 3rd!!! In addition to the SD-455, it had a full-on Ram Air system, and a 3.73 Posi. True dual exhaust; those 3-inch pipes made some bee-yoo-tee-full music when I was be-bopping down the highway. Only track-raced it twice - 13.12 @ 102mph. And aside from it's orange paint and black stripes, it was still somewhat of a sleeper - no spoilers, fender flares, or shaker scoops to call attention to it. I even went so far as to have a pair of T/A style split exhaust tips powdercoated in black, to further the illusion......
I still have 1 455 H.O. AND 1 455.SD
At 11:45 am I looking at a Lotus Esprit and a Suzuki GS? Wow..I thought it was great I found a Pontiac 400 build. Now this? Coolest garage on YT!
This build is awesome, glad you are on UA-cam instead of Motor Trend for us Aussies 👍🏻👌🏻🇭🇲
Sweet , I been racing Pontiacs since the mid 70s. 1972 455HO in my 75 firebird , many late 60s early 70s blocks and parts in my shop. I have a 455 cast in July 1969.
Going to be cool watching where you go with this build.👍👍🏁🏁
Thank you for just building an Pontiac engine for us ole Sokol Pontiac Guys
Glad to see you on here Tony!!
Installing the header bolts on a 79 firebird will always rank as a top 5 worst header installation job of all time for me. Can't wait to see it finished. Really Awesome!
Worse than an A body Mopar?! Can it be?
@@StayTunedTA Ohh man, probably not that bad after watching Dave and Steve struggle with the crop duster.
We miss u on motor trend but I'm more than happy to support your channel. Love it so far keep it up bro
Good work getting the mics!! Sounds much better!! Lifts the quality of the videos.
Dude, the audio. So much better, thank you!