![]() ![]() ![]() As a result, it was remarkably free of teething problems. A new engine was fast-tracked, its relatively late start allowing it to take advantage of developments proven in the Oldsmobile V8 and Cadillac V8. ![]() When Robert Critchfield took over as general manager in 1952, he launched an ambitious plan to move Pontiac into the upscale, mid-range market occupied by Oldsmobile, and that demanded V8 power. In 1946, it became evident that future styling requirements, coupled with prospects for improved fuels, necessitated the eventual introduction of a more compact, more rigid engine, and an engineering program was initiated with those goals in mind.” Development īy 1949 work on a 287 cu in (4.7 L) OHV V8 had begun, but moved along slowly. In 1955, Pontiac engineers had noted the new engine's long development period, and that styling trends’ constraints upon engine size had been a primary consideration: “The new Pontiac engine is the culmination of nine years of design and development work. The concept car Pontiac Strato-Streak was used to introduce the V8 and in later years the engine was installed in Pontiac products. The results showed Pontiac that an L-head simply couldn't compete with an overhead valve engine.ĭespite their work, the division's conservative management saw no immediate need to replace the Pontiac Straight-8 until later in the 1950s. Pontiac engineers tested their 269 cu in (4.4 L) V8 in 1949 or 1950 against an OHV Oldsmobile Rocket V8 303 cu in (5.0 L) downsized to 270 cu in (4.4 L). They came up with a 269-cubic-inch (4.4 L) L-head design. The development of this V8 dates back to 1946, when engineers began considering new engine designs for postwar cars. ![]() The two inline engines were used through 1954, when Pontiac unveiled its OHV Strato Streak V8 in 1955. In addition to the inline 6, Pontiac used the Oakland V8 for one year, 1932, debuting the Pontiac straight-8 engine in 1933. After outselling Oakland, Pontiac became the sole survivor of the two by 1932. Pontiac successfully competed against more-expensive inline four-cylinder models with their inline flathead six-cylinder engines. Pontiac began as a "companion make" to the Oakland division of the General Motors line of automobiles in 1926. The V8 was phased out in 1981, replaced by GM "corporate engines" such as the Chevrolet 305 cu in small block V8. The crankshaft stroke and main journal size changed among the years with the more popular 389CI and 400CI having a 3.00" diameter main journal and the 421/428/455 sharing a larger 3.25" diameter main journal. Effectively, production Pontiac V8 blocks were externally the same size (326-455) sharing the same connecting rod length 6.625 in (168.3 mm) and journal size of 2.249" (except for the later short deck 301 and 265 produced in the late 1970s and early 1980s before Pontiac adopted universal GM engines). Unusual for a major automaker, Pontiac did not have the customary "small-block" and "big-block" engine families common to other GM divisions, Ford, and Chrysler. In the 1960s the popular 389 cu in (6.4 L) version, which had helped establish the Pontiac GTO as a premier muscle car, was cut in half to produce an unusual, high-torque inline four economy engine, the Trophy 4. Initially marketed as a 287 cu in (4.7 L), it went on to be manufactured in displacements between 265 cu in (4.3 L) and 455 cu in (7.5 L) in carburated, fuel injected, and turbocharged versions. Engine block and cylinder heads were cast at Saginaw Metal Casting Operations then assembled at Tonawanda Engine before delivery to Pontiac Assembly for installation. The engines feature a cast-iron block and head and two valves per cylinder. The Pontiac V8 engine is a family of overhead valve 90° V8 engines manufactured by the Pontiac Division of General Motors Corporation between 19. ![]()
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