# 1966 G.T.O. Rebuild Info?



## 6t6Tygrrrr (Dec 10, 2013)

Hi. My friend, his brother and I are rebuilding his mom's 1966 Pontiac G.T.O. Tiger, arty: and we are wondering where to start. The car has been sitting in storage for 17+ years and we have no idea what to do first. It has a Tri-power carb setup, and a 389 ci V8 that was bored out to 429 ci. (Don't ask me why, idk. lol ) It also has a 3-speed automatic transmission. We were wondering what to do first to get her running? The frame and body are ok, the paint is chipped and cracked in some spots but nothing major, and it has a full interior that look BEAUTIFUL!!! So..... what do we do first? 
Thanks  :seeya


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## 68GTO4004Spd (Jun 19, 2008)

Replace all the fluids for the brakes, fuel, oil, steering, thansmission everything with the possible exception of the rear diff, but I would just do that too. Replace all the rubber fuel lines and vacuum lines, don't forget the fuel lines at the tank. Replace fuel filter, plug wires, points maybe the plugs. Check the brakes, lube the zerk fittings in the steering and u-joint, fill it with fuel and fire it up.


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## Matthew (Feb 11, 2011)

Sir, where are you located? If you are serious about not knowing where to start, I recommend you ask someone that knows this stuff to come over and give you some instructions. Someone to mentor your team through some of the basics. Possibly someone from this forum is located near you. Regards, Matt


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

I would go through the carbs before I tried to fire it, beyond dumping a little fuel in the carb to see if it fires. The gas is bad, clean the tank and lines. Best advice, get a pro around to help and check it out, sounds valuable and dont' want to mess it up.


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

6t6Tygrrrr said:


> Hi. My friend, his brother and I are rebuilding his mom's 1966 Pontiac G.T.O. Tiger, arty: and we are wondering where to start. The car has been sitting in storage for 17+ years and we have no idea what to do first. It has a Tri-power carb setup, and a 389 ci V8 that was bored out to 429 ci. (Don't ask me why, idk. lol ) It also has a 3-speed automatic transmission. We were wondering what to do first to get her running? The frame and body are ok, the paint is chipped and cracked in some spots but nothing major, and it has a full interior that look BEAUTIFUL!!! So..... what do we do first?
> Thanks  :seeya


I second all that's been said about replacing lines, draining all the fuel, replacing all the fluids, and such. Also it'd be a good idea to replace all the coolant hoses, thermostat, drain and refill the cooling system with fresh coolant. Also, flush the entire brake system hydraulics and replace with fresh fluid. Brake fluid "likes" moisture and will absorb it. Sitting for that long, you'll want to make sure it's got good brakes before you try to drive it at all, maybe even check the brake lines for corrosion (rust due to the brake fluid absorbing water). We'd all hate to hear about that gorgeous car getting all wadded up because it couldn't stop!

One note, and it's a small one so don't take it personally ok? But it's just not possible to "bore out" a 389 to 429 cubic inches. Boring +0.060" as about as far as you can bore a Pontiac without making the cylinder walls dangerously thin, and taking a 389 to +0.060 over only gets you to 400 cubic inches. Getting to 429 from 389 would require an overbore of 0.200+ - nearly a quarter of an inch - with that much material removed the cylinder walls would either disappear completely, or be so thin you could read the fine print on a loan shark's contract through them by candle light 

Bear


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## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

X2 on the 429 CID. The only way to get 429CID out of a 389 block is with a stroker crank, which I seriously doubt this engine has. Other than that, what these gents said. And, _keep a fire extinguisher at hand _when starting it up!!!


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