# 64 GTo engine swap



## Larry1945 (Nov 26, 2010)

Can someone tell me which engines I can use to replace my 389 on my 64 GTO without modifications. I am looking for a high performance motor to drop in if anyone has one.
Thanks Larry


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Larry1945 said:


> Can someone tell me which engines I can use to replace my 389 on my 64 GTO without modifications. I am looking for a high performance motor to drop in if anyone has one.
> Thanks Larry


Hi Larry,

ANY "real" Pontiac V8 from a 326 through a 455 should drop right in. Is something wrong with your 389 that you can't fix?

Bear


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## Larry1945 (Nov 26, 2010)

Thanks for the response Bear, my could be rebuilt, it hasn't run for several years and with doing the restoration of the body I just haven't had the time.
I am looking for some more horsepower so I thought maybe I would just buy one that was already built and drop in.
Larry


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Larry1945 said:


> Thanks for the response Bear, my could be rebuilt, it hasn't run for several years and with doing the restoration of the body I just haven't had the time.
> I am looking for some more horsepower so I thought maybe I would just buy one that was already built and drop in.
> Larry


There are lots of options, depending on your budget, how you plan to use the car, etc. If that's the original numbers matching 389 then changing it will have a negative effect on resale value, if you care about that. If you've got the inclination, it's possible to have both. I built my original, numbers-matching 400 into a 461 stroker that dynoed out at 493 HP, 542 lb. ft. of torque, yet if anyone checks the codes all they're going to see is "original YS 400".  You could easily do something similar with your 389 if you wanted to. I can refer you to an excellent engine builder who definitely knows his way around Pontiacs, if you're interested.

Bear


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## Larry1945 (Nov 26, 2010)

Bear,
I would appreciate it if you would send me the info, I don't know if I should put my e-mail here or how to send it to you.


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Larry1945 said:


> Bear,
> I would appreciate it if you would send me the info, I don't know if I should put my e-mail here or how to send it to you.


Not a problem. The guy I really like is Jim Lehart at Central Virginia Machine.

He was willing to discuss options with me and share the reasoning behind his recommendations without me committing to spend any money with him at all. I did wind up buying most of my parts from him that I used to build the motor, but he made it very clear that wasn't a requirement from the beginning. I doubt that anyone knows more than he does about how to build very strong Pontiacs that will live just fine on todays gas.

Bear


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## daveh70 (Sep 4, 2008)

I agree you should work with your original engine as you'll lower the value of your car by replacing the motor.


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