Hi guys Slowly moving on with one of my projects. Tomorrow I´ll dig out an ol´Pontiac engine. It´s supposedly out of an ´49 Streamliner. Couple of years ago I cleaned the pan and liftergallery out and checked the timing gear. It needs replacement. IF it´s dating from ´49 it should be a 249 cui delivering 100hp. How do I ID it without taking it apart and start measuring? Niels
There's a raised pad on the left front side of the engine just below the head. The serial number of the car the engine come out of is stamped on that pad. You can use that to decode the engine and see what year it is.
Post the vin on the block, it can be coded pretty easy. Not to much changed between the Pontiac flatheads from year to year, it's all pretty much interchangable.
I'll also add that the 2nd letter in the serial indicates the year... if it is a 1949 it should be something like P8RH or RS first letter indicates the factory of origin so if it's a "P" it would be Pontiac, Michigan. First number indicates it's an 8 Cylinder engine. Second letter if it's an "R" indicates it's a 1949 model... 3rd letter tells you whether it was hooked to a "H" Hydramatic or a "S" straight drive transmission. all the numbers after the last letter just tell you what car it was off the assembly line. R=1949 T=1950 U=1951 W=1952
The Jalopy Journal
