Hello all,

I will be looking at a 69 442 and owner is not sure which engine is in the car, owner claims engine is the original?any help on determining if eng is 400 or 455 would be appreciated thx

 

very easy to determine if late model 400 or 455

the pad area on top of block between the top of water pump and the below front of intake manifold will have a large letter G if 400 or F if 455
both followed by several numbers.

if it's a G block casting then you can ck for block ID no. which is on
a small flat pad on block under the front bottom corner of the driver side
head . the last 6 digits should match the last 6 digits of vehilce vin no.
if it does then you have the original block that came with that car as built by GM.

Heads should have large C on lower left corner to be correct for the
69 442 - although will also fit on a 455 same.

 

The only ORIGINAL engine in a 1969 442 would be a G-block 400. In any case, you can determine if it's the original motor by checking the VIN derivative stamp on the block.

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums/486378-post4.html

 

Thank you very much , will go to see car Thurs, poss barn find

 

Cool! I hope it works out! Since it may have been clunker stage when the car was parked you may need to get through some gunk to see the numbers. Below is a picture of the number between the water pump and intake. I couldn't read anything until I worked it over with a toothbrush, solvent and paper towels. You can see the large letter G and some of the numbers before it. If its a 455 there will be a large letter F in that location, and if a 1972-76 motor a small capital A to the bottom right of it.

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The vin pad that Joe mentioned may be harder to clean up and see. If the car has power steering such as this one you may have to use a mirror and flashlight to see it. I used a razor blade to scrape the crud off this. Either that or a flat head screwdriver to scrape it. Since its stamped into the metal its more difficult to clean this with solvent well enough to read. You have to look below the power steering support that attaches to the exhaust manifold, and above the power steering hose. This is on a 1968 so the first two digits 38 can be seen in two of the photos.

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If it has the correct motor then you can look at other bolt on items. The more that's original the less chance it's been thrashed and stuff replaced. I also believe that it's better for the value if you have lots of original parts on it. Here's where the numbers are for the carb, distributor and alternator.

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The vin was also stamped into the transmission in 1968 and newer. Does this car have an automatic or manual transmission?

John

 

stick car , thax for the pics , any suggestions for the manual trans ID or rear end , hope the owner has some documentation claims it's been in the barn since 89

 

OK, I wasn't able to get good clear pictures but this should give you a place to start on the transmission. Hopefully your floorboards won't be as rusty as on this car, but you may have the same buildup of oil and gunk. Start on the drivers side of the car. Look for the shifting rods on the side, then there will be a switch below them and toward the back of the car. Follow the wires up and behind the green wires at the back of the main case, side of the transmission you'll see the last part of the vin number stamped into the case.

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The rear end should be the type O, unless it was built in Canada. The type O will have a two letter code stamped into the passengerside tube, usually on the back but it has been found on top, front, bottom but always on the passengerside tube. That code will tell you what it left the factory with.

If the car was built in Canada it will say so on the trim tag that's mounted to the firewall under the hood. Then it would have a Chevy 12 bolt under it.

 

again thx for the pics and info,very helpful , I hope the car is not a basket case, you know how owners sugar coat the truth, I will let you know ..