'74 455 Rebuild <Ping Dennis Smith>

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HoDad - 14 Mar 2005 04:54 GMT

Well, the weather held and I got the engine and transmission out this
weekend. I thought I might be able to get the engine out without removing
the headers, but boy was I wrong. I ended up making them more difficult to
remove by moving the engine forward with the hoist before I found out there
wasn't enough clearance. You gotta be a damn contortionist to get the back
center header bolt out. Other than that, things went pretty well.
Dennis, check out picture 006. Did your friends '74 engine have this sensor
or is that unique to a CA car? I'ts on the back of the drivers side head.
Any idea what it does or if it will cause a problem if I don't hook it back
up?
HD

http://webpages.charter.net/gallen541/TA10.JPG

http://webpages.charter.net/gallen541/Engine%20Rebuild%20001.jpg

http://webpages.charter.net/gallen541/Engine%20Rebuild%20005.jpg

http://webpages.charter.net/gallen541/Engine%20Rebuild%20006.jpg

(After my last 3 test attempts, I think I got it right this time. Hope
these links work!)

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Dennis Smith - 14 Mar 2005 07:42 GMT

>Well, the weather held and I got the engine and transmission out this
>weekend. I thought I might be able to get the engine out without removing
>the headers, but boy was I wrong.

The sensor on the back of the head is called a "Cold feed sensor" Its part of
the Thermal Controlled Spark system(the solenoid above driver's valve cover.)
There is also a Temp Override switch on the passenger side head and a relay
on the firewall above the distributor. All '73-74 Pontiac V8 engines use this
setup.

I'd hook everything up the way its suppose to. All that stuff was missing on
my friend's '74 T/A and were putting it back on thanks to a '74 Catalina I
found in a junkyard.

All the TCS parts are discontinued from GM and nothing is available
aftermarket so DON'T loose anything!

I would replace the headers with a set of D-port Ram Air manifolds. Headers
suck!

What heads are on your engine? 4X-1H or 4X-3H heads? You'll find the H code
on that part that sticks out on the head just below the front valve cover
bolt. I think somebody swapped a set of 4X-3H heads on my friend's engine to
bump up the compression. The date codes are off by a year so something looks
fishy.

Signature

_________________________________________________________________
Dennis Smith

-1971 Trans Am - 455 H.O. - M21 4speed - Cameo white/blue stripe-
< http://ps2page.tripod.com/my71ta/tapage.html >
-1973 Trans Am - 455 - TH400 auto - Buccaneer red-
-1984 Trans Am - 5.0 L - TH700R4 auto - Royal blue/silver aero-
_________________________________________________________________

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HoDad - 14 Mar 2005 14:47 GMT

> >Well, the weather held and I got the engine and transmission out this
> >weekend. I thought I might be able to get the engine out without removing
[quoted text clipped - 21 lines]
> bump up the compression. The date codes are off by a year so something looks
> fishy.

Dennis,
I've got the 4X-1H heads. Correct date codes. Everything is numbers
matching and correct on my car. The reason I was asking about the sensors
is that I bought a set of 6X-4 heads to bolt on and give me a higher
compression ratio. I don't think there is a place on those heads for the
sensor, but I'll have to double check.
HD

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Dennis Smith - 14 Mar 2005 20:39 GMT

>Dennis,
>I've got the 4X-1H heads. Correct date codes. Everything is numbers
>matching and correct on my car. The reason I was asking about the sensors
>is that I bought a set of 6X-4 heads to bolt on and give me a higher
>compression ratio. I don't think there is a place on those heads for the
>sensor, but I'll have to double check.

There should be. That sensor just bolts into one of the accessory bracket
bolt holes. The head casting are universal. There is no left or right until
the frost plugs are installed. It senses metal temperature so it doesn't go
into a water jacket.

Signature

_________________________________________________________________
Dennis Smith

-1971 Trans Am - 455 H.O. - M21 4speed - Cameo white/blue stripe-
-1973 Trans Am - 455 - TH400 auto - Buccaneer red-
-1984 Trans Am - 5.0 L - TH700R4 auto - Royal blue/silver aero-
_________________________________________________________________

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HoDad - 15 Mar 2005 04:23 GMT

> >Dennis,
> >I've got the 4X-1H heads. Correct date codes. Everything is numbers
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> the frost plugs are installed. It senses metal temperature so it doesn't go
> into a water jacket.

Thanks Dennis. You are absolutely correct. I unscrewed the sensor today,
and it is all aluminum so that it can conduct heat easily.
Well, today I removed most everything from the engine. Intake, water pump,
and heads are all that's left until I get into the guts. I am taking lots
of notes and a lot of pictures, too. Thank God for digital cameras!
HD

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