Tracker1....thanks; good to know my wife will be fine
I'll remember to check with you before my next stock trade. It is an automatic (bummer...always wished it were a 4 speed).
markinnaples...I've thought of doing exactly as you suggest and one day when I'm made of money I might just do that. But there is also that bit of curiosity in me that wants to see how well the engine can be made to run with a few modifications which basically fit into the category of "un-doing" the crap that the insurance and emissions lobby forced on the engine. My idea of what a muscle car should do was formed when I was in high school ('65-69) and I was always disappointed with the SD's performance. Granted, I knew much less about engines back then but I'd been in small block Camaros that were faster than this 455 beast (<span style="font-weight: bold">it just aint right!</span>).
I even thought of buying some new aluminum heads from Butler, but then it wouldn't be an SD455 any more, plus again there is that money thing. Perhaps I should pray that the heads are warped some and I find they need shaving, but it is unlikely because it has never been unduly stressed. No one has commented on the shim-type gaskets?
KenMaisano....440 CID, interesting that you are just 7 inches over the displacement Greg Peterson chose for his SD modification which he wrote about in the High Performance Pontiac article. Did you have your own cam ground or is there a standard part number you are using?
Thanks NJSteve I look into how to perhaps "move" this thread to the Pontiac area.
JM