1967 Bonneville Engine Color

[StevenGuthmiller]

Ok, new question.

I'm a little confused when I look at photos of '67 Pontiac engines on-line.

About half of them are "turquoise", & the other half are "silver blue".

I know that the earlier poncho engines were turquoise & I assumed that the trend continued until at least 1969.

My 1:1 '69 Grand Prix has the correct color & it is turquoise.

Anybody have any insight as to what went on in the late 60s with Pontiac engine colors?

I'm about ready to paint the one for my Bonneville, but I need a color first.

 

 

Steve

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 16, 2017 by StevenGuthmiller

[Rodent]

It looks like it attaches to the cylinder head. Except for the water crossover in the front, I don't believe that there was coolant in the intake manifold. Look at the tube screwed into the passenger head in the pic.

[StevenGuthmiller]

44 minutes ago, Rodent said:

It looks like it attaches to the cylinder head. Except for the water crossover in the front, I don't believe that there was coolant in the intake manifold. Look at the tube screwed into the passenger head in the pic.

 

Thanks Steve.

I think I answered my own question when I found this photo.

Your pic pretty much confirms it.

 

Steve

 

[Snake45]

'67 Pontiac engines were a light metallic blue, or as you called it, "silver blue." Before 1966 they were a light nonmetallic blue. I don't know when they switched to something else but in '67 they were definitely the light metallic blue, as seem in your first picture. 

[Can-Con]

Here's a link to a Pontiac engine color chart I've used before. Seems pretty complete.

http://www.pontiacpower.org/enginecolor.htm

[StevenGuthmiller]

7 minutes ago, Snake45 said:

'67 Pontiac engines were a light metallic blue, or as you called it, "silver blue." Before 1966 they were a light nonmetallic blue. I don't know when they switched to something else but in '67 they were definitely the light metallic blue, as seem in your first picture. 

Ok Snake, I'll believe you.

There are so many inconsistencies in colors on the Pontiac engines that sometimes I don't know what to think.

I know for a fact that the 400 in my '69 was turquoise from day one, yet when I look at photos of a lot of '69 Firebirds & GTOs the engine color is metallic blue.

Could it be that there were two different colors being used for different models during this period?

Anybody else have any input?

 

Steve

[StevenGuthmiller]

1 minute ago, Can-Con said:

Here's a link to a Pontiac engine color chart I've used before. Seems pretty complete.

http://www.pontiacpower.org/enginecolor.htm

That's the problem.

The chart lists the color as light metallic blue for '69.

My '69 Grand Prix always was & always has been the so called "light blue" ( basically a pale turquoise) from the earlier years.

The engine was original & untouched to my knowledge when I bought it in '81.

So you can understand my confusion.

 

Steve

 

[Can-Con]

Well I don't know what to say to you about yours Steve, but I'm pretty sure the engine in mine was black. 

[StevenGuthmiller]

19 minutes ago, Can-Con said:

Well I don't know what to say to you about yours Steve, but I'm pretty sure the engine in mine was black. 

Well, at this point, I believe that I will go with the metallic light blue.

From the information that I have, it definitely cannot be considered incorrect for '67. 

I have a couple of different metallic light blues on hand.

I think one of them will be close enough.

 

 

Steve

[1972coronet]

I wonder if the B and G bodies' engines were different colours vs. the A body's colour ( i.e. , high performance model vs. standard performance) ?

[Snake45]

1 hour ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

That's the problem.

The chart lists the color as light metallic blue for '69.

My '69 Grand Prix always was & always has been the so called "light blue" ( basically a pale turquoise) from the earlier years.

The engine was original & untouched to my knowledge when I bought it in '81.

So you can understand my confusion.

 

Steve

 

What do you mean by "to my knowledge"? Do you mean "as far as I know," or do you mean "I was familiar with this car from day one and to my certain knowledge it always had a turquoise engine"?

11 years is plenty of time for someone to swap in an earlier engine. Or a rebuilt engine painted the earlier color. Or to have the original engine rebuilt and painted the earlier color. 

It's also possible Pontiac put a pre-66 engine in the car, something they happened to find a bunch of in a warehouse or something. Or maybe the engine paint shop used the wrong color that day. Or, as someone suggested, maybe a particular plant was still using the earlier color. Maybe Canada? 

At any rate, I have an original '67 Pontiac showroom brochure. The back cover shows all the different engines, and they are all the light metallic blue, even the OHC 6s. I believe some of the Buick and Olds brochures of the time I have show a couple different color engines, but the '67 Ponchos are all the same. (And I can't recall having ANY Chevy literature that has all the engines shown on the same page like that.) 

[unclescott58]

I know "Ford corporate engine blue" can vary all over the place. Depending on where the engine was built. And who made the paint. Engines from the same plant would get a different batch of paint, and the color would be different. As long as was close, is all Ford seemed concerned with. Even though I'm a big GM fan, I don't know if the General had similar problems or not? 

[Can-Con]

2 hours ago, Snake45 said:

maybe a particular plant was still using the earlier color. Maybe Canada? 

 

I'm pretty sure no Pontiac engines were made in Canada. 

Canadian built Pontiacs all had Chevy engines, at least before '70.

[Rodent]

7 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

Thanks Steve.

I think I answered my own question when I found this photo.

Your pic pretty much confirms it.

 

Steve

 

Thanks for changing the original heater hose subject line so my answer looks  weird. 

I see a lot of whining on the 1:1 Pontiac forums about the correct color engine paint not being available and the rattle can stuff being too silver. I don't remember them being as metallic as your engine picture or mine.

[StevenGuthmiller]

2 hours ago, Snake45 said:

What do you mean by "to my knowledge"? Do you mean "as far as I know," or do you mean "I was familiar with this car from day one and to my certain knowledge it always had a turquoise engine"?

11 years is plenty of time for someone to swap in an earlier engine. Or a rebuilt engine painted the earlier color. Or to have the original engine rebuilt and painted the earlier color. 

It's also possible Pontiac put a pre-66 engine in the car, something they happened to find a bunch of in a warehouse or something. Or maybe the engine paint shop used the wrong color that day. Or, as someone suggested, maybe a particular plant was still using the earlier color. Maybe Canada? 

At any rate, I have an original '67 Pontiac showroom brochure. The back cover shows all the different engines, and they are all the light metallic blue, even the OHC 6s. I believe some of the Buick and Olds brochures of the time I have show a couple different color engines, but the '67 Ponchos are all the same. (And I can't recall having ANY Chevy literature that has all the engines shown on the same page like that.) 

I guess I would just say "as far as I know".

When I bought the car, it had just under 100,000 miles on it.

The owner, who purchased the car new, claimed that the mileage was correct & that the engine had never been opened up.

A very nice older gentleman who I have no reason to disbelieve.

All of the serial numbers are original to the car, so there was no engine swap.

Being a '69, a pre-'66 engine is not likely.

I suppose that there is the possibility that someone may have repainted the engine, but I find it difficult to believe that someone would repaint the engine for aesthetic reasons.

It was not pretty when I bought it, so it would had to have been re-painted early in it's life.

Anyway, when I had the engine rebuilt a couple of years ago, the shop that rebuilt it re-painted it the same color that was on it & this is what I got.

Just like I remember it from 1981, only a little prettier.

 

Steve