LENGTH ???

[mikrobkirk]

Does anyone here know the EXACT LENGTH (longest point to point) of a 66 Bonneville ?? I am thinking of purchasing a 66 Bonnie Convert in Hawaii. The Matson Navagation Transport Company that the owner suggested said that if the car is over 21'8" they will not bring it back to the States. Any help on the length of these cars ASAP so I know what to do.

[Larry]

According to the Standard Catalog of Pontiac, the '66 Bonneville is 221.8 inches. That comes to 18 feet and just shy of 6 inches (221.8" =18.4833'). Looks like you'll be able to bring it back to the mainland.

[mikrobkirk]

Great - Now for one more question. Where can I go to find Production #'s for the 1966 Bonniville Convertibles. This car is suppose to be a original 421 Tri-Power Car. I have the VIN if that helps. 262676P185078 He says it is a YH Block with 092 (not 093 which I thought all tri power cars had in 66) - Any HELP appreciated. I need to jump on this quick if it is truly a original Tri-Power car for 10K - don't you think?

[Larry]

There were 16,229 '66 Bonneville convertibles built.

The only 421s I find listed for the Bonneville are the optional 356 and 376 hp ones. I cannot see what made the differences. But both were H.O.s and had tri-power. The standard engine was a 389.

The one thing I find not quite right is the "YH" block if it is supposed to be an original tri-power car. In the Standard Catalog of Pontiac it shows the 421cid/338hp as WK/YZ/YT/WG/YH; the 421cid/356hp tri-power as YJ/YM/WH; and the 421cid/376hp tri-power as WJ/YK.

The 338hp 421 is shown as standard for the Catalina 2+2 and with a 4-bbl carb. If this car has a "YH" block, it appears that it is from a 2+2 Catalina. To check if it is the original block, check for the VIN on the engine. It should be on the front of the engineat the right hand cylinder bank. It will have the VIN plus an alpha-numeric production code.

Keep us posted.

[duncan2plus2]

The "YH" coded engine in '66 was an automatic transmission 338hp (4bbl) 421. This engine came stock with 092 heads. The same code was used regardless of model as long as it was the 4bbl base engine for an auto. trans. car, so it would be correct for a Bonneville (but not tri-power).

As far as I know the difference between a 356hp engine and a 376hp engine was long branch manifolds on the 376 motors.

[GrandpaDave]

Hope this helps - I measured my 66 Bonneville 2 door hardtop last October to see if it would fit in my friend's barn, the measurement was 20' 8" It looks like you should be okay for shipping.

[Larry]

Is yours a limo? All my resources show 221.8 inches as overall (bumper-to-bumper) length. That's just (?!) 18-1/2 feet. Yours is nearly 2 feet longer.

[GrandpaDave]

The Bonneville is the standard 2 door hardtop, maybe I should measure it myself - the measurement I gave you is what my friend told me - will let you know.

[duncan2plus2]

The '66 Pontiac Chassis manual shows the overall length at 221.8" for the Bonne. Convert. The info for the body code (26267) is on page 0-1 and the dimensions are on page 0-8.
I think this manual has been posted here.

[Larry]

Yes, the '66 full-size Pontiac Shop Manual is posted in our On-Line Reference Manual Library. The scanning/posting is about 2/3s done-- it is a huge manual!