VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND NEWER 1961-1964 64 Bel Air Info Wanted

Hello everybody!

This is my first time here and I'd like to avail myself of your expertise, if I may.

My query concerns my new ride, a 1964 Chevy Bel Air four-door sedan with a 230 Six and Powerglide that was assembled at GM's Continental plant in Antwerp, Belgium. Currently, I'm in the process of nursing it back to life after much neglect and abuse by an unknown number of previous owners.

Things have been going well so far, but now I've run into a few problems that you guys may be able to help me with.

Problem # 1 is more a matter of curiosity: The engine number on the car's cowl tag (F0117B3269) does not match the number on the engine itself (F1216LA1089), which means, of course, that there was an engine replacement at some point in the past. I've looked into decoding Chevy engine numbers a little bit, but the "LA" part is what I have been unable to decipher. According the the casting number (3877178/73), the engine is period-correct, but it could be either a 230 or a 250. Any ideas?

Problem # 2 is the carburetor. My Bel Air came with a retrofitted Holley four-barrel that leaked quite badly. Since I prefer originality, I've decided to convert back to an OEM Rochester BV, which I've already got. The original intake manifold was in the car, fortunately, so bolting it back on was a cinch.

The problem is the throttle linkage. The bellcrank was twisted to accommodate the Holley and all the original fittings for the fuel line etc. are gone. Right now, I have no idea what parts I need or even what the original setup looked like. If anyone could enlighten me in this respect, I'd be most grateful.

Finally, problem # 3: While the engine did run fine when I drove it home from the Netherlands, where I bought the car, to Germany, where I live, most of the gaskets on the engine turned out to leak, unsurprisingly, and need to be replaced. Thankfully, a full set of gaskets is available.

However, the gasket for the front of the oil pan is odd. The old one on the car has six boltholes to match the six screws on the engine, but the replacement gasket from the Fel-Pro set has only two boltholes, one on the extreme left and one on the extreme right and none in between. This just doesn't look right. Nevertheless, the respective gaskets from other suppliers look exactly the same. Am I supposed to believe that one can simply install the gasket over the four boltholes in the middle? This seems like a disaster in the making to me. Am I wrong?

Well, that's what I'm confronted with right now. Needless to say, I'm very fond of my Bel Air and would greatly appreciate any help from the community.

Thanks very much in advance.

You came to the right place for answers. I'll move this down to the technical forums so it'll get a wider audience.

1966 was the first 250 engine.

Thanks a lot.

Thanks for the info. I was aware of the 1966 launch of the 250 and I'd prefer if my replacement engine was a 230 because that's closer to the original equipment. According to the casting number, though, it could be either. I'm just curious what I've actually got.

Hi,

The Inliners have a casting number list that you might find useful: https://www.inliners.org/casting/numbers.html

Cheers, Dean

With regard to your Problem #2, attached are a couple pictures of a Rochester BV set-up from a 1964 Chevy II. While the Chevy II engine is 194 cu in, I would guess the set-up on the Belair would be the same or similar. Mike

Hello to you,

Just checked out your info. Unfortunately, it confirms that the "my" casting number was used from 62-78 for both the 230 AND the 250, so no luck there, but thanks for the tip, anyway.

Mike

Hello Namesake,

Thanks very much for your pics. They're very helpful. My manifold looks a little different, though. I'll post a photo as soon as possible.

Is your 194 attached to a manual transmission, by the way? If so, the carb would not be identical with one for an automatic.

Anyway, thanks again. Excellent, informative pictures like yours are just what I had hoped for when I started my enquiry.

Mike

Hi Mike,
The engine is a spare and came from the factory with an automatic transmission that is still attached. I don’t believe the physical appearance of the BV is any different whether it’s automatic or manual maybe only the bell crank since the auto transmission kickdown linkage attaches to it.

With regard to the year of your engine, the casting date should be in the vicinity of the casting number. Attached is a picture of the casting date (A 2 4) from my spare decoded as follows:

A being January
2 being the second day of the month
4 being 1964

At least you should be able to determine the year the block was cast by looking at the last digit.

Hope this helps, Mike

Hi Mike,

Thanks again for some very valuable information and visual aid. I'll check it out tomorrow (it's 6:20 p.m. over here) at my garage.

My car's bell crank is a problem, too, because whoever installed the Holley 4-barrel heated up and twisted the crank to fit the new carb. I'll either have to replace it - provided I can locate a proper one - or bend it back into its original shape (sigh).

Greetings,

Mike

Hi Mike,

Thanks to your latest post, I've been able to detect my engine's casting date. The inscription says L 9 6, so I gather it was December 9th, 1966. The question whether it's a 230 or a 250 still remains to be answered, but I'll find out in due time.

Best wishes,

Mike

Are you sure it is LA? LR is one of the codes for a 64 230.

Dave

https://www.novaresource.org/codes.htm

Dave,

Thanks for your information. Unfortunately, I am sure it's "LA". I've checked and double-checked, taken pictures of the pad under different lighting conditions, it's always "LA".

This code doesn't make any sense. It's not a matter of life or death, but it does bug me. I don't like loose ends.

Anyway, thanks for your help.

Mike

Hi Mike, Maybe this will help with your loose end. Here is a picture of a chart that I found on a Camaro website and the link to same.

http://www.camaros.org/drivetrain.shtml

Hi,

I think you've hit the proverbial nail on the head. So the engine in my car is indeed a 230, not a 250. It was cast on December 9th, 1966, received its engine ID number on the 16th, was installed in a '67 Camaro, and somehow found its way into my Bel Air later in its service life. Apparently, mating an engine meant for a manual transmission to a Powerglide is unproblematic. Okay by me as long as it works - and it does.

I had already discovered that Chevy used the "LA" suffix more than once: For six-cylinder trucks up to 1962, for truck 265 V8s in 1956 and 1957, and for the 427 V8 in 1969. None of this made any sense, of course. But now, all the pieces fall into place.

Thank you very much.

Mike

Hi Mike,

This is your namesake again. My apologies for being a pest, but you've been providing so much useful information that I would like to ask you to indulge me a bit more.

The pictures you posted of your spare 194 with the Rochester BV are most instructive, but I'd like to make sure that your carb is identical to mine. I've seen pictures of a lot of different BV setups, which has been rather confusing. Therefore, I'd like to ask you if you could post another photo or two of your Rochester, only from a different angle, preferably from the side facing the driver for reasons of comparison.

I've attached a pic of my existing setup to show what's missing on my carb. It's a fully remanufactured BV but with no accelerator linkage.

Which brings me to a question: Do you know and/or could you recommend a place where I can get the missing parts, by any chance? I would imagine that since so many people decide to swap their Chevy Sixes for V8s, there ought to be a reasonable supply of BVs or BV parts no longer needed, hopefully.

Thanks very much for your help.

Mike

Hi Mike, I’ll get you some pictures later this morning and then you can determine what’s missing. Mike

Mike, Here are a few pictures of a bv installed in a 63 Nova. I really can’t see what items you’re missing other than the bracket for the return spring and the spring itself. I may be able to help you if I had more information. You can PM me your contact information. Mike