pontiac grand ville 1973 hardtop sedan

Wow, a Grandville in Belgium!

First of all, if it's a pontiac engine, it's not a big block or small block. You can't tell the displacement by looking at its outer dimensions. Now, depending on the year, there are codes stamped into the block. It's been a while, but IIRC there is a boss on the RH side. The code should be stamped in there. you may have to clean it up pretty good to figure it out. Once you have the code in hand, do a google search for 'Pontiac engine Code' and your code.

A few quick things to look for to tell if your engine is a Pontiac...

1. Oil filler cap directly attached to valve cover.
2. Water pump has 14(?) bolts - also look for a long thin bolt that goes from the top of the pump into the front of the intake manifold. That is unique to Pontiacs...
3. Intake manifold doesn't need to have distributor taken out to remove.
4. SSSSsmmmmmmmooooootttttthhhhh rumming engine! Them Shabby motors don't come close!

thx a lot for the information "injunraiv" :-),are you from the USA? greetz, Alex.

Yep, and my dad is a Pontiac dealer, and I worked in the shop for a number of years. I guess you could say I have been around your car before! BTW, I was wondering if you have an American car. I'm not too familiar with the Canadian production models, but lots of Canadian pontiacs were actually re-badged Chevys with Chevy engines. Usually, they had different names, but I have no idea if they used Grand Ville or not. Anyway, if you have a chevy engine, the way I tell at a glance is the water pump. 4 bolts? It's a chevy!