Im helping a buddy of mine look for a Beaumont, and I found what I think is a pretty good deal. It is a 66 SD and I think it could be pretty nice without a lot of work. The asking price seems reasonable...... There is a funny looking hood on it and a former owner has cut the dash to mount some guages but it looks like the real deal. Now before I call George Zapora, assuming he still has a job, a few questions:

Were there any 66 SD's built with a factory 396 ?
If so, were these big block cars equipped with the big block Chevelle hood ?
Im assuming there was no special VIN for SD's

Have a look at: http://www.oldcaronline.com/ocdetail172071.htm

There were 396 66 sd cars (283, 327 or 396 were available). No VIN # distinction, so you need to call George and get the docs. This one you have linked to seems a bit suspect to me... the body emblems appear incorrectly located, the hood looks like a 67 ss hood 'bumps' grafted onto a 66? I dont think 66 beaumonts (even 396s) had the SS hood...

There's a documented 66 396 car in Calgary kijiji for sale right now... orig. turquoise, but now aztec bronze. there's also a beautiful 66 sd convert (283) dark blue, white int. in southern ontario.

ak

did'nt see anything strange about the hood , other than ; did a 66 s/d not have a raised chrome/glass centerpiece at the very front. [ top of the hood ? ] also did a 66 s/d not have those beauty shark fins on the rear quarters ? . only asking because i purchased a 66 - custom .

Louvres were on the front fenders on a 66 (67 had 3 on the rear quarter). The hood is a hybrid with 67 ss domes grafted onto a 66 hood. Take a look at the photos on this site of a 66 compared to a 67 hood. None of the sd emblems on the car are located in the correct locations, and front fender louvres are missing.

Its possible the seller has the documentation, the ad doesnt call the car an sd.

Mike does your friend want a 66 only? There's a nice 67 factory 4sp, bench seat, dog dish car, in capri cream with black interior that just came for sale this week in SK. Original motor is gone, but it sure looks like a nice sleeper!

also visit: http://canadianponcho.activeboard.com/ for lots of beaumont and canadian pontiac information...there are some very knowledgeable guys on there...

ak

As stated above, 396's were available. I believe the option code was the same as for Chevelle. The only one listed in the sales brochure I have is the 350HP which I think would be the L34 code.
Sport deluxe shoud be VIN 73617 -that's a 2-dr hardtop. Unfortunately, SD was an option only so same VIN as ALL 2-dr HT's. As I understand it, the "Sports Option" was covered by option code A51. This has been on the cowl tag of every 66 SD I've seen. Some Options Code listings call this up as "Bucket Seats Astro type" but I believe it was the options code for the Sports Option.

The brochure describes the sport options as:

"The new Sports Option includes Strato bucket seats, centre console (with shift lever when four-speed, Powerglide or 396 V8 engine is specified), front fender louvres, and distinctive trim identification."

If you can get a look at the cowl tag, a 396 SD should have A51 and L34 stamped on it... Near as I can tell, 66 SD's did not come with the BB hood (none of the brochures I have seen show it anyway - but it should have offered IMHO) and the Sport Deluxe emblems on this car are not right (the bottom of "Sport" & "Deluxe" should be lined up) and it is missing the front fender louvres...

I thought maybe the 10 bolt rear would be a give-away, but the Chassis manual I have for '66 does not even show a 12 bolt..

Hope this helps
Wes

I had this SD 396 L34 Beaumont back in the day. They only came with the L34, bucket seats and console. Buckets and console were part of the SD dress up package. They weren't actually called SD396 in '66, just SD with an engine option, 283, 327 or L34 396. Ours had the tach and gauge dash, M20, and 3.73 posi, and headrests which were a rarity back then. The cross flag 396 emblems were a later ad on. Just a V8 emblem like a 283 was standard. It had the standard flat hood as did Canadian built SS396 Chevelles in '66. Until at least 1968 the Canadian built Chevelles and Beaumonts had body coloured firewalls. I've never seen the car since selling it in '68. It's one car that I would like to have again.

Says nothing about Sport Deluxe, but
66 Beaumont complete project new upholstery, 396 4-speed
$10,000 $7,500 without motor/tranny
(will build to suit)

That'd be CDN$ I expect

Here's a link
http://regina.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-classic-cars-30-Projects-amp-More-W0QQAdIdZ119523402

66 Beau

:) keith ; did only the u.s 1966 chevelle's have the big block hood , & not the canadian built ? . looking in ausley's catalog , they sell big block hoods for the 1966 - s.s & malibu , with the scoops & inserts . i'm !!!!!! to hear the 66 - beaumont did'nt come with the b.b hood , since i bought a b.b hood at burrels creek auto flea market last year . i was going to cheat - just a little bit , for my 66 beaumont custom , since i have a 427 ready to pop in . good thing i did'nt get rid of the original hood ! :beers: time to educate myself on the beaumont i'd say , - since i own one now . just not an s/d :(

:) keith ; did only the u.s 1966 chevelle's have the big block hood , & not the canadian built ? . looking in ausley's catalog , they sell big block hoods for the 1966 - s.s & malibu , with the scoops & inserts . i'm !!!!!! to hear the 66 - beaumont did'nt come with the b.b hood , since i bought a b.b hood at burrels creek auto flea market last year . i was going to cheat - just a little bit , for my 66 beaumont custom , since i have a 427 ready to pop in . good thing i did'nt get rid of the original hood ! :beers: time to educate myself on the beaumont i'd say , - since i own one now . just not an s/d :(

Neither the Canadian big block Chevelles in '66 nor the big block '66 Beaumonts had the big block hoods. Same for the early part of the '67 production as well. Any big block Chevelles for '66 would have been 136-series, and the Beaumonts 736-series. Same goes for the start of the '67 models, but ~around late-November '66 the 138-series SS396 made an appearaance, as did the new 738-series beaumont Sport Deluxe. THEY had the big-block hoods.

I am surprised that nobody has said anything about the engine in the Beaumont. Alternator on the wrong side, so I am thinking that it is not originally a big block car.

Did BB's have the alternator on the driver side too? I know that is the case for '66 small blocks. Also on small blocks, the alternator bracket mounted to the driver side exhaust manifold so some people switch it to the passenger side (with newer brackets) when they put headers on.
Same true with BB's?

The alternator was on the drivers side on the big blocks until 1969 when they started using the long water pumps.
James

Other than the cross flag emblems added to the front fenders, what you see in my post is the way they came in Canada in '66. No SS hood and no bench seats available. The engine was original to the car with the short water pump setup that was used until 1969.

Since these cars are Canadian manufactured, it is possible to get all the car info from GM of Canada for about 60 bucks if you send in the VIN number. You will have a complete option list, interior exterior colors, engine size, tranny, etc etc.

They can even tell you which dealer the car was delivered to.

The SD in my signature is a true SD big block car.