The car in question is my wife's 65 Belvedere 4 door.
It's a slant six, single barrel carburetor with a automatic.
Someone was telling me the ribs on the valve cover means it's a 170 or 198 but not the 225 I thought it was.
How can I tell the cubic inch?

The displacement may be stamped on a pad at the front of the block, near the alternator.
The short coolant hose going to the front of the head is shorter for the 170. Measure and post the lenght here, and someone can tell you which you have.
If it's original, it's not a 198 (They came later).
My '64 Valiant seems to have the original 225, and it has the ribbed valve cover.
Hope this helps!

Unless someone swapped the original out any B-body with a slant six should be a 225 (the stock 170 wouldn't push a road liner around to any great effect...)....

check the pad behind the alt., it's a good tattle tell, may have to clean the crud off it...

-D.Idiot

Can't stand the know it alls.

You guys were right. It's a 225.

I took a digital pic but see no way to upload images to the forum.

Thanks

Good detective work, looking at the ID pad is always the best way to find-out what engine is in there.
For posting photos you need to get the image up-loaded onto the internet and then it can be linked to this site.
DD

It's the big one!