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JohnIL · 10-03-2022, 10:16 PM

Ever since I brought the truck home, I've been meaning to decode the engine casting and stamping numbers to find out exactly what I have. I finally got around to it the other day. Now, I have another grudge to hold against the previous owner.

When I bought the truck, I was told that it had a 327 and Saginaw 4 speed from a 1968 Camaro. I didn't expect anything special, like a 275HP 4 barrel 327. They didn't put very many of those in 1968 Camaros. What I expected was a run-of-the-mill 210HP 2 barrel 327. They put a boatload of those in 1968 Camaros. Oh, and I expected the truth. I got none of those.

The numbers say that I have a smogged out, detuned 175HP piece of garbage 350 from a 1979 1/2 ton truck. This engine may have come from a 1968 Camaro, but it DEFINITELY wasn't original to the car. At this point, I'm finding it difficult to believe anything the previous owner told me. I'd like to believe that someone lied to him and he really did think this was a 327 from a 1968 Camaro. That would be a whole lot better than thinking that he purposely lied to me. The sad part is that I don't even really care. I didn't buy the truck for the engine. If he had told me the truth, I would have bought the truck anyway. I was just happy that I found a truck that was drivable while I work on fixing it up. Knowing that it had the most common and crappiest (second only to the 305 from the same era) small block Chevy ever made would have just made the future drive train decisions easier. I just don't like the fact that I was lied to about it.

Now then, moving forward. Onto happier topics.

10-03-2022, 10:16 PM	#9
JohnIL Registered User Join Date: Aug 2022 Location: Central Illinois Posts: 112	Engine Identification Ever since I brought the truck home, I've been meaning to decode the engine casting and stamping numbers to find out exactly what I have. I finally got around to it the other day. Now, I have another grudge to hold against the previous owner. When I bought the truck, I was told that it had a 327 and Saginaw 4 speed from a 1968 Camaro. I didn't expect anything special, like a 275HP 4 barrel 327. They didn't put very many of those in 1968 Camaros. What I expected was a run-of-the-mill 210HP 2 barrel 327. They put a boatload of those in 1968 Camaros. Oh, and I expected the truth. I got none of those. The numbers say that I have a smogged out, detuned 175HP piece of garbage 350 from a 1979 1/2 ton truck. This engine may have come from a 1968 Camaro, but it DEFINITELY wasn't original to the car. At this point, I'm finding it difficult to believe anything the previous owner told me. I'd like to believe that someone lied to him and he really did think this was a 327 from a 1968 Camaro. That would be a whole lot better than thinking that he purposely lied to me. The sad part is that I don't even really care. I didn't buy the truck for the engine. If he had told me the truth, I would have bought the truck anyway. I was just happy that I found a truck that was drivable while I work on fixing it up. Knowing that it had the most common and crappiest (second only to the 305 from the same era) small block Chevy ever made would have just made the future drive train decisions easier. I just don't like the fact that I was lied to about it. Now then, moving forward. Onto happier topics.