hartsmike

Thinking in terms of a truck motor. Something from a salvage yard I can put my Weiland intake n carb on without having to buy adaptors or new intake etc.. Would it be 90-92 350 or 94?

bigal55

iTrader: (1)

Basically the same. 97 up use vortec heads which need a vortec manifold. Just about any 86 up to 96 will work if that is what your manifold is for.

midias

2000 is basically the last year of the standard ez swappable truck with a small block. If it has aluminum heads it is probably LS based

Night rider327

iTrader: (13)

With out having to buy even an intake or mod an intake, 1986 would be the newest. Assuming you have a 1986 or older now

1987 GM changed the angle of the 4 center intake bolt holes in the heads... So 1987 to 1995 would be same, '96 up started the vortec heads and only uses 8 intake bolts rather than 12

hartsmike

I'm thinking the 350 now is circa 1984 but I don't know for sure but I want to keep costs minimal and use same intake and carb. So I need to find an 86 or older 350 then?

Night rider327

iTrader: (13)

Don't let a $50-150 intake be the deciding factor man.

But yeah with the gen 1 sbc..
1955-86 used an intake with 12 bolts and 4 center bolts at a step angle
1987-1995 used an intake with 12 bolts and the 4 center bolts at a more straight down angle.... (after 1992, it would need to be a truck/van/suv engine)
1996-2001 is the vortec engine, used an intake with 8 smaller dia. bolts all straight down.

With the 1955-95 range you can elongate the center 4 bolt holes on the intake and make it work.. Like say a 1984 intake on a set of 1991 heads... Just elongate the 4 center bolt holes and it will work

But like I said, don't let the intake sway you too much. You can pick up intakes for $50-100 used for performance intakes... New you can get them for $125 to $175

Point is... Don't pass up a great deal on say a 96-01 vortec 350 just cause your intake won't fit. You can buy a new intake to fit your carb and vortec heads for $160 or so.. Then sell your weiland intake you have now for $75 to help offset the price.

The vortec heads are the best factory made gen 1 sbc, the vortec is a factory roller cam engine. Made 260 HP stock Very easy to get 325-350 out of them with out very much work/mods

ex-x-fire

The newer engines with roller cams & vortech heads are the only ones I'd look for. L98 engines are ok, tbi 350s are a basic engines but have bad flowing heads & most likely not have a roller cam.

sofakingdom

iTrader: (1)

Using your intake manifold as the sole criterion for selecting a used engine is the very picture of shooting yourself in the front of the shorts because you didn't like the bullet and just wanted to get rid of it.

Get a 96-2000 truck motor and replace your intake with one that fits that motor. You can probably keep your carb. The $200 that an intake might cost is AHELLUVALOT less than the value you will give up by seeking out an even older more wore-out and used-up junker.

hartsmike

Would that include the 5.3 truck engines? Isi t as easy as taking the FI off and putting intake on them and carb?

Also, how easy would itbe to get 300-350 HP out of, say, 96 5.7?

Night rider327

iTrader: (13)

No, that does not count or go for the LS engines like the 5.3L.

We are talking gen 1 sbc or modded gen 1 as some call the vortec engines.

300-350 out of a L31 vortec 5.7L (350) truck engine is a walk in the park.
Swap to a summit stage II or III, pro croswinds, or edelbrock performer vortec carbed intake.
Set of headers and good exhaust system
throw in a 214/228*(+/- a couple of degrees) @.050" cam
skip white $50 HEI
600-670 cfm carb

And you have your 300 HP

hartsmike

Thanks for the help guys... Will all of the accessories such as alternator, starter, water pump, etc from the older 350 block bolt right up to the Vortec? From research, I'm assuming I'll need to run an inline electric fuel pump since the Vortecs do not have holes for the mechanical fuel pump?

bigal55

iTrader: (1)

All accessories should bolt up no problem. The starter is a different story as GM used 2 different size flexplate/flywheel - starter combinations. Your Camaro uses the small diameter combination and a truck motor most likely uses a large diameter combination. The starters for the 2 different combinations are not interchangeable and not all motors are drilled for both starters. If you go with a truck motor, get the starter and flexplate/flywheel with it and use those parts to avoid problems. As for the fuel pump, some motors for fuel injection still had the fuel pump provision machined into the block. When that step was eliminated is not definitively known. I purchased a 92 truck motor that was tbi equipped but has the fuel pump provisions with drilled hole for pushrod and roller cam ready but with a flat tappet cam. Most engines in the fuel injection era do not have a lobe on the cam for a mechanical fuel pump so you would most likely need an electric pump anyway unless you change the cam. If you are looking to just drop a motor and go then as Sofa said, get a vortec L31 and an electric fuel pump with the appropriate manifold and be miles ahead. If you are doing a rebuild, then any combination can be made up. With the block I have, I could slap on a set of vortec heads, a good roller cam with fuel pump lobe, mechanical fuel pump and a good manifold/carb combination and have a nice low dollar build with good street manners and adequate power to have fun with. HTH!

hartsmike

I've been looking and scrounging Craigslist and the internet for used Vortecs. There is a guy close to home whom I spoke with last week which has a shop and rebuilds engines from dirt track cars to ordinary engines for people like me and he quoted me a price on the old SB that I've got now. He said to break it down and rebuild it is $1300.00. That was going by factory specs. I'm assuming the Vortec engine would be the same however when I spoke to him i had not come across the idea for what I've learned past couple of days. Does that sound like a good deal for you guys?

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

Should be basically the same for a '96-'99 light truck "Vortec" 350 (2000 was only in the "heavy duty" versions).

If you see 4 coils on top of each valve cover of a junkyard engine, then that isn't the engine you're looking for (if you want a "simple" engine replacement).

hartsmike

Thanks Five! You have always been helpful!!

sofakingdom

iTrader: (1)

If you want to go looking for a "Vortec" motor, about the absolute worst thing you can do, is to either search for or UTTER that word. People who advertise using it are looking for buyers that are looking for an "upgrade"; and people who say it as the motor they're looking for are advertising that they're trying to hot-rod their car. In either case, use of the word automatically jacks up the price.

Drop it from your vocabulary during your search.

Best way to locate one of those motors honestly WITHOUT paying the "play toy" cover charge, is to go to a junkyard that specializes in trucks (or at least, has lots of them). Eff CL and ebay and such as that. Act like you're a carpenter or landscape service or the like (or maybe you don't have to pretend? makes it even easier) and you've got a 98 pickup with a 5.7 that has motor problems and you need one to get your truck back to work. DO NOT say "Vortec"; DO NOT mention casting numbers or any such; just, you need a motor for your 98 truck.

What you will be looking for is a motor that looks exactly like the one you have now; look for a distributor, same kind of water pump, same shape of heads and block, exhaust ports in the same order (1, a gap, 2 together in the middle, a gap, 1 at the other end), etc; except it will have what looks like a TBI on top with a taller 2-pc intake. Pay what it takes to get a NICE one in known good running condition so you don't have to mess with it.

And WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT utter the word "Vortec" and DO NOT talk about "will this fit my Camaro" because if you let that slip, the 300% hot-rodder playtoy markup will IMMEDIATELY be applied.

Mortorq

Gotta love that sofa. Best advice I've heard about "Vortecs" in a YEAR!

Night rider327

iTrader: (13)

LOL, to a point I do agree with sofa on this.

But will also add this. A lot of gear heads that are changing setups, going diff routes, buying and selling will still list "vortec" and still sell at a good price.

I got in a running but non installed vortec engine with a parts car I bought. Yes I'm out to make money by parting cars, but also looking to help other gear heads out..

I tested the engine, pulled the heads... Sold heads for $250 for the pair, and the short block for $300.

I listed it on craigslist and I used all the buzz words, numbers, etc in the listing

novaderrik

1995 was the last year that used the old school intake mounting pattern... if you have an 86 and older intake, you can make it fit the 87-95 heads by spending about 30 seconds elongating each of the 4 center intake manifold bolt holes... but be aware that if you have a mechanical fuel pump, it might not work because the block might not be drilled for it and/or the cam may not have a lobe to run it.. if that's the case, then you need to run an electric pump.

honestly, tho, it's worth spending a little extra cash up front to swap in a 96-2000 vortec truck engine. it bolts in exactly like any other small block, but you need to get a vortec specific intake.. the extra power is worth it, and it's easier to upgrade things for more power later since you would have a roller cam and the best heads that GM ever put on a small block at the factory.