Hey guys, I have a new 355 in my car, and I'm kinda confused about the block. Its a non-roller, 2 bolt, one-piece rear main seal block. Does anyone have any idea where this came from? I thought trucks came with 4 bolts, and all the other one-piece rear seal 350s came with rollers?

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1990 Pontiac Formula 350
Rebuilt 355
COMPCAMS 212/212 .440/.440 cam
Flowmasters 80 series.

 

86 block.

 

Madmax is right. 86 was a change over year. So they got the one piece seal but not all were set up for roller lifters.

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91 Camaro RS 5.0L Black Convertible 700R4
** Added so far **
*GM Wonderbar,Alston SFC's,spohn LCA's and Panhard rod
*Turbo City Inj Spacer
*Dual Snorkel Air Filter
*March Performance Pulleys
*GM 3.42 Gears with OEM Zexel POSI
*Edelbrock headers
*3" High Flow Cat
*3" Dynomax Exhaust
*Walbro 255 lph Fuel Pump
***Future 330hp Vortec Crate with LT4 hotcam and 454 TBI

 

But what kinda car would it have come out of? If it was an 86 model year block, then it wouldn't have come out of a F-Body or Corvette. And if it was an 87, it would have had rollers.

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1990 Pontiac Formula 350
Rebuilt 355
COMPCAMS 212/212 .440/.440 cam
Flowmasters 80 series.

 

Its extremely unlikely its out of an F-body, but it could be out of a Vette. Its more than likely a truck block, they cast more of those than you can count.

 

Also, i forgot to mention that it is a Canadian block, I dunno if that explains anything. Aren't truck 350s usually 4 bolt?

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1990 Pontiac Formula 350
Rebuilt 355
COMPCAMS 212/212 .440/.440 cam
Flowmasters 80 series.

 

Nope, thats mostly a myth.

 

Just because it doesn't have a roller cam, doesn't mean that it doesn't have the provisions for one. Does it have two screw holes on either side of the front cam bore? Are there long slots in the middle of the lifter valley, or are there 3 nipples that look like you could drill and tap for screws there? What is the casting #? Get it and go to www.mortec.com That site will give you some info on the block.

Good luck,
AJ

 

When I bought my 350 block the guy had 2 to choose from. One was an 86 and the other was an 87. The 86 block didn't have the 3 bumps in the lifter valley. The 87 did though Both were truck blocks and the one I got (the 87 block) came from an RV. Haven't pulled the pan yet though to check if it's a 4 bolt main or not.

 

Larger, heavy duty sorta trucks are much more likely to have a 4 bolt main. Just because its a truck doesnt make it one though, best way is to drop the pan and look if you really want a 4 bolt.

AJ is right about the bosses and stuff, I just figured you knew the difference.

This is what the lifter valley on a roller block looks like:

 

Yeah, I recognize the bosses for the roller cam, I'm not sure if this block had those
(I didn't put the engine together). But it's probably just a truck block. But thanks for the clarification on the mains, and for your help guys.

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1990 Pontiac Formula 350
Rebuilt 355
COMPCAMS 212/212 .440/.440 cam
Flowmasters 80 series.

 

I have a 1987 Camaro Iroc Z-28 T-Topped, I was told by a dealer where I bought it that it was a 5.7 original. My VIN number is saying that it's an F. I need to know of how I can find out what engine I have because I'm selling this car and I need to know what to tell the interested pepole. I want to know the right facts to tell them. Can anyone help me on this? Thanks Rick

 

Well if the VIN says F, it was a 305 originally. There is a pad in front of the passenger side head (can see this in my pic above) that has some casting numbers on it that will let you know if the block is original, and there should be the part number cast into the block on the driver side by the transmission.
If you get the numbers off the block, you might want to start a new post and post the numbers.

 

Thanks MadMax for that info on where to find that engine Vin number, I'll take a look to see what I got. I was wondering if you could help me with a small problem. I have a Daytona hood fiberglass on my Camaro and I had the Mighty Lifts on the hood so it wouldn't fall. One of the sides where the bolt goes into the hood, it cracked the fiberglass. Any way of fixing this to make it thick and stronger? Also, are these Mighty Lifts made for fiberglass, or does it take another lift? Thanks, Rick