i know it is hard without looking at the numbers for the engine block but maybe someone could chime in and maybe help identify this motor. i bought the car about a month ago and the owner i bought it from said he thought it was a 5.7l. well i talk to the owner before him and she said the owner before her replaced the motor with the 5.7l motor. vin states it is a 5.0 car. it is a 1987 z28 with a posi rear end and a 5spd trans. any help will be greatly appreciated thanks again i am loving the car but confused at to what motor it is

 

i think (think) you can tell from the harmonic balancer..cant remember

 

No, you can't tell from the damper.

Get the casting number off of the block.

 

thats the big number on the side of the engine block right

 

Teach-to-fish answer: Often discussed on the forum, easy to find with a search.

Give-a-fish answer: The last three digits of the casting # are often cast into the side of the block, viewed from underneath the car. That is enough to identify the block. The full casting number is cast to the top of the bell housing mount behind the driver side head.

 

 

ok i could not find the number on the back of the motor but i found this number stamped on a pad below the alternator and right next to the water pump. the number is v0226cjc does this mean anything at all thanks for all the help

 

I can't find anything on that number - you're going to have to get the block number from area circled in pic above - it's hard to see when motor is in car, need a flashlight, can of brake cleaner to spray that area clean, maybe a toothbrush to scrub it with, and a mirror helps.

It's the ONLY way to identify - sbc all look the same externally, all the same external size - could be a 283, 302, 305, 307, 327, 350 without that block casting number you'll never know.

 

v0226cjc is helpful

V = Flint engine plant
0226 = Feb 26
CJC = 1988, 305CID, 150HP, TBI, L03, F-body

Your picture shows a TPI. Your car may have come with a TPI but the replacement engine originally had a TBI.

 

so why would somebody replace a motor with a motor with less horsepower and tbi. it just confounds me

 

Because they screwed up the original engine and the used TBI engine was cheaper than a used TPI engine. Maybe the engine seller said it was a 5.7, so they're the one that made off like a thief (well, if they said it was a 5.7, and charged for a 5.7, but it was an LO3, they were a thief).

About 10 years ago I picked up what was reported to be an original 1987 LB9. Pulling the heads, I discovered one was a TPI head and the other a TBI head. It had been bored .040" over, and had dished pistons. But, it had a TPI sitting on top of it, so without taking it apart, no one would have known what it had in/on it. Oh, the block was also cracked in the lifter valley...