The engine is supposed to be an 89 350 but I can find not casting marks. It has perimeter valve covers, tpi, air, and a serpentine system. The sides of block are cast 627. The car was originally a 305. Anyone?

 

The perimeter bolt valve covers indicate that it is using pre-87 heads (and quite possibly the block too). I'm sorry that's all the help I can give you as I don't know casting numbers, but here's a TTT for ya

 

www.mortec.com/castnum.htm

Looks like a 305, correct block casting for your year.

Beyond that, it's anybody's guess. You might have the original motor; you might have a TBI motor, with the TPI stuck on top of it; who knows.

If it's the car's original motor, and the block hasn't been decked, the sequence # portion of the car's VIN (last 7 digits, unique to your car) will be stamped on the block deck, right in front of the pass side head.

Your head casting # (under the valve cover) should end in 081. If it ends in 187, they're 305 swirl-port garbage heads; if it ends in 193, they're 350 swirlies which would be even worse.

Hard to say, if it's been rebuilt or replaced, what pistons or cam might be in it; obviously those would strongly affect how the motor runs, and are rarely replaced with anything that produces an upgrade, or even as good as stock. Almost always, in a rebuild, they get SIGNIFICANTLY downgraded. Let's hope that didn't happen to yours.

 

Thanks for the responses. When I bought the car a couple of weeks ago the owner said it had a 350 swapped into it. I got these numbers off the back of the block:

K028

50LG

SGI

So the engine is in fact a 305. I am not sure what the K028 and SGI are though. What years did they put serpentine on the 305? The car is an 85 and I don't believe 85 had serpentine, but I could be wrong. I can not find the numbers on the front side of the block.

 

Sorry, I missed that your car is 85; I thought we were talking about 89.

The motor is unmistakably a 305. The one number (627) proves that, beyond any whiff of a glimpse of a shadow of doubt. The guy lied.

OH NO!!!!! NOT A USED CAR SALESMAN TELLING A LIE?????? I CAN'T BELIEVE I JUST SAID THAT!!!!! USED CAR SELLERS NEVER EVER LIE!!!!!

OK, now I feel better, I got that out of my system. And the 305/350 lie is without question the most common one about these cars, except possibly for lies involving "Vette" or "police interceptor" or "Vortec".

Those other numbers are meaningless.

Get the stamping off the front of the block. It's your only clue as to where the motor (or at least the block) came from. Get the head casting numbers; they're the only way to know what those are.

Belt systems un-bolt and re-bolt. They are not identification for the motor. You can stick a serpentine system on any 69-up SBC.

 

Yes, I wondered myself if it was indeed a 350, I noticed the perimeter valve covers and questioned it. The engine fires on the first flip of the key. Where would the front number be located? Underneath the ac compressor? I looked and looked but to no avail. I bought the car as a project car but I am debating about tossing it now. Can I use an older non roller 350 block with the tpi system and just reprogram the prom to the 350 and swap the injectors?

 

I'd throw a brick through somebody's window if I were you. You got ripped off.

 

I don't know how to desecribe it any more clearly.... you find the block, you find the pass side head, you look on the block deck (the surface the head sits on) right in front of that head.... the factory stamps a bunch of numbers there

Yes, you can put a non-roller 350 in it; however, it's pretty easy to end up with such a 350 that makes less power (will make the car slower) than some 305s.

Better to identify what you have first; you might find that it's worth working with, and save your money so you can get a decent 350 (such as a roller block for example) a little farther down the road, instead of the cheeeeepest 350 you can find.

 

If its an 85 it originally didn't have a 350