engine pad stamp
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Joined: Aug 2009
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From: ashland ky
engine pad stamp
Hello, I just was out trying to decipher the code on my engine pad and needed a little advise. All the pictures Ive seen before Have 2 numbers listed, but mine has just a single 8 digit code. It looks to me like it reads: t0923ckb.
From what I could find on it
T stands for Tonawanda (plant location)
09 is the month
23 is the day
and ckb can be any of these 3:
1972 350 tur 400 trans. L65 165 2 A B
1973 350 m/t, 4 spd L48 175 4 F AX/Monte
1974 350 m/t, 3 & 4 spd 185 4 F X
I have a 1972 and the previous owner (who isnt the original owner) said the engine and trans had been swapped before he bought the car. He tells me it now has the turbo 400 trans and 350 engine. I think it had manual originally because it looks like a clutch pedal is still there but cut off with a hack saw which is another item I need opinions on
Im just curious about what I'm missing here, I thought the pad included a partial VIN and info on what car the engine originally came in. Here is a picture of the pad I'm looking at, maybe I am looking in the wrong place, I admit to being a complete newb with this
Thanks for any help you can give me!
From what I could find on it
T stands for Tonawanda (plant location)
09 is the month
23 is the day
and ckb can be any of these 3:
1972 350 tur 400 trans. L65 165 2 A B
1973 350 m/t, 4 spd L48 175 4 F AX/Monte
1974 350 m/t, 3 & 4 spd 185 4 F X
I have a 1972 and the previous owner (who isnt the original owner) said the engine and trans had been swapped before he bought the car. He tells me it now has the turbo 400 trans and 350 engine. I think it had manual originally because it looks like a clutch pedal is still there but cut off with a hack saw which is another item I need opinions on
Im just curious about what I'm missing here, I thought the pad included a partial VIN and info on what car the engine originally came in. Here is a picture of the pad I'm looking at, maybe I am looking in the wrong place, I admit to being a complete newb with this
Thanks for any help you can give me!
Team Owner
Joined: Jul 2008
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From: In limbo
St. Jude Donor '13-'15, '17 thru '22
To answer one of your questions, you didn't state a year for your car, and I get hesitant to talk about years outside the '69-'72 range (the only years I have any significant knowledge on, and I don't claim to be an expert on even those), but all cars in that range left the factory with two stamps on the engine pad. Big blocks "usually" had their engine assembly stamp (looks like what you have a picture of) on the left, and started with a "T" because the engines were built in Tonawanda. Small blocks "usually" had the engine assembly stamp on the right, and started with a "V" because they were built in Flint Michigan. The other side would get a VIN derivative stamping which would identify which car the engine was oridinally installed in.
The notes I have here at work only go up to 1972, and I don't show an engine suffix for "CKB" for that year, or any other year from '68-'72.
To say any more would be guessing, so I'll stop here and wait for the more informed to help you further. Good luck!
The notes I have here at work only go up to 1972, and I don't show an engine suffix for "CKB" for that year, or any other year from '68-'72.
To say any more would be guessing, so I'll stop here and wait for the more informed to help you further. Good luck!
Team Owner
Joined: Jun 2000
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From: Southbound
Cruise-In II Veteran
The Tonawanda engine plant built small blocks, but not for Corvettes. All Corvette small blocks were assembled at Flint.
Clean off the engine pad next to the 8 you found. There may be a VIN derivitive stamped there. The 8 might be a part of it.
I agree, it looks like a former clutch pedal arm has been sawed off. Check your frame at the left rear of the engine block to determine if a factory clutch bracket is/was there.
Clean off the engine pad next to the 8 you found. There may be a VIN derivitive stamped there. The 8 might be a part of it.
I agree, it looks like a former clutch pedal arm has been sawed off. Check your frame at the left rear of the engine block to determine if a factory clutch bracket is/was there.
Team Owner
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 23,419
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From: In limbo
St. Jude Donor '13-'15, '17 thru '22
Well, you got me curious, so I did some reading on the internet. The no VIN derivative stamping makes me think that you have an "over the counter" engine, or "service replacement" engine. In other words, someone bought that engine from GM separate from a car. I found the site where you got the info on the engine codes, and looked up what the body codes were. I knew F body was Camaro/Firebird, A body is mid-sized, like Chevelle, GTO, Tempest, Cutlass, B body is full sized, like Impala or Bel Air, X body is Nova or Omega. Basically, this looks like a general use 350 cubic inch engine.
Given the above, we can conclude that what you have is not a Corvette engine. That isn't terrible, but the Corvette engines of the era generally had a few more ponies than the general service replacement engines.
In all my life, I have never seen a pedal cluster in a car with the clutch pedal cut off. Bubba was definitely there.
Good luck!
PK
Given the above, we can conclude that what you have is not a Corvette engine. That isn't terrible, but the Corvette engines of the era generally had a few more ponies than the general service replacement engines.
In all my life, I have never seen a pedal cluster in a car with the clutch pedal cut off. Bubba was definitely there.
Good luck!
PK
Team Owner
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 31,497
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From: Huntsville AL
Does the car have a removable transmission crossmember? If so, it was originally an automatic car. If the trans cross member is welded in, it was originally a stick shift car.
The vin derivative, assuming it is on the engine, may be stamped on the side of the block near the oil filter boss. Some 69 Z/28 engines were like that. Otherwise, don't have a clue.
The vin derivative, assuming it is on the engine, may be stamped on the side of the block near the oil filter boss. Some 69 Z/28 engines were like that. Otherwise, don't have a clue.
Safety Car
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 3,711
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From: San Antonio TX
Not really. It's just an economical (or in this case, cheap) solution. On manual trans cars, the clutch pedal is also the pivot pin for the brake pedal. On auto cars, the pin is just a pin. So in this conversion, the person got an auto brake pedal and then just chopped off the clutch pedal and is using what's left as the pin. So they saved themselves a couple of bucks by not buying the pin.
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From: ashland ky
Thanks for all the replies, its given me a lot to think about. I'm planning on pulling the engine out over the winter and doing a little work... maybe some new heads, cam, valve springs, rockers, intake and carb. I was just hoping it'd have the info to let me know what car it originally came out of so I'd know what I was working with, but I guess it doesn't really matter a whole lot considering the changes I'm planning on making anyway.
I'm also hoping to pick up a decent manual tranny at a swap meet next year. I noticed the wide brake pedal and just figured the person picked it up along with the center console made for the automatic shifter, you know, the center console that's held together with silver sheet metal screws...
I'll get out and check on a few things from stuff you guys have told me. One thing, is that I'm pretty sure there isn't another number next to the number in the pic. I cleaned on the pad for a while and nothing came out.
I'm also hoping to pick up a decent manual tranny at a swap meet next year. I noticed the wide brake pedal and just figured the person picked it up along with the center console made for the automatic shifter, you know, the center console that's held together with silver sheet metal screws...
I'll get out and check on a few things from stuff you guys have told me. One thing, is that I'm pretty sure there isn't another number next to the number in the pic. I cleaned on the pad for a while and nothing came out.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jun 2005
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From: Syracuse NY
Does the car have a removable transmission crossmember? If so, it was originally an automatic car. If the trans cross member is welded in, it was originally a stick shift car.
The vin derivative, assuming it is on the engine, may be stamped on the side of the block near the oil filter boss. Some 69 Z/28 engines were like that. Otherwise, don't have a clue.
The vin derivative, assuming it is on the engine, may be stamped on the side of the block near the oil filter boss. Some 69 Z/28 engines were like that. Otherwise, don't have a clue.
I took digital pictures of my DZ302 then zoomed in and was just able to make out the numbers.
Race Director
Joined: Apr 1999
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From: NM
One thing not mentioned so far about the auto/manual question. The manual trans had a welded in trans crossmember while the automatics was a bolt in. To put an auto in the manuals crossmember would need to be cut out and replaced with a bolt in. Check it out and see what it looks like.
tom...
tom...
