First, a background story.

I bought my 78 pacecar back in 2000 at the age of 19. The motor was locked up solid but it was the only way I could afford to own my dream car. Not knowing anything at the time about mechanic work I had a friend who's dad had a "hole-in-the-wall" shop and he always bragged about how good he was. After looking at the engine he told me it was worthless and he could get me a new engine and put it in for about $2k.

He originally told me the new engine had 370 hp. Even at the age of 19 I knew that couldn't be right. By the time he put it in he was telling me 270 hp which was a lot more believable.

I was happy as could be. Just turned 20 years old and driving the car of my dreams. Then somebody told me I should hang on to the original engine so I stopped by the shop to pick up the leftover parts. Needless to say I was pissed off when I found out he had scrapped the block already. All I recovered was the heads and air cleaner.

It's 15 years later now. I've gotten over the fact the original engine is lost forever but I can't figure out what exactly is under my hood. Some sort of early crate motor or rebuilt and the block stamps aren't exactly clear.








No real hurry to figure it out. Just been curious over the last few years but any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

3970010 is the casting number for the 350 block.
A223 is the casting date, Jan.22, 1973 or 83 (Most likely 83 based on the blue color, but it may have been repainted. A 1973 block would have been orange.)
13?208117 (I'm guessing on the lightly stamped spaces) is the partial VIN of the vehicle it was originally installed in.
12718 is "unknown". Could have been stamped by anyone for any reason. Certainly not factory.
V0131C?? is the engine build date and broadcast code. It's a Flint built engine, dated Jan. 31, 1973 or 83. The C?? (missing two letters) would indicate what the original HP was, manual or auto, etc..

If you could get a picture from a different angle that may show the letters after the "C", it would help ID the engine.

I believe at a certain point in Chevy block development the engine stamp pad changed from a rectangle to a square. This may also help nail down a certain time period.

 

so now you know what you already knew. 2-piece seal 350. could be 2-bolt or 4-bolt mains. 010 came both ways. the 12718 overstamp looks like an engine rebuilder's number. pull valve cover and get head casting number. but it'll be a 462624 or an 883 casting, depending on decade it was made. still won't tell you flat or dished pistons, forged (unlikely in a rebuild) or cast. won't tell you valve size, but it is most likely 1.94 and 1.50. and won't tell you cam profile. but you can be fairly sure it is 170 to 370 hp...

 

Thanks a bunch!

I'll try to get a better pic of the "C" code but even looking at it in person I can't really see the missing letters.

Originally it's a L48 car. I'm guessing it's somewhere between 230 and 250 hp now so other than originality I'm not really missing the original block. Sure wish it had 370 hp though.