Looking for a crate 350

[69lnghrn]

Hey guys! Well it looks like its time to buy a NEW 350. I finally ran mine to the ground. Its for my 69 Longhorn. Im still gonna be working in this truck and using it as my daily driver. Alot of people are telling me that I need a 4 bolt main because of the load I put in it and the things i haul. I dont plan on loading it as heavy as I use to, but there is diffidently gonna be a skid of plywood, couple squares of shingles, or a few kegs of asphalt back there at any given time.
So my questions are:
Do I need a 4bolt main
and
where is a good place to find one.
Not looking for nothing fancy. Just a good, new, strong 350.
any advice is welcome. Thanks in advance Laz

[cdowns]

the 4bolt main is mostly hot air and myth for street driven vehicles

your local GM dealership is a good place to get a great crate at reasonable price//do comparison shopping online frst and dont b afraid to talk to them about matching prices or better yet get an old senior citizen to use their AARP discout to bring down the price

[69lnghrn]

Thanks CDOWNS! Mostly everything leads me to GM Performance parts. they are telling me that the 4 bolt main is about 25% more powerful??? Isnt the 2 bolt powerful enough?? I dont much bout this. thanks again

[Longhorn Man]

2 bolt verses 4 bolt doesn't make or take any power at all. Ignore 99% of what you hear the average person (including salesmen) will tell you.
The added bolts help keep the engine together at stupid high RPMs (like over 5500) and also they help with real high cylinder pressures, like 450 horses or more.
On a street driven truck, it's nothing but talk.
Think of it as putting a double knot on your shoes, even though they never come untied to begin with.

[CC69Rat]

For what it's worth to you, and to no offense of the guys why might have them.. I personally would steer clear of the 350/290hp crate engine from GMPP.

While yes, they offer a 12/12,000 warranty - it's only good if a certified ASE mechanic installed the engine.

I personally had one in a 69 Camaro and put about 1,000 miles on it. It started smoking, just slightly at idle. I thought it was just running rich at first and was trying to adjust the carb. It started loosing power, and the smoking got worse.

I started to do some research online and found that there were a bad batch of these motors built and they caught the problem a few weeks after the engines left the Mexico assy plant. As it turns out, someone apparently used the wrong valve seals. I was one of the lucky ones who got one. I pulled the valve covers off and there were pieces of valve seal all in the top of the head. It was a mess, and I have pictures if you'd like to see.

As soon as I replaced the valve seals with the correct ones, the power came back and the smoking went away. Not a big deal, I know .. but just make sure you're ready to change valve seals if you go this route. You may not get one of the bad ones, but they are out there.

On a good note, they like to run 32-34deg fast / btdc. They have a pretty nice sound to them too. I ran an Edelbrock 1407 and RPM intake with shorty headers and Delta40s and it sounded really good.

They're strong motors, no doubt. I'm just a little bummed with the QC in the assy plant. I agree. Unles you'll be turning this motor hard, a 2 bolt main will be fine. The 350/290hp is a 4 bolt block though.

I hear with a good set of 64cc heads and a slightly bigger cam there are guys pulling 400+ hp out of them.

Hope this helps. .. but I wouldn't buy another one personally.

[Wrenchbender Ret]

I have used & installed for customers hundreds of the basic 350 260 HP & 292 6 cyl engines in up to 1 ton trucks. I have never had a bad one. You put em in start it up set the timing & drive it out the door down the highway. They come with 4 bolt mains but like the guys say it is not nessesary. I have one in my 70 that I use for a partial DD. It idles smooth you can't tell its running & will go out & get 18 mpg.

[MARKDTN]

The basic GM 350 crate is probably just fine for what you want. As said above, 4 bolt mains are nice but not required; that engine has them.

[frednoah]

for a simple swap on a cruiser, I'd use gm part #10067353.

[CC69Rat]

If there's a bad one in Summit's warehouse, I'll be the guy that gets it. Every time. Maybe I was just un-lucky but I definately got a 350/290hp crate engine with V6 valve seals in it. and, they weren't even all the same.

Just my experience but you'll probably be fine with anything from GMPP.

[cdowns]

Originally Posted by CC69Rat

For what it's worth to you, and to no offense of the guys why might have them.. I personally would steer clear of the 350/290hp crate engine from GMPP.

While yes, they offer a 12/12,000 warranty - it's only good if a certified ASE mechanic installed the engine.

I personally had one in a 69 Camaro and put about 1,000 miles on it. It started smoking, just slightly at idle. I thought it was just running rich at first and was trying to adjust the carb. It started loosing power, and the smoking got worse.

I started to do some research online and found that there were a bad batch of these motors built and they caught the problem a few weeks after the engines left the Mexico assy plant. As it turns out, someone apparently used the wrong valve seals. I was one of the lucky ones who got one. I pulled the valve covers off and there were pieces of valve seal all in the top of the head. It was a mess, and I have pictures if you'd like to see.

As soon as I replaced the valve seals with the correct ones, the power came back and the smoking went away. Not a big deal, I know .. but just make sure you're ready to change valve seals if you go this route. You may not get one of the bad ones, but they are out there.

On a good note, they like to run 32-34deg fast / btdc. They have a pretty nice sound to them too. I ran an Edelbrock 1407 and RPM intake with shorty headers and Delta40s and it sounded really good.

They're strong motors, no doubt. I'm just a little bummed with the QC in the assy plant. I agree. Unles you'll be turning this motor hard, a 2 bolt main will be fine. The 350/290hp is a 4 bolt block though.

I hear with a good set of 64cc heads and a slightly bigger cam there are guys pulling 400+ hp out of them.

Hope this helps. .. but I wouldn't buy another one personally.

rhat is not at all what the GM warrenty is on that engine for anymore info talk to your GM dealer about it

if anybody wants to read

http://www.crateenginedepot.com/pdfs...ne_Warrant.pdf

[69lnghrn]

Thanks for the feed back fellas! I contacted GMPP and the have an option of a 350/290 from GMPP and a 350/190 remanufactured. $three hundo price differance.
The 350/290 is $2,321.81- out the door for the block and heads.
Posted via Mobile Device

[steelhorse]

I am thinking a twin turbo 572.arent all daily drivers suppose to have 1000 plus HP?

[Wildstreak]

Have you considered a ls swap? I had saved up what I wanted to spend on a 350 ho crate from gmpp, around 7k when all said and done. I was just about to get ready to order one last week, when the thought of a ls and mated tranny came to mind. After searching there was a 10,000km ly6 for 2000$ only a few hours away. And the allison 6spd for 1200. Both only two years old. Now it doesnt come with a warranty, but for the price of a decnt crate motor I could get this combo, only thing needed is a wiring harness. My dad has this motor in his dd and it has gobs of power and gets no less that 18mpg. Just a thought to consider...

[CC69Rat]

cdowns - Just going off what I was told by Summit Racing, right or wrong I got a bad one and no warranty support at all. For this reason I wouldn't buy another one. If he does, I'm sure it will be ok .. and .. I'm just saying. ..

I understand there is a bad batch of them out there and I hoped he didn't get one.

http://www.chevytalk.org/fusionbb/sh...hp?tid/181952/

Specifically the post by 'Bent Rod' (not me..) and the ones below it..


I have pictures of my valve seals and they look exactly like these in this picture. I replaced them and the engine is fine now. I have had this engie for several years so I think the run would have been 2006-2007 or so.

Just interesting to know.

[Tx Firefighter]

I'm gonna go against he grain on the 2 bolt vs 4 bolt deal.

There is something to 4 bolt engines. They are designed for higher stress applications. Look at it this way, GM put them in applications that typically saw heavy usage. They don't spend a single red cent on something unless it makes the vehicle they build have fewer warranty claims. If they felt the average 3/4 or 1 ton truck could get by on 2 bolt engines as well as they could 4 bolt engines they wouldn't have bothered to use them at an added cost to production. Simply stated they equipped hard working trucks with 4 bolt engines because the engineers fell the beefier block offers improved reliability and suffers fewer warranty claims.

Fortunately, the basic Goodwrench 350 comes with 4 bolt mains, an unbeatable warranty, and it's very cheap.

[Stoney]

Just about all the GM crate motors are 4 bolt main?

[Tx Firefighter]

The performance GM crate engines and the basic Goodwrench engines are 4 bolt. But, GM sells a whole metric boat load of Goodwrench engines in all configurations. One of the most popular ones is the basic centerbolt head 2 bolt main 350 engine for half ton 87-95 trucks.

[Longhorn Man]

his own description of 'working it' doesn't sound like he needs to double tie his shoes though.

[kcsa75]

Originally Posted by Wrenchbender Ret

I have used & installed for customers hundreds of the basic 350 260 HP & 292 6 cyl engines in up to 1 ton trucks. I have never had a bad one. You put em in start it up set the timing & drive it out the door down the highway. They come with 4 bolt mains but like the guys say it is not nessesary. I have one in my 70 that I use for a partial DD. It idles smooth you can't tell its running & will go out & get 18 mpg.

Since we're in the same neighborhood, can I bring my crate over to your house for a tune-up. I can't sniff 13 mpg, much less 18?

[treveiger]

Whats the internal difference between the 350/190hp and the 350/290hp motors?

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by Longhorn Man

his own description of 'working it' doesn't sound like he needs to double tie his shoes though.

I'm not gonna disagree with that. I'm sure for his usage a 2 or 4 bolt will offer the same durability.

Now, if he were building a work truck for idiot employees to use pulling a load all day, I'd say push for a 4 bolt bottom end.

[FLDBRED]

Did you check out Year One's 350 Crate Engine? It is over 400HP and loads of torque for 2,900 bucks! It comes with it's own Dyno Sheet.It's a lot of motor for the money!

[Wrenchbender Ret]

Originally Posted by frednoah

for a simple swap on a cruiser, I'd use gm part #10067353.

This is the basic 260 Hp replacement engine. You should be able to buy it for about $1500. As far as I can tell & others have said the only diff. in the 260 & 290 are the cams.

[Roscoep]

Got mine from these folks: http://sdparts.com/details/gm-goodwr...gines/10067353. Shipping was about $100.00. Great Service. They have a number of different kits you can get with it.

[Wrenchbender Ret]

Originally Posted by kcsa75

Since we're in the same neighborhood, can I bring my crate over to your house for a tune-up. I can't sniff 13 mpg, much less 18?

I'll help you tune it.
George