CE replacement engine question

Ed's 1970 · 10-28-06, 12:47 PM

I just received my first corvette ever, a 1970 t-top 4 speed.
The engine block is stamped CEB1465 on the front pad. In the back near bellhousing it is stamped 3970010. I researched the 3970010 and found out it is probably a 4 bolt-main block/forged crank used in trucks and corvettes. I could not locate the block date code yet. The heads are 3991492. I am probably going to verify internals by removing the oil pan. Does anyone know what the CE code stands for?
Thanks,
Ed

Vettehead Mikey · 10-28-06, 01:15 PM

The CE simply stands for 'Chevrolet Engine' and was used on warranty replacement engine and over-the-counter sales. Your engine could be either one of these. Check the casting date on the rear flange to see what year it was made, this will help. JohnZ may be able to decode the year from the CE numbers.

The 3970010 casting number was used for more than a decade by GM as the standard 350 block which could be 2 bolt or 4 bolt in just about any truck, car, marine- you name it.

No real way of being sure what it's inside unless you disassemble.

Your head casting numbers are not the originals from a 70 Corvette. I think they were a service part number only. Good heads though.

DarkShark · 10-28-06, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed's 1970

I just received my first corvette ever, a 1970 t-top 4 speed.
The engine block is stamped CEB1465 on the front pad. In the back near bellhousing it is stamped 3970010. I researched the 3970010 and found out it is probably a 4 bolt-main block/forged crank used in trucks and corvettes. I could not locate the block date code yet. The heads are 3991492. I am probably going to verify internals by removing the oil pan. Does anyone know what the CE code stands for?
Thanks,
Ed

Ed- was the car sold to you as a numbers matching car? If not, I wouldn't worry about it unless you are a stickler for exactness. Sounds like someone did the right thing when it came to replacing the engine though- they went with an actual replacement engine.

Ed's 1970 · 10-28-06, 08:59 PM

It was not sold as a matching # car. The guy stated it was a replacement block. Apparently, the early 1970's CE blocks are very strong. So I am okay with this engine, it is GM, and most likely a 4 bolt main and a forged crankshaft. I am going to verify this by removing the oil pan. Runs pretty strong, kinda of weak on low end torque, which leads me to believe it has kinda of big cam in it.
Thanks guys,
Ed

JohnZ · 10-28-06, 11:01 PM

There was a standard pad numbering format for "CE" 5/50 replacement blocks, but the engine plants didn't always follow it, and yours is one of those. "CE" replacements were short-blocks (block, crank, rods & pistons), ordered by part number so the innards matched what was in the failed engine, but that part number doesn't appear anywhere on the engine - only on the crate and shipping paperwork it came with. All the rest of the bolt-on parts were to be transferred from the failed engine; no way to tell what's inside it without tearing it down. The casting date will tell you when the block was cast, but that's about all you can determine short of a teardown.

About seven million 3970010 blocks were cast from 1969-1980, and were used in every 350 application imaginable.

craig32 · 10-29-06, 04:46 PM

I've got the same block in my garage for a future project, with CE180676 on the stamp pad. Date code is I 13 0 on the Pass. side rear flange. When I bought the block eons ago, the guy told me it was a factory replacement for a '70 Nova, I believe. He must've been hell on engines, as this block has a chip out of the bottom of a cylender, out of play. Do these serial numbers fit the standard numbering format? Thanks again!

Craig

JohnZ · 10-30-06, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by craig32

Do these serial numbers fit the standard numbering format? Thanks again!

Craig

Nope, that one doesn't fit the standard format either - about all you can tell is that it was cast on September 13, 1970, and was built at Flint Engine.

sharkcar71 · 11-02-06, 02:55 PM

The 492 heads are the original "double hump" head.Most came with 2.02 valves and 64cc closed chambers.A very desirable "old school" set of heads.

craig32 · 11-02-06, 05:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sharkcar71

The 492 heads are the original "double hump" head.Most came with 2.02 valves and 64cc closed chambers.A very desirable "old school" set of heads.

Actually, they were probably the last of the double humps. 461's and 291's are older than those, some by a decade.

Craig