1964 327/365

I bought a 64 vette. engine is a 400 bored .30. Comp cam 12 234-2 .
502 lift@.05.
forged steel 350 crank and rods. Forged pistons. its a 377-378. 425 hp. balanced and blueprinted. 1st generation Trick flow heads -67cc. Its really too much for the car. Holley 3310 700 cfm square bore mounted to an M20 . Headers etc. It really needs a 12212-2 cam Hydraulic etc.

Ok with that being said now my question. I found the original 327/365 horse motor that came out in this car ,double hump heads original. The engine has been sitting in a shop for 15 years. It was bored .30 back in the day. Its probably going to need boring again. The original intake is gone and manifolds but i can find those. The man says that he will trade straight out for the 400. The engine is worth it and will increase the value of the vette but I am afraid that i may have to go .60. I'm not sure that is the route to go for a 327 thats already bored .30 and may need to go to .60 and .60 may not clean it all up. But i wont knw until it gets to a machine shop. Also I need to check the casting/block numbers to be sure it is the engine. What do I check for and where. Any suggestions guys ???? What would you do ?


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Before you do anything make sure this "numbers matching" block is exactly that. The 365/375 hp 327 used the same block that was found in the grocery getter 220 hp engine and usually was 3782870 but that may be different. You need to look up front on the passenger side of the block just below where the cyl. head meets the block. There is a flat spot with numbers stamped in, these are called the suffix code and will designate where the engine was built, for what kind of car and should have a partial VIN number to verify that it go's with this Corvette. If the deck was surfaced then these numbers will probably be gone. Not saying this guy is lying but EVERYONE sells "vette" engines. Tell him the only way you will trade is if you can have a machine shop verify the engine and what type of work needs to be done. If he balks then no deal. Do your homework first, google "Chevy 327 365 hp engine specs" and read everything you can.

If you make that trade you will be getting the short end of the deal like what is in the above post that block was not used in Corvettes only,get an education on Chevrolet code numbers and start looking and build it from scratch.

I read somewhere that the 63 and 64 blocks were the only ones that didnt have the stamp, but the vin number was located on the right side at the rear of the engine. Do you know 327NUT ?

But if it is the original engine and its ok , how would that be the short end ? After all i'm gunning for the original engine . It would make the car worth more than the 400 thats in it. I realize the 400 has had more money spent on it in parts but those 327/365 horse motors are way up in price. Thoughts JeefB ?

To my knowledge there are no numbers on the right rear of the block...any Chevy block. The casting number is at the left rear and the suffix number, not VIN is on the pad at the right front of the block. What are the casting numbers on the heads??

Now if it is the original block then yes it will be worth more....but you have to understand that there were no "Specific" Corvette blocks. Like I said in my earlier reply, the 3892870 block was used in just about every 327 hp engine of that year. There were no 327 4 bolt Corvette blocks. Also as I said earlier if the deck was surfaced enough then the suffix code is gone and all you have then is just another 327 block. Some machine shops will stamp in the orig suffix code after surfacing and some won't......and some unscrupulous sellers will stamp in a fake code like a lot did on the '69 Z/28 302 "DZ" block. Just do some investigative research so you don't get screwed.

Dig it man. Thanks a lot. My son and I went to the mans house today and picked up the original hood for the car and a box that the trick flow heads came in. I wanted to view the 327 but it was locked up in a military communications box and he couldn't find the key. He's gonna look for the key and get back with me. I'll then take pics of the numbers on the block. The man that has the block is the same man that i bought the car from. Not sure i mentioned that. I've known the guy for awhile but he isn't a running buddy or anything. I asked again to be sure and he said that he's 99.9 % sure. That's not a 100% in my book . He also told me that there wasnt any casting numbers on a 64 vette and that it had been decked ? Not sure what decked is. It may be the block but unless i know for sure I'll be keeping the 400. Just got back from a little tire burning, this car is scary.

Ok I won't say anything about the seller BUT.....lost the key?.......no casting number on a '64 Corvette block? Decking and surfacing a block is basically the same thing, you machine a small amount of material off the top of the block....005, .010, .020 etc. to give you a nice flat surface for the cyl heads to sit on. If that's been done as I said before the suffix code will be machined off.

Anyway here's 2 websites to educate yourself on Corvette engines and casting numbers......www.corvetteblogger.com www.rowleycorvette.com

Yeah I know man it sounds strange but seriously , we went back into the woods where his building was. We had to literally cut down trees to get in this place. He had not been in the building in over 12 years. Even if he had a key to the box , we would have had to cut several trees down to get in it. Before we could finally open the building to get me the hood, him , my son and I had to pick up the rear of a chevy corsica and scoot it around to get in the man door. He had not seen his 57 chevy 2 door hard top in 12 years. Motors and parts everywhere. The guy just went through a divorce and is drinking himself to death. But thanks for all the info. I'm familar with those sites. Been a vette guy for years , I'm just not sure if boring any 327 60 over is worth the trade. I'm a body and paint man now for 24 years but 327's I dont know much about but learning. Thanks !