Question For Anybody Who Knows

bronc'nBK

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Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Location
Cornelius, NC
dont know what section this belongs in, but here goes.
should a CRATE motor, NOT REBUILT, have casting numbers on the heads or block? how about build dates or a VIN number?

need to know pretty soon.
 
It will have casting numbers like any other new motor.
I.E. Depends on manufacturer, some will have block AND heads some only block etc. I am assuming you are talking a Chevy Performance or Ford Motorsports type deal and not a "Merlin" type crate motor. These may or may not have any numbers depending on the individual company.

However none will have a Vehicle Identification Number as there is no vehicle to identify
 
the guy i bought my truck from got a supposedly "crate" motor, not rebuilt, from a place because they forgot to replace his oil during an oil change. about 4 months after i bought it, it overheated randomly, blew the head gasket, cracked a piston, bent several pushrods, and scarred up the cylinder pretty good. when i tore down the motor, the head where everything went wrong wasnt even torqued down. all the bolts were hand tight. i cant prove that, but if i can prove that my motor is a rebuilt motor, then that voids his whole agreemant with the place (which he has in writing, signed by both parties). in turn, i could get a nice chunk of change or a new motor. the motor had a 40K miles on it...
 
i honestly dont know, but ill ask the PO next chance i get. its a 400 that replaced a 302 in an 80 F-150 after the incident.
second thing i noticed- 400's use big block bellhousing bolt patterns. the bellhousing on mine looks stock, bringing up the question, how the hell is a small block pattern bellhousing on my motor?
 
Check the paper, does it specify "new Crate engine"? If not it could be either new or rebuilt. And yes it will have casting numbers.
To identify your engine do this. Check your stroke.
400 will have a 4 inch bore, and 4 inch stroke.
any of the 351's will have a 4 inch bore, and a 3 1/2 inch stroke
the 302 will have a 4 inch bore, and a 3 inch stroke

as far as bell housing patterns, the 302, 351W and 351C are the same
351M 400, 429 and 460 are the same.

I wasn't sure so I call the shop, boss is a big blue oval guy
 
it is for sure a 400. it is supposed to be a crate motor but who knows. the contract between PO and shop specified a new, not rebuilt motor. i guess ill pull it and check for a VIN or production code.
 
dude, VIN = Vehicle Identification Number, this is found either on the driver dash behind windshield, in the door jamb (per -198?3?) and etched on all glass on yotas, (boss brags about this?)there will NEVER, NEVER,NEVER be a vin on a motor:beer: :beer: :beer:
 
Actually, they usually put the vin on the motor at the factory so if it's stolen and chopped they can try to trace it back. (At least recently they've been doing this.)
 
Yes, Vins are on there. ON the deck surface. Once the deck is cut, it's gone. Some are other places but most I have seen are on the deck
 
ShyHiK5 said:
dude, VIN = Vehicle Identification Number, this is found either on the driver dash behind windshield, in the door jamb (per -198?3?) and etched on all glass on yotas, (boss brags about this?)there will NEVER, NEVER,NEVER be a vin on a motor:beer: :beer: :beer:
Click to expand...
samurais have VINs on the block
 
A "new" 400? I seriously doubt it. The motor might have come from Ford, but they haven't made 400s in 20 years. It's probably remanufactured.
 
yea thats what i thought.
and yes, skyhi, there is actually more than 1 VIN on a vehicle. motors usually have VIN's on the block, and production dates.
i google'd it and i cant find a single crate 400, so it looks like im going to take a trip to the place. the contract specified that the truck would get a CRATE, not reman or rebuilt motor, so ill see what happens.
 
sorry
I guess I lived and learned here.

I never knew VINs wer now stamped on motors....

Mayb I need to start playing with newer junk
 
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