Correct Cylinder Heads

[Greg 36641]

Hello Everyone,
Help me resolve a technical question. I have had conflicting responses in the past and need to know what is correct as I restore my Vette. I have a 1967
BB Coupe VIN# 194377S121064. Trim plate reads... Style: K16 67 437, Trim: Std.,
Body S6367, Paint 984AA. Engine L36, 427/390, No A.I.R. Build Date Friday June 16, 1967. One of 111 cars built that day. WHICH ARE THE MOST CORRECT HEADS THAT SHOULD BE ON THIS ENGINE?? BLOCK HAS A "D" DATE CODE. THANKS, Greg Lantz

[Joe L.]

Re: Correct Cylinder Heads

Greg-----

I'd say your car could have had either the 3909802 or the 3917215. The only way to know, for sure, would be to have the known-original heads from the engine. However, based upon the minimal date code information on the engine you provided, my GUESS would be it had the 3909802.

By the way, to ask a question like this and not provide the COMPLETE block date coding information, including both casting date and assembly date, as well as what heads are on the car now with dates, seems very strange to me.

[Greg 36641]

Re: Correct Cylinder Heads

Joe,
The reason I am asking the question in this fashion is that I do not have the original engine for this car. When I purchased the car it had a CE 454 in it and the previous owner included a 3904351 4 bolt block (D-16-7), which has never had the pad stamped, that he had purchased for restoration. I have no paperwork on the car but through research I have determined, to the best of my ability, that this car came from the factory with the L36 427/390. The car has the original trans. and rear which are s/n and coded to the car. It has the BB suspension, short shafts, fuel line curve at the engine, 6000 rpm tach, 60 psig oil gauge.
I know that I can not use the 4 bolt block for a 390 h.p. and need more information so that I can gather the correct parts. It won't be up to par with NCRS standards but the closer I can her to original will satisfy my standards.
With the vehicle build date of June 16, 1967 what are your thoughts if in fact the car came from the factory with a 427/390. Let's think hypothetically.
I purchased this '67 in 1982, then came marriage, children, college etc. My car has been stored in my shop for 25 years since it was purchased, never had her on the road. My son has three more years before graduation then I can concentrate on restoring my '67 Coupe. Thanks for your input, Greg Lantz

[Joe L.]

Re: Correct Cylinder Heads

Greg-----

From your first post, it sounded like you were saying that the block was original to the car. However, since I now know that's not the case, it's even more difficult to say what heads were original to the car. The build date of the car does not necessarily say a lot about certain aspects of the engine originally installed in the car. That's because the engine may have been manufactured up to 6 months before the car was built and that's especially true of big blocks.

In any event, if you were to use the block you have, I would say that the 3909802 heads would almost certainly have been the ones installed. However, if you were to find a set of 3917215 heads with a date that "worked" for this block and engine assembly date, or any other block with a date that "worked" for the car, they could have been originally installed on the block. However, I don't think you'll find any 3917215 heads correctly dated for this block you have.

[Mark #28455]

You can use the 4 bolt block

The blocks are externally identical except for the pipe plugs over the oil filter. There are engine shops out there that can take a cast iron pipe plug of the appropriate size and thread it into the hole with loctite, then machine it down flush with the block, then re-tap it with the original 2 bolt smaller size hole - problem solved. If done correctly, it is almost impossible to tell with the engine installed in the car, especially if you are a little "heavy handed" with the orange paint in this area.

Mark