I was wondering is it a good idea to find a 350 used somewhere and rebuild it how I want it. currently have 305 dont have alot of money and not in a big rush

Save the time and money and Just buy a Crate Motor from GM. They have a warrenty that comes with them for 36,000 Mi. and they are good, you don't have to guess if the part you got is right or if the person putting things together knows what they are doing or not.

JUst swap out the pieces you can, Water Pump, Started etc... and go. A base 350 comes able to produce 260 Horse power, that is the "Base Model" crate Engine from GMPP.

You can build on that later if you want. The rotating assemble will probably last you 100,000 Mi iif you take care of it.

Just a thought.

Rotating Assembly?... Never heard of that, but i dont know a lot about engines.. Im in kinda the same spot as this other guy.., Ya know , highschool...
Steven http://estaban87.tripod.com

The rotating assemble is the Crank and the Pistons/Rods inside the block.

I guess the point I was trying to make is that a Crate "Base 350" engine will be as good as one inside a Brand New car/Truck would be. If you keep the oil changed and the general maintenance up then you should be able to get 100,000 miles or more from it. I generally get 160,000 or more my 93 Pickup has 194,000 on the odometer and it still runs good, not oil consumption or misses or nocks, stuff like that.

If you go with a person to re-build you could get as good an engine or you could get some goof off's rebuild job that is nothing but a problem and you are responsible for trying to make it right, your money, your time.

how much are crate engines

You can buy them a lots of different places. This is where I got mine from. They matched the cost that Jeg's had posted for theirs.

http://www.paceparts.com/

Look at "Performance Crate Motors" or if you just want a base 350 look at Factory Replacement engines.
http://www.paceparts.com/images/products/manufacturer/GM/images/12498772.gif the Crate ZZ383 from Pace as listed is 4,869.95 but you can get it for around 4,600.00 to 4,700.00. Yes, sticker shock! But consider just what your getting and its pretty much what you'd spend anyway for the same power output.

Pete, crate engines are great but I think the cost might be beyond a lot of Elky owners budgets. p82cabbie getting a used 350 and building it the way you want is a good idea but it is not a backyard Sunday project. I suggest you hold off until you get more knowledge and experience before you tackle such a project.

i considered getting a crate engine from gm. and i couldn't afford one because they don't do financing for the parts department.

so i bought a couple books and i've done a lot reading and researching and found out some good budget tricks and basicly figured out how to build and engine with the same or more power, cheaper. and i can buy parts as i can afford them. so its definetly the better route for me.

either way. reading and researching is never a bad thing.

You got the right idea scottfromcanada.

Hey, THIS (http://elcaminocentral.com/users/ss86/links.html) is the links page of my ECC web site. Somewhere in there there is a link to "Ryan's car page" or something like that. It has every combo you can think of for a small block, and it gives the numbers they make too. I think a lot of them are 383s and a little expensive, but may as well see what works. :-D

For a stock 350, check out www.gmpartsdirect.com. Last time I looked, they had a brand new (not rebuilt or remanufactured) 350, 4 bolt main for $1329. It comes with a full GM warranty. This engine fits models up to 1985. 1986 models require a different flex plate which they identify. They said this engine usually sells for about $2600 from your local dealer. Shipping is more expensive than most and they do require a commercial shipping address (local trucking company dock) or shipping will cost extra.

Only problem with this engine is the rather low horsepower. I think it is around 186 HP, but don't remember exactly.

Doesnt it say 290 horses... Not 189? just wondering?....
Steven http://estaban87.tripod.com

Actually the base 350 is 250 Horse Power.

350 Cubic inches 4.00" Bore, 3.47" stroke
8.5:1 compression ratio.
250 HP @4300 rpm
350 ft. lbs of torque @ 3600 rpm
( These Numbers obtained with a Quadrajet Carb,1 5/8" headers , and an Edelbrock Performer intake part # 2101)
Engine consists of the following parts:

Block
-part # 10066034, casting # 10066036
2 piece rear main seal 4 bolt main
Crankshaft-
part # 3932444
Nodular Iron 1985 and older flywheel bolt pattern.
Connecting rods-
Part # 10108688
Powdered Metal
Pistons-
part#12514101
Cast Aluminum
Oil Pump-
part # 12555284
G.M. High Volume Pump
Camshaft-

Part#3863151
Hydralic Flat tappet
Intake Lift-.383" Exhaust Lift-.401"
Intake Duration @ .050"- 194 Exhaust Duration @.050"- 202
Lobe Seperation-112
This cam Has a mechanical Fuel Pump Lobe.
This is a low end Torque oriented camshaft.

Cylinder Heads-
part # 14034808
casting #33417369
1.94" Intake valve , 1.50" Exhaust Valve
76cc Combustion Chamber
7 Bolt style Exhaust Flange
Standard 85' and prior intake manifold bolt pattern.
Perimeter bolt style Valve Covers.
This head is very similar to the old #882 castings from the 1970's


Pace Sell this for 1400 or somthing really close.

Oic, thankyou... :cool: