Hi guys.  I recently bought my first C3, a 1969 coupe.  It was sold to me as a 427/390 car that had the engine replaced a long time go.  I didn't care much about it being a numbers matching car since I was looking for a weekend driver.  Now that I have started to get involved I'm torn between just getting it street ready or going a bit further.  If I decide to go further I would want to verify what the correct engine should be and possibly look for one.  So far I have this:

A big block car would have had the rear stabilizer bar originally. Easy enough for someone to remove. Front springs would have been stouter, also. Look to see if you can see any tags on the springs...they are usually located well up in the upper spring pocket in the frame. A lot of them have not survived the years, but it is possible they did. If you can see the tags, and see the part number on them, that will help determine the suspension.
All original big blocks had the big block hoods. There is speculation that some came with small block hoods if there was a shortage, but I really doubt it, since the big blocks did require the extra clearance of the big block/LT1 style hoods.
 Others will chime in with more info....


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Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    
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"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"

Thanks.  I'll try to locate tags on the springs and post what I find.  A past owner did drop the driver's side real wheel when a bearing went and did a bit of damage.  I'm hoping he removed the sway bar at that time.  I did some more internet digging and do have what looks like the large radiator and the aluminum overflow can.  Can anyone confirm that was big block only?

Here are some picture of my project....

BB had the big 4 core radiator & the u joints on the half shafts had the french locks on the outside. Sounds like you might have a SB car converted to a BB. BB's also can with the HD rears. Once you get the numbers you'll know.

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Pics certainly look like it is the Camaro 350 as per the engine code. So it is either an original BB car the was converted to SB or an original SB car with 427 shifter console ID plate. Will be an interesting investigation.

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DanT

This is what I found today....in the dark, with a flashlight. 

Not sure what ya mean there...ALL of the half shafts, afaik, had the french locks on the wheel end.
The big block, and high horse small blocks used the different yokes on the diff...the ones that used caps/bolts instead of u-bolts w/nuts.


But really...ANY of this stuff is easy enough to swap out, as witnessed by the overwhelming number of big block Sharks out there today.... far more than GM ever actually produced. Unfortunately, the VIN in '69 don't give any indication of the original engine, other than "V8".
My feeling, from looking at the pics, is that is was originally, and still is, a small block car.

The green tag on the front springs is good...that means the original springs are still on it. Big blocks had firmer springs, and installing a small block in where a big block was will make the front end sit too high. If the car looks right, as far as the way it sits, that's just another indicator of it being a small block originally.

The front stabilizer bar was also larger in diameter than the small block, but small block with the HD suspensions also had the larger bar, so....

I say forget the story about it being a big block, and just enjoy the journey of bringing it back to life.


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Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    
My Link


(click for Texas-sized view!)             NCRS

"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"

The shafts do also have the caps and bolts, not the u-bolts and nuts. I'll check the ride height and front stabilizer as well.

Best guess is it was prolly an L46(350hp/350) originally. Still a desirable car. But the tach redline isn't correct for the L46, I don't think. The mystery continues! 

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Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    
My Link


(click for Texas-sized view!)             NCRS

"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"

It's too bad that GM in the US doesn't keep records like GM Canada does. All I had to do was fill out a form with my cars VIN number and mail it to the GM Canada archives. A few weeks later I got a letter back with all the options, paint codes, build date, ship date, original selling dealer and the number of the same model imported into Canada. GM Canada has records for every car sold in Canada since 1946. I found out that my '75 is one of 2887 coupes imported that year and of that only 1067 had air conditioning.

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Thanks guys, I am really enjoying all of the feedback.  I've decided that this will definately be a more involved project than I originally anticipated.  The plan was to repair the fender, rusted out muffler and spruce up the interior and drive it.  It looks like it will become much more than that.  I'll keep posting updates as they occur for anyone interested. 

Welcome to Corvette Ownership!! That's pretty much how it always is....and you never really "finish" them...lol

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Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    
My Link


(click for Texas-sized view!)             NCRS

"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"