New Chevy 350 long blocks any good?

My '64 Impala needs another engine and my mechanic does not trust rebuilt engines, so he said get a new engine from Chevy, but I heard before a couple years ago ,and also recently from another mechanic who's trying to sell me his used engine(which is connected to a tranny I don't need) that these new long blocks coming out of the Mexico manufacturing plant have many quality problems and that GM is pretty good at weasaling out of the warranty. Any Tips?
Thanks ,Rick

well, i looked up the suffix codes on my 4 bolt 350 and it was from mexico also. it seemed to be in pretty good shape, at least the bottom end. in the heads, a couple exhaust valves are pretty burnt, but i think that the heads were from a different engine not from mexico anyways. overall, for your money, i think it is well worth it, since you can have it from jegs for something like 1400 bucks in longblock form. also, if you want some better cylinder heads and about the same total price, you can now get the shortblock 4 bolt 350 for 1000 bucks or something like that. its all brand new including the block and you can get some new vortec heads very cheap and just make sure you dont put a cam that exceeds the fairly small lift maximum and you have a pretty powerful combo that runs on street gas, probably even 87 octane

My '64 Impala needs another engine and my mechanic does not trust rebuilt engines, so he said get a new engine from Chevy, but I heard before a couple years ago ,and also recently from another mechanic who's trying to sell me his used engine(which is connected to a tranny I don't need) that these new long blocks coming out of the Mexico manufacturing plant have many quality problems and that GM is pretty good at weasaling out of the warranty. Any Tips?
Thanks ,Rick

GM's crate engine production has been 'hecho en mexico' for quite some time now, sometime around 1984-'85. I've got a Mexican-made engine in my car (it's an '85 block) that I rebuilt in 1993 and has since been subject to over 262,000 miles and it's still running strong. So I guess you can tell your mechanic that rebuilt engines originally made in Mexico are hella-reliable!

well, i looked up the suffix codes on my 4 bolt 350 and it was from mexico also. it seemed to be in pretty good shape, at least the bottom end. in the heads, a couple exhaust valves are pretty burnt, but i think that the heads were from a different engine not from mexico anyways. overall, for your money, i think it is well worth it, since you can have it from jegs for something like 1400 bucks in longblock form. also, if you want some better cylinder heads and about the same total price, you can now get the shortblock 4 bolt 350 for 1000 bucks or something like that. its all brand new including the block and you can get some new vortec heads very cheap and just make sure you dont put a cam that exceeds the fairly small lift maximum and you have a pretty powerful combo that runs on street gas, probably even 87 octane
Hi JVeik,
Thanks for your quick reply! I was wondering what the milelage on the engine is and if you know what year the engine was manufactured in Mexico.
Thanx, Rick

Guys,

FWIW, "craters" (what we call crate engines) are more for convenience and braggin' rights. Our experience with them has been mixed. NONE of them from Chevy really make the power they claim, until you get to the 572s... Even then, it's "iffy".

Consider this: The first thing you do to a Chevrolet "production" engine before taking it racing, is to disassemble and "blueprint" the block and crank, as they are pretty sloppy stock. Craters are no better, if as good, as the ones you got in the cars when new.

Your mechanic is a superstitious individual. His lack of faith is probably from "price-based" buying. You get what you pay for. Buy a $1,200 engine, and you get 1/2 the engine of a $2,400 one (from most shops, anyway). regardless of how good the warranty may READ, warranties are to sell engines and give the customer a "warm fuzzy". They (warranties) seldom reflect the quality of the engine. A high quality rebuild will be BETTER than a new one. Often, shops will offer less of a warranty on a more expensive engine. It's because the customer will probably NEVER need it.

Lastly, I can tell you for sure, we routinely build 350 Chevys that cost $2,500. They will get better gas mileage and BLOW THE DOORS off a similar car or truck with a crater in it. Compare that to the $2,395 ZZ-1 or whatever they're calling them today.

My point here, is to not ignore the possibility of building a "custom" engine to do what you want the engine to do, without compromise. Hook up with a good shop, and you'll have a better engine for it. When it comes to Chevy engines, there are 5 GREAT shops in every town of consequence.

Jim

i dont remember what year the motor was made, but i could just look up the numbers again, as it is just sitting outside my garage on a furniture dolly lol. as for the mileage, it was in a truck with a 5 digit "rolling over" odometer and add to that the fact that the guy who had the truck before me only knew it was a smallblock and not how big it was. i ended up measuring the bore and it was 4 inches and also it is a 4 bolt... so i assumed it was a 350. before the cam went bad it seemed pretty ballsy

I find that rebuit engines last a long time if they are done right. Try a place like Jasper to see if you can get a good deal on having yours or get an exchange 283 for it. Or you may have a local engine rebuilder that could do the same service for you.

Bob

Bob,

Under no conditions, should an engine as old as a 283 be turned over to a remanufacturer like Jasper. There is no "expertise" in a rebuilder today, for the old engines. We encounter the same problem with 327s, 273s (Dodge), Pontiacs, earlier Olds and Buick, etc. Remans are fine for a passenger car that is quick need for a "new" engine. Not good for performance applications, or restorations. Too generic.

IMO

Jim