A friend of my dad gave him a 1985 GMC Vandura 3500 (1 ton van with a big box immediately behind the cab). It has a small block in it that appears to be the original engine in it. We could not find any decals under the hood that indicate engine displacement. The eighth digit of the VIN is the letter "M" which supposedly indicates that it could be an LT9 (350 cid) or L30 (305 cid). When I do a lookup on a few autopart websites (i.e. autozone, napa, etc...), they don't even list a 305 as being an option for a 1985 Vandura 3500. Can someone confirm whether or not these came with 305s? We didn't want to go through the hassel of pulling the engine to find that it's a 305. We're hoping for a 350 4 bolt engine. Any help would be appreciated.

Try here:

Casting numbers etc. (http://www.lentmachinery.com/auto/Tools.htm)

Lots of good stuff. :beers:

Joe

z,
In 1985, vin M can only be a 350. The vin M 305 was only used in 1996-99. Look at the casting number on the top of the block behind the drivers side head to be sure.

z,
In 1985, vin M can only be a 350. The vin M 305 was only used in 1996-99. Look at the casting number on the top of the block behind the drivers side head to be sure.


BillK,

Many Thanks! I was hoping that might be the case with the vin M, but the info that I found on the net didn't break it down relative to model years. This is good news. We will definitely take a good look at the casting number. Thanks again.

how useless would a 305 be in a 1 ton cube van?