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67 camaro 327 engine. original vs. crate replacement

3K views 12 replies 9 participants last post by  dragsterman 
#1 ·
have a 1967 camaro with an original 327. need advice on the following: it has a lot of
compression loss 60%-40-40-65-70-40-40-80. now i need to decide on what to do and need some advice. will the
value of my camaro be better keeping the original engine? even if i were to rebuild it up to a 350 h.p., etc.? or would it
be better to just get a crate engine. let me know what you think as i am trying to make a decision on original value
vs. crate.
thanks, Mark
 
#2 · (Edited)
I think the short answer is yes, the value will do down slightly if it does not have the original 327 (if indeed it is the numbers matching engine). I don't think that the value would drop as much as it would if you were replacing a 396 375hp engine for something like a 350.

If you plan on selling the car anytime soon, I'd simply rebuild the 327 to your liking (i.e. 350 hp) just keep all your original pieces such as factory carburator and intake manifold if you upgrade those to be similar to the 350 hp version.

If you don't plan on selling it soon and want to go the crate motor route, simply hang on to your 327 and include it with the car if you ever sell it, therefore technically the value will be unchanged. Some folks do like the additional torque of the longer stroke small blocks (i.e. 350, 383, 400) so there will be pros and cons with either decision you make. Just need to evaluate the pros and cons and go with the one that has the most pros and fewest cons :) I'm sure you already knew that part.

I'm kind of in the same boat as you. My 302 needs rebuilt, but rather than going that route, I'm simply going to pull it and put a fresh high strung 383 in its place. I'll store the 302 for safe keeps and put it back in if I ever sell the car. Its not on its last leg but does smoke a little and I don't want to get into boring it and tracking down 30 over pistons and all that jazz. I'll let the car's next owner worry about that, which will most likely be my son.

Let us know what your goals are with the car that way we might be able to better help your decision.
 
#4 ·
same boat just different year lol 1968 327 on blocks wrapped up with a fresh 383 with a hot cam kit its installed and runnin but havent driven it yet got wiring issue :( but i rebuilt 327 with minor shanges but just wasnt enough FUN thats why i bought the 383 i hope it rips lol :p
 
#6 ·
Hey 1FASTZ I'm thinking of doing the same thing with my 69Z. How are you going to build up your 383? Also I know this isn't the place but I'm getting ready to rebuild the motor on my 77 Chev 4X PU and was thinking of turning the 350 into a 383 or maybe leaving it as a 350 with some new heads and intake. Does anyone one know of a good site for trucks?
 
#7 ·
It just depends on how picky you are. Save the origonal motor for sure! Rebuld it or slap a crate motor in it. You will save time with a crate motor. But, If you can build your own motor? You can build a better motor for less money than most of the big crate motor dealers. You can even make the 327 a 383 and now one will know but you!
 
#8 · (Edited)
Zman said:
Hey 1FASTZ I'm thinking of doing the same thing with my 69Z. How are you going to build up your 383? Also I know this isn't the place but I'm getting ready to rebuild the motor on my 77 Chev 4X PU and was thinking of turning the 350 into a 383 or maybe leaving it as a 350 with some new heads and intake. Does anyone one know of a good site for trucks?

Hey Zman, you have a private message about my build up. (Didn't want to side track this thread with my stuff.)

You can use this site to help with the engine build up for your pickup truck too. Not much difference between a 350 camaro engine and a 350 pickup truck engine (well maybe one to two hundred horsepower). My 383 build up actually started as a 1973 pickup truck 350. You'll just need to tell us what your horsepower and torque goals are for the build up. I personally don't know of a truck site specific to pickups of your era, but do know that some exist out there for the diesel pickup crowds, so I'd imagine that you'd be able to find something on the world wide web.
 
#10 ·
JimM said:
That would be in my plans for a few years from now when I just can't stand the blowby anymore. That nice seasoned #'s matching 327 block would make a fine 383!

At one point, I thought about turning my 302 into a 383, but figured someone here would shoot me for doing such a deed. Plus figured that decking the block would wipe those preciously stamped letters off my block and ruin the matching numbers.

Would it be a crime if I stamped my new engine as "DZ 383"?

Guess it would be kind of stupid since you can't really see the stamp with the alternator on any way.
 
#12 ·
1FASTZ said:
At one point, I thought about turning my 302 into a 383, but figured someone here would shoot me for doing such a deed. Plus figured that decking the block would wipe those preciously stamped letters off my block and ruin the matching numbers.
Doing that to a real DZ would have resulted in your being flamed endlessly.... you'd still be hiding under a table to avoid the arrows!!!

I don't expect my 327, in an SS clone, to generate that type of emotion, but I won't deck the numbers off anyway, the VIN on the front of the block holds some sentimental value to me.
:thumbsup:
 
#13 ·
1FASTZ said:
At one point, I thought about turning my 302 into a 383, but figured someone here would shoot me for doing such a deed. Plus figured that decking the block would wipe those preciously stamped letters off my block and ruin the matching numbers.

Would it be a crime if I stamped my new engine as "DZ 383"?

Guess it would be kind of stupid since you can't really see the stamp with the alternator on any way.
NO NO NO! Don't do that! I have a friend with a 69 Z28. He actually had the machine shop deck the block and left the DZ stamp on it. They just machined up to it. He stroked it too. It's a DZ 383 NOW. bUT looks totally correct on the out side. But much faster than a little 302.
 
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