Always wanted to rebuild an engine, so when I bought my Class C, thought this would be the perfect time to try it. Small blocks are plentiful and parts cheap. Well came across a Chevy 400 already built and never run very cheap, so I bought it. Only original parts were block, crank, and heads. Well he used the original heads, which do not flow well. I just picked up some vortec heads and intake manifold, which work very well for a high torque application. Still won't satisfy my desire to rebuild, but may do some disassembly to see what I really have and put on the new heads. They need to be cleaned up.
Looking forward, to educating my self.

Chuckd
Stillwater Mn
Class C Barth, where beauty, lies just behind the corrosion.

quote:

but may do some disassembly to see what I really have

That would certainly be prudent, Chuck.

Among the small block Chevy engines, only the 400 has "siamesed cylinders".

What this means is that the water jacket of the engine does not completely surround the cylinder, and that each cylinder wall is connected via cast iron to the adjacent cylinder. This was done to have a larger bore in the cylinder, and thus good for torque applications.

This engine was used for station wagons and pickup trucks I recall.

I seem to think of this as being done in the 1968-1974 timeframe. Good you got new heads, the heads in this era were probably for leaded fuel.

I have read of problems with cooling in this engine. If you get it apart and intend on using it, it might be prudent to get the cylinders magnafluxed. Or maybe the problems were with blown head gaskets due to cooling problems. Someone in this file will know more than me on this.....

Matt

When dealing with weight there is no replacement for displacement. Gearing helps but if it were me I would go for a 502 or 500 out of an old Cadillac. That would be my choice. And there are plenty of upgrades for the 454. Plus the 454 is already in the vehicle and fits correctly.

As for the 400 its a great motor but needs to stay cool. You need a large radiator. That 400 will have to work a lot harder than a 454 or 500 so it's going to get hot.

Good luck and have fun that's the key.

Cheers
Meric

quote:

Originally posted by Bubba Barth:
When dealing with weight there is no replacement for displacement. Gearing helps but if it were me I would go for a 502 or 500 out of an old Cadillac. That would be my choice.

My choice was an ht502 Chevy. It bolts right into a Chevy chassis, all the accessories and manifolds fit, and has gobs of torque.

Hmmmm, in a former life I put in a stroked 500ci Cad into one of my GMC fwd motorhomes. Worked well. Now the Class C I have bought has a manual 5spd. I hope it is a NV4500, I might be torque limited on that transmission, so will need to do a little crawling under the Barth to find out. A 400 ci small block with vortec heads, headers, intake manifold, appropriate cam will make over 500 ft lbs of torque. I am budget limited or I would get one of the Chevy 502 bbs.

Thanks for the feedback.

Chuckd

Chuckd

Should have made a couple of other points. The chevy 400 cooling issues are known, but supposedly, they can be overcome with an appropriate radiator, and making sure the new heads have steam holes machined in them. In 1977 the largest engine in a cut away van, was the 400 ci, not sure what issues the larger 454 would entail. I have one in my xplorer class A, and it is a big beast.

Chuckd
Stillwater Mn, home of 50 days that had temps below zero - can you say CABIN FEVER!

Chuck, you could have clicked on the pencil eraser symbol of your earlier post and modified it, instead of doing a Reply.
Xplorer caught my eye. I had a class B and considered a diesel Class A before I got a Barth. At the same time, I nearly bought a '92 Foretravel Grand Villa. I was primarily interested in a fiberglass Class A. My Xplorer was different in that it was based on a Ford van, not Dodge. My Pleasure-Way is much better.