Facts on Chevy Small Block
The small-block Chevy engine is a compact and lightweight V-8 engine that has served Chevrolet and other General Motors vehicles since 1955. The engine is so popular for its lack of complex components and ease to swap from one car to another that more than 90 million have been manufactured since its inception. In 2000, the automotive bible Ward’s Auto named it one of the top 10 engines manufactured in the 20th century.
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The Beginning
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Although Chevrolet briefly manufactured V-8s during the World War I, the automaker quickly abandoned the engine in favor of four-cylinder motors to power its lightweight cars. The first small block V-8, however, debuted in 1955 to power the Corvette, which was suffering from poor sales because its only power was derived from an anemic six-cylinder. The Corvette’s new V-8 displaced 265 cubic inches and generated 180 horsepower. The small block V-8 complemented the big block V-8s that first appeared in Cadillac in 1949, according to Novak-adapt.com.
The Concept
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General Motors’ V-8 could be an unwieldy, monstrous engine that added considerable weight to already-heavy cars such as the Cadillac and Buick. GM’s counterintuitive approach to engine design resulted in the small block in an effort to reduce weight and promote efficiency. The idea was to maintain reasonable high torque to give the car good acceleration from a dead stop but be durable and compact. The engine’s skirt was short, and the engine block walls were cast thin to save weight.
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Size
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The small-block V-8 received fuel injection and grew to generate 283 horsepower by 1957. It was fitted in the Corvette. In all, the small block displaced 265, 283, 302, 305, 307, 327, 350 and 400 cubic inches. Most Chevy enthusiasts have settled on the 350 as perhaps the best engine to deliver power but remain lightweight when swapping engines in restoration projects. The 350 is Chevy’s most popular replacement engine.
Second Generation
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The LT series V-8 is Chevy’s second-generation small block. It was developed in 1992 for the Corvette. The engine was equipped with aluminum heads. It featured a novel reverse-flow cooling system to cool the heads before the rest of the block. It also featured electronic controls. The new but simple design made the engine more fuel-efficient and gave it a longer life than the first generation small-block V-8. The LT1 engine had a horsepower rating ranging from 260 to 300. No LT2 or LT3 small blocks were manufactured. The LT4 was a high-performance engine providing 330 horsepower, and the all-aluminum performance LT5 displaced 5.7 liters.
The Vortec V-8
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The compact Vortec 4800 4.8-liter V-8 was developed for the 1999 Silverado truck. This third-generation small block wielded more efficient use of horsepower in an even smaller engine with an added balance shaft to reduce engine vibration. A 5.3-liter small block V-8, which also powers Chevy’s larger vehicles, generates 285 to 295 horsepower. The fourth-generation small block, again in the form of the 5.3-liter V-8, debuted in 2005 and increased output by another 15 horsepower.
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