Another fleet order body drop picture.

oldskydog

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 10
Gotta be 70-73 with 3 letter code. Blow up the pic and read the suffix code label on the valve cover TN?......can't make out the last letter
 

Bob Core

Well Known Member
GM Photostore said Flint, 1970. Comments there cited truck bell housings; they don't look like they're for cars, that's for sure!
 

Don Jacks

Well Seasoned Member
Supporting Member 3
Truck engines were what I was thinking as well.Those big blocks also don't appear to have car exhaust manifolds[at least not Chevelle] either.
 

bjburnout

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 4
Truck engines were what I was thinking as well.Those big blocks also don't appear to have car exhaust manifolds[at least not Chevelle] either.
........agree on the truck engines - think I remember that inspection cover on top of the bell housing in vans and other delivery type vehicles.....:rub....mind you that is about 52 years ago when I was last fixing those.....:confused
 

427John

Well Known Member
Truck engines were what I was thinking as well.Those big blocks also don't appear to have car exhaust manifolds[at least not Chevelle] either.
The big blocks are definitely 366's and 427T's the manifolds are the big truck style if you could see the other side it would look like they used a driver side manifold on that side too but the outlet is angled to the back.I think Phil is asking about the engines to the middle left they appear to be smallblocks too but for some reason they're facing the opposite direction of all the other engines.The guy leaning over has his elbow resting on the distributor of the one,and you can see the big thermostat housing and what looks like some kind of protective cover over the waterpump snout.
 

wrench

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 15
Yep, all truck motors......easy to spot those.

But every guy in there is thinking......when/how the hell do I get on the Corvette line?

Except the suit of course......
 

427John

Well Known Member
While the dude on the phone still has the same desk,looks like the assembly line guys got new workbenches.Any guesses how long the orange paint on the exhaust manifolds lasted?
 

427John

Well Known Member
Does anyone know if the smallblock truck engines were built in a different plant than the passenger car engine?I'm asking because of the difference of the painted manifolds versus the unpainted manifolds,maybe it was a practice they stopped since the car smallblocks are obviously a few years older than the truck engines(chevrolet script valve covers)?
 

oldskydog

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 10
Does anyone know if the smallblock truck engines were built in a different plant than the passenger car engine?I'm asking because of the difference of the painted manifolds versus the unpainted manifolds,maybe it was a practice they stopped since the car smallblocks are obviously a few years older than the truck engines(chevrolet script valve covers)?
Those pics were taken in two different time periods. The first pic with truck engines was from 1970-73 and was Tonawanda. the second pic of the car engines was from 59, I believe from a Life Magazine article but I don't remember if it was Tonawanda or Flint. I believe the process changed in the late 60's where exhaust manifolds weren't painted probably because they were installed after engine was painted.
 

Bob Core

Well Known Member
Oldskydog, you might recall that the Life Magazine photos were from the Tarrytown final assembly plant. The engines were just pulled from the train cars, and being staged to be built-up for installation. Great stuff if you're researching for an nth degree restoration.

I just wish I could know how it sounded and smelled in there. I got thoroughly lost in Plant II at Boeing once. It smelled like hot abrasives, cutting oil and hot metal being quenched. That's where they rolled B-17s out during WWII. To me, it was the smell of history.

That's probably not too far of, sense-wise, from the environment where they were cranking out '59 Chevys.
 
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