Engine date vs Build date
 

Friend is looking at a '69 Camaro. Its an 11D build date and the engine pad stamp (L35 396) shows a November 19th engine build date.

This seems way too close??? Shouldn't the engine have a build date at least a month or so prior to the car?

Thanks in advance

No, that's probably about right. Norwood Car? Only about 5 hours from Flint to Norwood.

But this a big block so its a Tonawanda engine. You still think its ok?

It is fine. No issues with date at all

11D was a projected date. Do you know the date of the completion of the car? Do you have the NCRS report?...Joe

Final-assembly for 11D bodies spans November 20-December 4. I suspect the car in question is one of the last 11Ds, VIN N5536xx. 8 VINs later, a 12A body was built with a November 30 L35 engine.

Less than 8 hours drive from Tonawanda to Norwood.

My 325hp has a cast date of H129, engine build date of 8/21 & an assm date of the car 8/28/1969. This one is actually a factory 402....Joe

I think my 69 Z is very similar. It's a Norwood 12D build and I think the assembly stamp on the engine is near the very end of the month of December. According to the serial number I think William told me my Z was actually final assembled 1st week of January.
Kind of interesting my serial number is about 500 numbers beyond some 12E builds from Norwood, which the first ZL1's were I believe. So my Z was scheduled a week before but came out about a week after the 12E cars. There was a hang up somewhere. Interesting stuff.

In many decades of '69 Camaro data-mining, only two 12E cars are known: ZL1s #1 & #2.

If you want your cars moved up the schedule, ask the General Manager to make the request. This is at the bottom of the Broadcast Copies for #1 & #2. These ZL1s had body numbers #222002 & #222003. #222001 was ZL1 #14, built March 5th.

However, none of Gibbs' cars was the first ZL1 ordered. That was Berger Chev ZL1 #3, body #211785, built March 4th.

my 09D OF 1968 IS CAST I-11-8 BUILD VO912DZ

03C built 1972 Chevelle Big Block (Tonawanda) Engine cast 3/1/72 assembled 3/14/72. Both heads cast 3/8/72

I agree with everything stated here I see nothing wrong with your dates but remember there are very few absolutes when it comes to these dates. I have seen junkyard motors from 69 chevelles that were cast 7 months before they were stamped. Inventory rotation was not a high priority at GM in those days.

True.

Not unusual for 512 blocks cast in January [A49] to be used for COPO L72 engines assembled in April.

Z/28s were a different story. Early in the MY, not unusual to see engines final-assembled the day after the block was cast. Also, have two later examples cast & assembled the same day.

Heard a story about '67 Corvettes with the standard 300/327 engine. Chevy needed to convert the intake manifold tooling. They ran off all the castings needed for the '67 MY Fall '66 and shut it down. No matter when the engine ended up getting built, it will have an intake manifold cast August or September '66.

Our old VO409DZ was cast April the 7th.

My 10B 302 is almost an exact match. I 10 8 cast, V0912DZ assembly. Same batch of 302's I think? Does your stamping look like mine?

It's a lot closer than my 08D L34, but I don't think that means much. Mine is:

7/23/69 Cast
7/28/69 Assembled
8/22/69 Final build

So a month between cast and final build date for mine.

Thanks everyone for the info. Very helpful. My friend ended up buying the car.

I know of a couple of cases on Norwood built Camaro's with big blocks where the car and engine were built during the same week. The engine could be at the Norwood plant 2 days after it was built. So very close dates on these doesn't surprise me. Usually there is a little more separation between engine and car build date but not always.

The block casting on my 1971 Z28 is A 19 1, the stamp is V0120, and my NCRS shipping report lists the production date: Jan 25, 1971. I’ve also talked to another 1971 Z28 owner built in January with similar dates.

Mike