Question: 1962 engine 327ci

[apehangers]

ive acquired an engine and was told it was from a demolished corvette. ive scoured the internet for any info i can find to identify this engine as such. heres what i have - cast number on block is 3782870 with date code L191, stamped suffix is F1221RJ, crank is #4577, heads cast 3795876 w/date codes d232 and k302..valve covers are orange with the raised 327 center emblems,cam is gm22 3732798. in my studies,including this site, ive found that 1962 and 63 vettes had suffix codes of rc,rd,re,rf with block 3782870. i cant seem to find any mention of suffix rj excepr on 1 site that states its a 327 copo 9631..whatever that means. id like to rebuild this engine and preserve till i locate a 62 vette to install in..otherwise it will go into a 1966 chevy truck im restoring. any help in confirming this motor would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Tom Bryant]

Welcome to the Corvette Action Center.

The only RJ I can find is in the NCRS Lime Book. In this case it is a 1957 283 4 bbl in a 7000 series truck which doesn't match the rest of your information. It isn't uncommon for GM to re-use stamping codes in later years. Your 327 block casting number is a 327 cast on Dec 19, 1961, and assembled on Dec 22 1961. The head casting numbers should be 37965896 on a base engine 250 horse 327 which would match the stamped 327 valve covers. Take a closer look at that head casting number. Sometimes the casting doesn't print well. COPO stands for Central Office Production Order which was GM's way of allowing customers to purchase vehicles with non-standard equipment. 9631 would have been the number of that order. What it said, who knows. Records are pretty much non-existent on this stuff. COPOs can be almost anything from color to mechanical modifications that were not available as a RPO (Regular Production Option). If the information on the COPO number is correct, I'd say it was more than likely a driveline related modification since it got a special pad stamping. It could have been the only Corvette ever built with that mod, whatever it was. It would be fun to pick through that demolished Corvette to see what was different about it. Were you able to ask the site where you found the COPO listing where they got the COPO 9631 information?

Tom

 

[apehangers]

thanks for taking the time to answer and yes i did see the rj listed in limebook as a 57 283ci and dismissed it. the heads indeed say 3795896 and are the 60cc small valves used on some early vettes,pass cars and trucks with 283-327ci engines. as for the copo info i thank ya for explaing that and will seek out where i found that mention and post it here. another gent has suggested maybe a canadian connection but havent found one. kinda strange i can find the r suffix codes from r-rz but no rj for the years 1962-64. again, thanks and i guess i best dig into that copo info with that site.

 

[apehangers]

Welcome to the Corvette Action Center.

The only RJ I can find is in the NCRS Lime Book. In this case it is a 1957 283 4 bbl in a 7000 series truck which doesn't match the rest of your information. It isn't uncommon for GM to re-use stamping codes in later years. Your 327 block casting number is a 327 cast on Dec 19, 1961, and assembled on Dec 22 1961. The head casting numbers should be 37965896 on a base engine 250 horse 327 which would match the stamped 327 valve covers. Take a closer look at that head casting number. Sometimes the casting doesn't print well. COPO stands for Central Office Production Order which was GM's way of allowing customers to purchase vehicles with non-standard equipment. 9631 would have been the number of that order. What it said, who knows. Records are pretty much non-existent on this stuff. COPOs can be almost anything from color to mechanical modifications that were not available as a RPO (Regular Production Option). If the information on the COPO number is correct, I'd say it was more than likely a driveline related modification since it got a special pad stamping. It could have been the only Corvette ever built with that mod, whatever it was. It would be fun to pick through that demolished Corvette to see what was different about it. Were you able to ask the site where you found the COPO listing where they got the COPO 9631 information?

Tom

mr bryant - i found that copo reference on impalas.org/drivetrain/ and listed as 327,copo 9631 with suffix rh and rj. the site states its a full size chevy research group by warren leunig. it lists the same block casting number upto 1965. i'll post a topic question there and see what pops up.

 

[apehangers]

Welcome to the Corvette Action Center.

The only RJ I can find is in the NCRS Lime Book. In this case it is a 1957 283 4 bbl in a 7000 series truck which doesn't match the rest of your information. It isn't uncommon for GM to re-use stamping codes in later years. Your 327 block casting number is a 327 cast on Dec 19, 1961, and assembled on Dec 22 1961. The head casting numbers should be 37965896 on a base engine 250 horse 327 which would match the stamped 327 valve covers. Take a closer look at that head casting number. Sometimes the casting doesn't print well. COPO stands for Central Office Production Order which was GM's way of allowing customers to purchase vehicles with non-standard equipment. 9631 would have been the number of that order. What it said, who knows. Records are pretty much non-existent on this stuff. COPOs can be almost anything from color to mechanical modifications that were not available as a RPO (Regular Production Option). If the information on the COPO number is correct, I'd say it was more than likely a driveline related modification since it got a special pad stamping. It could have been the only Corvette ever built with that mod, whatever it was. It would be fun to pick through that demolished Corvette to see what was different about it. Were you able to ask the site where you found the COPO listing where they got the COPO 9631 information?

Tom

found more info on impalas.org/copo/ .. learn something new every day..lol.

 

[Tom Bryant]

That 3782870 block was used across most models back then. It looks like you are headed in the right direction. If you find details on the COPO I would be interested in what it is.
Tom