Pinpointing a car or truck can be a difficult endeavor, and an L88 Corvette is no settle for ion, the very 1st point you have to glimpse at, is the price of the car or truck. In this day and age an L88 Corvette can simply run 100,000 bucks or far more, and if you have located an Corvette for sale and the human being marketing the vehicle is representing it as an L88, and the price is very low “BEWARE” of a rip-off correct up entrance, these are extremely exceptional and tough to discover cars and trucks, and even a wrecked one can run 30,000 bucks or much more.
Now down to the brass tacks, the first factor that I would look at is the motor codes, these as the RPO code and casting figures to make absolutely sure that the engine is an L88, there are however some notify tail signals, retain in head that not each L88 had the 3X2 carburetor alternative put in on it, this was an insert on identified as the L71 tri-ability selection, now an L88 is a 427 CID engine, that commonly came with a one Holley 850 double pumper carburetor, so just since you never see a tri-electrical power established-up on the car does not mean that it is really not an L88 427 automobile.
A real L88 Corvette is a scarce obtain, so you can sense lucky if you transpire to discover a single, also available was the L89 aluminum head option, that would shave 75 lbs of the entrance conclusion bodyweight of the vehicle, if your fortunate sufficient that the automobile that you plan to purchase has a create sheet with it, you can know particularly what the motor vehicle arrived with from the factory, but all over again this is a unusual uncover in the traditional automobile planet.
On the engine the RPO code is positioned on a machined pad in entrance of the passenger facet head, the RPO will convey to you what year the motor was developed, what engine it is, and generally what transmission was attached to the engine, it will also reveal what manufacturing plant constructed the motor, the casting amount will also tell you what year the motor is, how quite a few major caps it has and the horsepower of the engine, with the pro code you require to look intently due to the fact people today have been known to device and re-stamp these figures, if the RPO code does not match the casting range in any way, be incredibly leery of the deal that your about to make, talk to a lot of inquiries.
When deciphering the RPO code on the front of the engine it can help to know how to study the stampings this is a common reading for a 1957 – 69 RPO code.
1) The initially digit signifies the plant that the engine was developed at
2) The following two digits signify the thirty day period that the engine was built
3) The next two stand for the working day that the engine was created
4) The past two are the suffix code
The suffix code is what will explain to you what engine is in the motor vehicle, and what options it has, below you may locate a checklist of the codes for the 427 Motor.
Horsepower Transmission, Possibilities Suffix Code
390 4-Velocity, Hydraulic Lifters, Distinctive Cam, 4BBL Carburetor IL
390 4-Speed, Hydraulic Lifters, Exclusive Cam, 4BBL Carburetor, AIR IM
390 Powerglide, Hydraulic Lifters, Exclusive Cam, 4BBL IQ
390 Powerglide, Hydraulic Lifters, Particular Cam, 4BBL, AIR IR
400 4-Velocity, L36 Engine, 3X2 Carburetors JC
400 Powerglide, L36 Engine, 3X2 Carburetors JD
400 4-Pace, L36 Motor, 3X2 Carburetors, AIR JF
400 Powerglide, L36 Engine, 3X2 Carburetors, AIR JG
430 M22 4-Velocity, 4BBL, Particular substantial functionality cam IT
435 4-Velocity, 3X2 Carbs, L71 Engine, Aluminum Heads IU
435 4-Velocity, Mechanical Lifters, 3X2 Carbs, AIR JA
435 4-Speed, Mechanical Lifters, 3X2 Carbs JE
435 4-Velocity, L71 Motor, 3X2 Carbs, Aluminum Heads, AIR JH