Chevrolet 350 Engine Specs

The Chevrolet 350 is a naturally aspirated OHV V8 petrol engine produced from 1967 to 2003, and without question the most successful and widely produced engine in Chevrolet's small-block family - quite possibly the most-produced V8 engine of all time, with tens of millions built across an astonishing 36-year production run. It powered virtually every major Chevrolet model at some point, including the Corvette, Camaro, Chevelle, Caprice, Suburban, and the C/K truck series, and its basic architecture remains in production today in various crate-engine and GM Performance forms.

Output across the 350's remarkably long life spans an enormous range, from just 145hp in heavily emissions-restricted late-1970s and early-1980s applications up to 370hp in the highest-performance LT1 and L98 Corvette variants of the 1990s, with torque between 339 and 515Nm and compression ratios from 8.0:1 up to 11.0:1 depending on era and application. Few engines in automotive history have been produced in so many different states of tune across so many different vehicles, spanning the transition from carburetors through throttle-body and then sequential multi-point fuel injection, and from the emissions-choked malaise era through to genuinely modern electronic engine management by the time production ended.

Given this enormous production span, condition, specification, and originality vary tremendously between individual examples, making it essential to confirm the exact year, generation, and factory power rating before assuming performance or parts compatibility. Reliability is generally excellent across the family - simplicity and decades of continuous refinement make the 350 one of the most dependable, well-understood V8 engines ever built, and the aftermarket support is essentially unmatched, with virtually every conceivable part, upgrade, and rebuild component available new. Common items to check on any used 350 include timing chain condition, oil pressure, general seal and gasket wear appropriate to the engine's age, and - on carbureted or early fuel-injected examples - the condition and correct calibration of the fuel and emissions control systems.