Base 68 Camaro

[SmokinS13SR20]

Anyone know what the motor is that came in the base 68 Camaro, just wondering my dad said he yanked it out since it ran like a turd when he was 17, and dropped in the L79. Anyone?

[Suicidal Racing]

probley a 307

[Frankie]

Base in a '68 was the L6 as far as I know. They were like 100hp, so yeah, turd for sure. If you're thinking about swapping it back in to make it original, don't. L6 Camaros are more worthless than RS/SS/Z28 clones, so you'll get more enjoyment and more value out of a V8 in that car no matter how you look at it.

[Suicidal Racing]

def put a 327 and up in that bitch mildy or highly built to..if u dont some one should smack u and the car should be given to some one that would make that bitch a mean street strip car.

[SmokinS13SR20]

Umm I said that it has a 327 (L79) in it... Anywho, thanks guys im taking it that it was the 307, not sure what L6 stands for Frankie :grin:

[Frankie]

No way it had a 307. The '68 coupe, non SS of course, either had the L6 (Long 6) inline 6 cylinder engine or the 327. The 307 was a '69-only option that replaced the 327 since GM stopped casting them in '68.

Check this out:
http://www.camaros.org/engine.shtml

[Frankie]

Here, if you really wanna know what the stock motor is, decode the VIN:

http://www.chevy-camaro.com/chevy-camaro-VIN-decode.asp

Digit 3 should tell you whether or not it was a V8 (4) or an L6 (3).

[SmokinS13SR20]

According to Chevy Hi Performance, May 2006 Issue
"For '68 Chevrolet released a larger low-performance 307 engine as a replacement for the 283. The 307 used a 283 bore and 327 stroke (3.875-inch bore and a 3.25-inch stroke). Production of the 307 ran until '73. By the mid- 70's, the automotive market began to change drastically and GM sought to raise fuel economy and reduce emissions"

:grin: So it is a possibility...

[Frankie]

Camaros never came with a 283 option. That '68 307 was probably made for normal passenger cars and/or trucks. Check the links I posted, check your VIN, and go from there. If the VIN said V8, you most likely had a 327, but the base model coupe was an L6.

[2kSnakeater]

^ what he said, he know what hes talking about.

[SmokinS13SR20]

I checked my VIN, it originaly was a 8. Seems as if it was a 327, originaly but may've had a different motor in when he purchased it. O-well, its ok we have a L79 in it so, no biggie :grin:

[Frankie]

The base 327 was a turd, so he probably yanked it. Pics of the car or ban!

[riverviewnative]

Camaros never came with a 283 option. That '68 307 was probably made for normal passenger cars and/or trucks. Check the links I posted, check your VIN, and go from there. If the VIN said V8, you most likely had a 327, but the base model coupe was an L6.

That's pretty funny. I was out of high school in 75 and had several 283 cars. One was a 67 RS 283 factory car bought from the back line of a chevy dealers lot in Illinois. It was a four speed car with all the gauges tach and hide away lights. Still happen to have the tail lights and back up lights. Sorry to say that it became a drag car with a 454 and a Nash five speed. But running 10.50's in the quarter back in 79 was worth it since it spent most of the time on the steet.

[Suicidal Racing]

nice setup

[Frankie]

That's pretty funny. I was out of high school in 75 and had several 283 cars. One was a 67 RS 283 factory car bought from the back line of a chevy dealers lot in Illinois. It was a four speed car with all the gauges tach and hide away lights. Still happen to have the tail lights and back up lights. Sorry to say that it became a drag car with a 454 and a Nash five speed. But running 10.50's in the quarter back in 79 was worth it since it spent most of the time on the steet.

Never once have I seen a '67 Camaro with a 283 nor any literature that mentions it. Are you sure it wasn't some kinda special dealer swap? Shoot me a link to some literature on the 283 Camaro, cause as far as I know, they didn't exist.

Edit - To quote camaros.org

Q: What engines were available for the Camaro?

A: Part of the success of the Camaro was the wide variety of engine options that were available. Here's a summary of the available factory domestic engines (other engines were used in export models and some dealer-modified Camaros):

L26 230ci/140HP L6 1BC - non-SS
L22 250ci/155HP L6 1BC - non-SS
Z28 302ci/290HP V8 4BC - Z-28 only (HP underrated!)
L14 307ci/200HP V8 2BC - non-SS, 1969 only
LF7 327ci/210HP V8 2BC - non-SS, eliminated during 1969
L30 327ci/275HP V8 4BC - non-SS, 1967-68 only
L65 350ci/250HP V8 2BC - non-SS, 1969 only
LM1 350ci/255HP V8 4BC - non-SS, regular fuel, 1969 only
L48 350ci/295HP V8 4BC - SS only, rated 300HP in 1969
L35 396ci/325HP V8 4BC - SS only, Q-Jet
L34 396ci/350HP V8 4BC - SS only, Q-Jet
L78 396ci/375HP V8 4BC - SS only, Holley
L78/L89 396ci/375HP V8 4BC - SS only, Holley, Al head
L72 427ci/425HP V8 4BC - COPO 9561, cast iron
ZL1 427ci/430HP V8 4BC - COPO 9560, Al block/heads

[obituary]

No way it had a 307. The '68 coupe, non SS of course, either had the L6 (Long 6) inline 6 cylinder engine or the 327. The 307 was a '69-only option that replaced the 327 since GM stopped casting them in '68.

Check this out:
http://www.camaros.org/engine.shtml
i agree

[SmokinS13SR20]

OK, but the 307 began in 1968, I agree it may have had the 327 from the factory :grin:

[Suicidal Racing]

327 where still made in 69 u guys trip me out with that shit..and 307s where made from 68-73..and tech u could still get 327s in 70 and 71 if u ordered it like that..u guys seem to forget that.u could walk into dealerships the right ones and walk out with a car how ever u wanted it and thats not with them doing it but coming from the factory..

[roracer70]

327 where still made in 69 u guys trip me out with that shit..and 307s where made from 68-73..and tech u could still get 327s in 70 and 71 if u ordered it like that..u guys seem to forget that.u could walk into dealerships the right ones and walk out with a car how ever u wanted it and thats not with them doing it but coming from the factory..


HA! i tell my friends that and they think im crazy. btw, you can order rebuilt 327's from discount, i saw that the other day lol.

[Suicidal Racing]

yep..327 are some bad ass engines..if i had a choice of a 327 or a 350 i'm taking the 327..after that it would be a 383 then a 434 or a 454 all small blocks for me.

[_Will_]

Never once have I seen a '67 Camaro with a 283 nor any literature that mentions it. Are you sure it wasn't some kinda special dealer swap? Shoot me a link to some literature on the 283 Camaro, cause as far as I know, they didn't exist.



not to dispute what was "listed" as available , but custom orders and dealer swaps make definative answers difficult. 283 was available in 1968 and it was the last year so anything was possible.

[racingrick]

26 years ago I had a rusty 67 camaro with a 283 and a powerglide pretty sure it was original. Made to Sell by my dad in Bartow Florida (to a long haired lion tamer named Gunter Gable Williams!!) for real.

a friend of mine had the "base" camaro with (I think) 232 V6.

[riverviewnative]

I don't have any specs on it and it is long gone. I uesd to but alot of them back then and they were cheap. I remember it having the 283 emblems on it and I did end up pulling the motor out. It spun a main. The car had never been painted but I see your posted info and have no idea why it does not show up. Maybe like you said a dealer optioned car. I paid $500 for it. And I sure wish I had it now. But for that matter I could have bought an 69 indy pace car vert for $500 too. And here is one that still makes me sick. We bought a 66 SS396 convertible Chevelle. It had factory air and a power gilde on the column. We bought it for $100 dumped gas in the carb and drove it to the guy we traded it to. We got a used set of 375 horse 396 pistons and some old slicks. He then pulled the motor and front end and curshed it. No rust origional paint car. GRRRRR

[Dano Moparo]

I was staying out of this one....but I had a friend in H.S. that had a base model 68 with a 283. We use to get someone to buy us beer, and sit outside of town and get shitfaced. One night after a few brews he starts reving the shit out of this poor tired old 283 until the motor said "fuck it" BOOM. We ended up walking about 3 miles back to town at 2 am. Man that was some good times :lol:

[70Z]

Not to butt in with useless trivia, but 283's were never an available option for Camaro's. I'm sure if you really wanted one you could get it through COPO but your friends probably either had non original engines or 327's.

In fact, Dano's friend must of had a replacement engine because we all know 327's are indestructable..LOL!

[Dano Moparo]

I had a friend with a 67 RS that had a 327. My cuz has a 67 w/ a 327, his 69 conv is a 307. I do remember the 68 my buddy had in HS was a 283, the car was 10 years old at that time and already a piece of shit, so I'm not sure if it was the original motor. And I was in my infancy when it came to cars. But I do remember going to about every boneyard in eastern Mich. with him looking for a good 283. Even back then everyone was telling him not to waste his time with another 283. I'm sure it prob came with a 6 cyl from the factory. Now that I think back, he was kind of a BS'er. The car he had before that was a Dart GTS with a 383 - 4spd that he kept telling everyone it was a 440.