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A replacement automobile engine is an
engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...
or a major part of one that is sold individually without any other parts required to make a functional car (for example a
drivetrain A drivetrain (also frequently spelled as drive train or sometimes drive-train) is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components o ...
). These engines are produced either as aftermarket parts or as reproductions of an engine that has gone out of production.


Use

Replacement engines are used to replace classic car engines that are in poor condition or broken, or to install a more powerful or more fuel efficient engine in a vehicle. Replacement engines are often used to make old cars more reliable for daily driving. Classic car hobbyists may also install reproductions of a rare powerplant in a classic car (this is most often seen in
Mopar Mopar is the parts, service, and customer care division of the former Chrysler Corporation, now owned by Netherlands-based automobile manufacturer Stellantis. It serves as a primary OEM accessory seller for Stellantis brands under the Mopar bran ...
muscle cars Muscle car is a description according to '' Merriam-Webster Dictionary'' that came to use in 1966 for "a group of American-made two-door sports coupes with powerful engines designed for high-performance driving." The '' Britannica Dictionary'' ...
that have the 426 Hemi installed into them). Aftermarket engines are used in many forms of
motorsport Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...
. Some
late model A late model car is a car which has been recently designed or manufactured, often the latest model. (An early model car or classic car is a car old enough to be of historical interest; there is no usual intermediate term.) The precise definition ...
racecar series use " crate engines" many of which are made by independent firms. This ensures that drivers all have similarly powered racecars.
Legends A legend is a historical narrative, a symbolic representation of folk belief. Legend(s) or The Legend(s) may also refer to: Narrative * Urban legend, a widely repeated story of dubious truth * A fictitious identity used in espionage Books, co ...
and
Allison Legacy Series The Allison Legacy Series is a stock car racing series in the United States. It is based on 3/4 size scaled-down NASCAR Cup Series chassis utilizing a Mazda B-2200 truck engine. The lower-tier series has been used as a stepping stone into higher ...
cars also use sealed crate motors.


Types of replacement engines

The four most common types of replacement engines are: * Remanufactured engines (also known as "re-manned," "reconditioned," or "re-engineered") * Rebuilt engines * Used engines * New engines (also known as " crate engines")


Terminology

*
Short block A replacement automobile engine is an engine or a major part of one that is sold individually without any other parts required to make a functional car (for example a drivetrain). These engines are produced either as aftermarket parts or as repr ...
- everything between the cylinder head and the oil pan (excluding those items) * Long block - a short block, with mounted and gasketed cylinder head, valves and camshaft *
Crate engine A crate is a large shipping container, often made of wood, typically used to transport or store large, heavy items. Steel and aluminium crates are also used. Specialized crates were designed for specific products, and were often made to be reusa ...
- a new or remanufactured engine, considered to be equivalent to a new engine. Parts include more than a long block, including intake manifold, and carburetor or fuel injection system, oil pan, valve covers, and perhaps an alternator


Short block

A short block is an
engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...
sub-assembly comprising the portion of the
cylinder block In an internal combustion engine, the engine block is the structure which contains the cylinders and other components. In an early automotive engine, the engine block consisted of just the cylinder block, to which a separate crankcase was attac ...
below the
head gasket In an internal combustion engine, a head gasket provides the seal between the engine block and cylinder head(s). Its purpose is to seal the combustion gases within the cylinders and to avoid coolant or engine oil leaking into the cylinders. Leak ...
but above the oil pan, which usually includes the assembled engine block, crankshaft, connecting rods, and pistons with piston rings properly installed. An in-block cam engine short block includes the
camshaft A camshaft is a shaft that contains a row of pointed cams, in order to convert rotational motion to reciprocating motion. Camshafts are used in piston engines (to operate the intake and exhaust valves), mechanically controlled ignition systems ...
,
timing gear In a piston engine, either a timing belt (also called a ''cambelt'') or timing chain or set of timing gears is used to synchronize the rotation of the crankshaft and the camshaft. This synchronisation ensures that the engine's valves open and clo ...
, and any
balance shaft Balance shafts are used in piston engines to reduce vibration by cancelling out unbalanced dynamic forces. The counter balance shafts have eccentric weights and rotate in opposite direction to each other, which generates a net vertical force. Th ...
s.
Overhead cam An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion cha ...
engines don't include those parts. Short block engines became popular after World War II, when mass production led to great consistency between individual engines; before then, most engines were hand-built and had idiosyncratic variations. Short blocks became less popular after the 1970s when
overhead camshaft An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion c ...
(OHC) engines became the norm, as the rational unit of replacement was the long block, which includes the head, camshaft and valve gear. A short block is the preferred replacement component for a worn-out engine that requires major servicing beyond the capabilities of a local repair garage, when instead a machine shop may be needed. The short block represents the major wear items of an engine: piston rings, and potentially a rebore of the cylinder bores or replacement
liner A low-ionization nuclear emission-line region (LINER) is a type of galactic nucleus that is defined by its spectral line emission. The spectra typically include line emission from weakly ionized or neutral atoms, such as O, O+, N+, and S+. ...
s, together with reground bearings on the crankshaft. Although replacing the rings or bearing shells was at one time considered typical garage work, the need for a boring or crank grinding machine now exceed the capabilities of a standard automotive repair garage. A short block includes the preassembled set of major parts needed that generally exceed the capability of the garage, in one item. The third item sometimes requiring machining, the re-cutting of valve seats in the cylinder head, was less frequently needed. Grinding of valves to fit was once a regular garage task, as was light re-cutting with hand tools, when cast iron seats were common. Once steel seat inserts came into use, either as a result of the switch to
unleaded petrol Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic com ...
in the 1970s or fitted into high-performance aluminium heads, machining of heads and the replacement of seats became equally commonly required. Aluminium cylinder heads could also be damaged by warping after overheating, often requiring machining to re-flatten them. A short block has advantages over dismantling the engine and sending the crankshaft and other related automotive parts away for rework. It is usually quicker to obtain, requiring only a single shipment, rather than having to ship parts to and from the machine shop and the interim time spent at the shop to re-machine those parts. The short block would also have been built in a workshop that was hopefully cleaner and more organised for the specialism of engine building. Short blocks were
OHV An overhead valve (OHV) engine, sometimes called a ''pushrod engine'', is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier flathead engines, where the valves were located bel ...
engines. Sidevalves were pre-eminent before the short block appeared as a common item, and they also offered little saving by omitting the (simple) head.


Long block

A long block is an
engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...
sub-assembly that consists of the assembled
short block A replacement automobile engine is an engine or a major part of one that is sold individually without any other parts required to make a functional car (for example a drivetrain). These engines are produced either as aftermarket parts or as repr ...
with
crankshaft A crankshaft is a mechanical component used in a piston engine to convert the reciprocating motion into rotational motion. The crankshaft is a rotating shaft containing one or more crankpins, that are driven by the pistons via the connecting ...
,
cylinder head In an internal combustion engine, the cylinder head (often abbreviated to simply "head") sits above the cylinders and forms the roof of the combustion chamber. In sidevalve engines, the head is a simple sheet of metal; whereas in more modern ov ...
,
camshaft A camshaft is a shaft that contains a row of pointed cams, in order to convert rotational motion to reciprocating motion. Camshafts are used in piston engines (to operate the intake and exhaust valves), mechanically controlled ignition systems ...
(usually), and
valve train A valvetrain or valve train is a mechanical system that controls the operation of the intake and exhaust valves in an internal combustion engine. The intake valves control the flow of air/fuel mixture (or air alone for direct-injected engines) ...
. A long block does not include the fuel system, electrical, intake, and exhaust components, as well as other components. A long block may include the balancer/damper, timing cover, oil pan and valve covers. A long block engine replacement typically requires swapping out parts from the original engine to the long block. These parts can include the
oil pan A sump is a low space that collects often undesirable liquids such as water or chemicals. A sump can also be an infiltration basin used to manage surface runoff water and recharge underground aquifers. Sump can also refer to an area in a cave ...
,
timing cover Timing is the tracking or planning of the spacing of events in time. It may refer to: * Timekeeping, the process of measuring the passage of time * Synchronization, controlling the timing of a process relative to another process * Time metrolo ...
, valve covers,
intake manifold In automotive engineering, an inlet manifold or intake manifold (in American English) is the part of an engine that supplies the fuel/air mixture to the cylinders. The word ''manifold'' comes from the Old English word ''manigfeald'' (from the ...
, emission-control parts,
carburetor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor) is a device used by an internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the venturi tube in the main meteri ...
or
fuel injection Fuel injection is the introduction of fuel in an internal combustion engine, most commonly automotive engines, by the means of an injector. This article focuses on fuel injection in reciprocating piston and Wankel rotary engines. All comp ...
system, the exhaust manifold(s),
alternator An alternator is an electrical generator that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy in the form of alternating current. For reasons of cost and simplicity, most alternators use a rotating magnetic field with a stationary armature.Go ...
, starter,
power steering A power steering is a mechanical device equipped on a motor vehicle that helps drivers steer the vehicle by reducing steering effort needed to turn the steering wheel, making it easier for the vehicle to turn or maneuver at lower speeds. Hydraul ...
pump (if any), and
air conditioner Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...
compressor A compressor is a mechanical device that increases the pressure of a gas by reducing its volume. An air compressor is a specific type of gas compressor. Compressors are similar to pumps: both increase the pressure on a fluid and both can transp ...
(if any).


Crate engine

Technically, a "crate engine" or "crate motor" is any
automobile engine , there were a wide variety of propulsion systems available or potentially available for automobiles and other vehicles. Options included internal combustion engines fueled by petrol, diesel, propane, or natural gas; hybrid vehicles, plug-in hybri ...
that is shipped to the installer in a
crate A crate is a large shipping container, often made of wood, typically used to transport or store large, heavy items. Steel and aluminium crates are also used. Specialized crates were designed for specific products, and were often made to be reusa ...
, which can include short or long block configurations. For this article, a crate engine is defined as a fully-assembled engine that includes more than what is typically installed on a long block; the exact configuration will vary by vendor. It is also sometimes known as a "deluxe long block", which usually includes the fuel and intake system, distributor, oil pan, and ignition system. In some cases, exhaust manifold(s) and the water pump are included. Crate engines are manufactured by many different companies, but they all share the same characteristics of being complete engines nearly ready to install once removed from the crate. Generally a crate engine still will require additional parts to be fitted, which can range from minor (engine oil dipstick) to major (intake manifold and fuel injection system), depending on the engine package purchased and the targeted vehicle application. This type of engine has various applications including general replacement,
hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...
builds, and motorsports competition. Crate engines are often seen as an economical and more reliable solution as opposed to engine overhauls or custom builds. Such engines are built by specialist engine builders, working in clean and well-equipped workshops, rather than general purpose repair garages. Crate engines may be either brand new, or substantially rebuilt. If rebuilt, they will have been rebuilt to an extent such that they are considered to be of equal quality, reliability and expected lifetime as a new engine.


Applications

Crate engines are well suited in many different vehicle platforms. Engines are often used in the following applications: * General automobile engine replacement * Custom hot rod street builds * Marine engine replacements * Motorsports Competition (Asphalt, dirt track,
drag racing Drag racing is a type of motor racing in which automobiles or motorcycles compete, usually two at a time, to be first to cross a set finish line. The race follows a short, straight course from a standing start over a measured distance, most c ...
etc.)


Advantages

Crate engines are often seen as an economical choice no matter what the application is. In general automobile engine replacement, a crate engine is often very competitively priced when compared to the cost of a full rebuild of a faulty engine. It is also quicker to ship from stock than to wait an equal time for parts, then to begin a rebuild. Installers often opt for the crate engine because of the cost and ease of replacement. Crate engines are typically a bolt-in replacement with no internal work being performed to the engine compared to a complete overhaul that requires internal part replacement by trained mechanics. Hot Rod and other custom street applications also often choose a crate engine because of the higher value when compared to a custom built engine. In motorsports, the crate engine option has become very popular for various reasons. Crate engines are often a more affordable option when compared to a purpose-built race engine so budget racers often go this route. The crate engine also has developed a large fan base in many different racing series because of the competitive racing. As all racers in the field have identical engines, the races are won by driver's talent and chassis setup, and not the amount of horsepower a team can afford to build into their engine.


EV crate engines

In general, simply swapping an internal combustion engine for an electric
traction motor A traction motor is an electric motor used for propulsion of a vehicle, such as locomotives, electric vehicle, electric or hydrogen vehicles, elevators or electric multiple unit. Traction motors are used in electrically powered rail vehicles (ele ...
is not sufficient; a complete
electric vehicle An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. It can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or it can be powered autonomously by a battery (sometimes cha ...
(EV) drivetrain conversion also requires installation of a storage battery, inverter, reduction gear, and controller. Most of these separate components can be packaged with the motor in a unit that is dimensionally compatible with the existing engine compartment, but the battery is usually the bulkiest, heaviest component of an EV powertrain and can create a significant challenge for fitment. In recent years, the restoration and EV conversion of a
classic car A classic car is an older car, typically 25 years or older, though definitions vary.While other languages, such as German and Dutch, may refer to classic cars as "oldtimers", this usage is unknown in English, where "old-timer" refers to an elder ...
has become known as an ''
electromod An electromod is a vehicle that has been restored and modified by converting its drivetrain to operate as an electric vehicle (EV). The term is a portmanteau of electrification and restomod, itself a portmanteau of restoration and modification, a p ...
'', a
portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsrestomod Conservation and restoration of road vehicles is the process of restoring a vehicle back to its original working condition, whether the car is partially scrapped or completely totaled. Automotive restoration can be applied to many different eras of ...
.


Aftermarket

Hobbyists have been converting cars to EVs since at least the 1960s. Historically, these have used aircraft
starter motor A starter (also self-starter, cranking motor, or starter motor) is a device used to rotate (crank) an internal-combustion engine so as to initiate the engine's operation under its own power. Starters can be electric motor, electric, pneumatic ...
s and lead-acid batteries; several books have been written to document and guide these conversions, including ''The Complete Book of Electric Vehicles'' (Shacket, 1979), ''How to Convert to an Electric Car'' (Lucas & Riess, 1980), ''Convert It'' (Brown & Prange, 1993), and ''Build Your Own Electric Vehicle'' (Brant, 1994). Many recent non-factory electromods are implemented by extracting and adapting the complete drivetrain (traction motor(s), battery, controller, and inverter) from an existing mass-produced EV, such as Tesla. East Coast Defender demonstrated a Tesla EV-sourced powertrain conversion of a 1969–96
Range Rover Classic The Range Rover Classic is a 4x4, mid-size Sport utility vehicle series produced from 1969 to 1996 – initially by the Rover (later Land Rover) division of British Leyland, and latterly by the Rover Group. The first generation of vehicles produ ...
, developed with Electric Classic Cars, to ''
Motor Trend ''MotorTrend'' is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, and designated the first Car of the Year, also in 1949. Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles published ''MotorTrend'' until 19 ...
'' in 2021. In October 2019 there were no purpose-built crate engine EV kits available commercially, but such projects were in development. For example, EV West announced their Revolt Tesla Crate Motor in 2020, which married an electric traction motor from Tesla with a gear reduction unit and ended in a universal joint yoke, a suitable interface for a driveshaft. Mechanically, the motor is fitted with mounts compatible with Chevrolet small-block engines to take advantage of numerous small-block repower kits.


Automobile manufacturers

Previously in 2018,
Chevrolet Performance Chevrolet Performance is an automotive performance parts brand that sells everything from camshafts and cylinder heads to high-performance crate engines and upgrades for late-model vehicles. It was founded in 1967 to support the Trans-Am Camaro ra ...
advanced an "electric crate motor" concept with the unveiling of the eCOPO Camaro at that year's
SEMA Sama ( tr, Sema, Persian, Urdu and ar, سَمَاع - ''samā‘un'') is a Sufi ceremony performed as part of the meditation and prayer practice dhikr. Sama means "listening", while dhikr means "remembrance".During, J., and R. Sellheim. "Sama ...
show. The eCOPO Camaro was a 2019 COPO Camaro which was equipped with a pair of
BorgWarner BorgWarner Inc. is an American automotive supplier headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The company maintains production facilities and technical systems at 93 sites (as of June 6, 2022) in 22 countries worldwide and has around 49,000 emplo ...
HVH250-150 motor assemblies instead of the conventional piston engine. The electric traction motor essentially served as a drop-in replacement with the same
bellhousing Bell housing or bellhousing is a colloquial/slang term for the portion of the transmission that covers the flywheel and the clutch or torque converter of the transmission on vehicles powered by internal combustion engines. This housing is bolte ...
bolt pattern and crankshaft flange as the LS engine family, so the car retained the same transmission, driveshaft, and axles as the conventional COPO Camaro. At the 2019 SEMA show, Chevrolet continued to develop the concept, following up with the E-10 Concept, which used the powertrains from two Bolts repackaged into in a restored 1962 C-10 pickup truck. The following year for SEMA, Chevrolet showcased the "Electric Connect and Cruise" eCrate package in October 2020, which included the main drivetrain components of a single Bolt (motor, battery, controller, and inverter), and was demonstrated as a retrofit to a restored 1977 K5 Blazer. The kit was scheduled to go on sale in the second half of 2021. The Bolt motor is modified by removing the differential and reduction gear unit, then fitting an adapter plate and crank flange, allowing it to bolt to a conventional transmission. Together with the controller and inverter, the motor occupies approximately the same space as a small-block V8; the battery presents a greater challenge for packaging, which is why the initial development has focused on trucks. , it was still being explored as a "future business opportunity", according to Chevrolet Vice President Scott Bell. In November 2021,
Ford Performance Ford Performance (formerly Ford Racing) is the high-performance division of the Ford Motor Company and the multinational name used for its motorsport and racing activity. History * 1896 – Henry Ford reached a top speed of 20 mph in his ...
released the "Eluminator" crate EV motor, which was the same traction motor used in the
Ford Mustang Mach-E The Ford Mustang Mach-E is a battery electric compact crossover SUV produced by Ford. The vehicle was introduced on November 17, 2019, and went on sale in December 2020 as a 2021 model. The vehicle uses the Mustang nameplate, with a Mach-E ...
GT Performance Edition and used to power the 1978 F-100 Eluminator restomod pickup truck. As of 3 November 2021, it was available for pre-order but not yet shipping.


Common crate engines used in North American racing

General Motors began developing several small block crate race car engines in 2001 and they were released into production in 2002. The engines are sealed and repairs being done by certified rebuilders.


Chevrolet 602

The Chevrolet engine debuted in 2002 with part number 1958602 and sold for a little under $4000 in 2012. It has 350 cubic inch displacement via a 4.000 inch bore and 3.480 inch stroke. The 602 engine is equipped with iron heads, a cast-iron block, and aluminum pistons. It produces about 350 horsepower and 390 foot-pounds of torque at 9.1:1 compression. Applications for this engine include: IMCA Hobby Stock, IMCA Northern Sport Modified, IMCA Southern Sport Modified, Mid-American Stock cars. Northeastern (United States) Sportman, Crate Racing USA, and others.


Chevrolet 603

The Chevrolet engine has part number 88959603. It has 355 cubic inch displacement and 405 foot pounds of torque at 10.1:1 compression. The 603 engine is equipped with aluminum heads, steel crank, and high silicone pistons. The
American Canadian Tour The American Canadian Tour (ACT) is a late model stock car racing series based in the northeastern United States, and Quebec, Canada. The current American-Canadian Tour Late Model Tour was founded in 1992 as a cost-cutting, regional touring divisi ...
(ACT) late model sportsman utilize this engine.


Chevrolet 604

The Chevrolet engine debuted in 2002 with part number 88958604 and sold for about $5000 in 2012. The 604 engine is equipped with aluminum heads, forged steel crankshaft, and an aluminum intake. It produces about 400 horsepower and 400 foot-pounds of torque with a 9.6:1 compression. Applications for this engine includes IMCA Modifieds (starting in 2013), CRA All Stars Tour (allowed but not required), United Crate Racing Alliance, Big 8 Series, RUSH Late Models, Crate Racing USA, and others.


Ford 347

Ford Performance 347 Cubic Inches 415 HP Sealed Racing Engine


Replacement blocks

New castings of some engines are sometimes produced by independent companies. These blocks commonly replace rare or popular designs for aftermarket rebuilding, especially when the original is no longer produced. They are sometimes available in
aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...
instead of original
iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...
, or in stronger alloys. Often they imitate the larger available displacements that were produced in small numbers or allow for displacements never available.


See also

*
Engine tuning Engine tuning is the adjustment or modification of the internal combustion engine or Engine Control Unit (ECU) to yield optimal performance and increase the engine's power output, economy, or durability. These goals may be mutually exclusive; a ...
*
Engine swap In car tuning culture, an engine swap is the process of removing a car's original engine and replacing it with another. This may be a like-for-like replacement, or to install a non-factory specification engine. Typically an engine swap is p ...
*
Engine configuration The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized. Piston engines are often categorized by their cylinder layout, valves and camshafts. Wankel engines are often categorize ...


References

{{reflist


External links


GM crate enginesFord crate enginesMost common types of replacement enginesComplete Crate Engines-Auto Parts USA
Automobile engines