Rootsy
02-23-2002, 08:11 PM
Since the spring "make it faster" bug has caught me i've been evaluating the 350 in the 16. And low and behold... what do i find... a vortec shortblock (plastic timing chain cover, 8 inch balancer, etc etc etc) topped off with old style (pre-vortec) heads... last year when doing some valve train work none of the camshaft lift added up on the indicator vs. standard production published numbers either. guess merc stuck a smaller camshaft in it too maybe? which would make sense seeig how the motor is rated at 210 and WOT is shifted down 200 rpm ( 42 - 4600 vs 44 - 48). I cannot find any information on this motor except that it was called the "sport" model in 96 - 97. Does anyone out there know exactly what merc did? Ski Sensations (michigan donzi dealer) told me that merc ran out of 305's that year and that is why i have a 350 under the hatch. Was this a specially put together motor to take the place of the 5 liter for that period of time? anyway i thought it was interesting and figured i'd see if anyone else has run into or noticed this... how bout you sam? i know you are currently doing your motor in your 96...