L31 Crate Engine
 

Looks like either this engine is being discontinued or much delayed. Jegs lists them with a much higher price than a few months ago and Summit doesn't list them at all. GMPerformancemotor.com lists ETA of March with a discounted price. I should have ordered one a few months ago, just wasn't ready at that time.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Check Evilbay. SweetK30 got one there for the best price. Somebody will have one...

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

I just bought one a month ago...glad i decided to pull the trigger. At that time i was noticing weird availability. Probably arent selling well, mine was manufactured early 2018.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Good call b454rat. A chevy dealership in Virginia has a few with a decent price. Free shipping. Another listing was at $3500 ??? I really wanted the 4 bolt main but am considering the 2 bolt as I'm not racing it. 5K RPM might be seen only a few times a year.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Did you get it installed yet? How do you like it?

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Pulled the trigger, not sure how much longer these will be available at this price. Now the fun begins getting all the extras that I will need to install it.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

yep i got one for 1750 to my door .

looks like the cheepest now is 2300-2500 range .

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Well, that didn't last long. Order was canceled as they ended up not having one in stock. Back ordered and they don't know when or if more will arrive. Pricing is going to go thru the roof if anyone has one.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

I hope you find one reasonably priced. Like i said, I looked for a a month or more and availability seemed fine hen just before i bought mine the price at summit went up, ebay was out of stock and jegs availability went from 23 to zero, a week later summit lowered the price and i purchased it.
I haven't installed it yet, i will post up when i do though.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

dont forget guys . L31 vortec if using 95 older water pump NEEDS a bypass hose to the intake like a big block chevy did for years or the trapped air will girgle in the system and make wierd noises and temp go up/down . i had the problem and gm tech help line guy got me figured out quickly .

here is a few pics of the cure .

45" nipple from ebay as local store's didnt have . molded bypass hose for a ford application . std nipple to top of water pump port .

whole thread here tho . http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=778518

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

I posted this a while back that GM is discontinuing the L31 and the L31 Hd (4 bolt) , they will now offer the HT383 E as the replacment for the trucks that came with the L31 production trucks, and SUVs

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

The couple of dealerships I've checked with were not able to confirm that they have discontinued it. One actually is saying shipping in March. The 383 motor is over 5K a huge jump in price.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Yeah, that's not even close to a replacement. Fortunately there are a lot of rebuildable L31 engines out there.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

You may find this funny. The wife factor says OK to a new engine, but no to a rebuilt. :lol:

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

That's kind of funny. My plan was to stab a used Vortec in my Blazer; my wife said, "Rebuild it the way you want it." I recognize good ideas when I hear them...

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

My wife says the same thing. I think that after 35 years she's seen me "save money" on things only to buy them again for the one I should have bought in the first place.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Per the GM performance page a new L31 with new part number and price is coming in March.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

That's good news. In my opinion, the L31 is far from outliving its usefulness either as a replacement motor or as a transplant.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Unfortunately also posted was new pricing. At anywhere from 2K to 2500 it was a really good deal. I have been researching and it looks like right now anything with a roller cam is in the 5K range for a new crate engine. I'm really hesitant to go flat tappet with all the horror stories out there. Even though my stock engine right now is a flat tappet and hasn't gone up in smoke yet.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Flat tappet cams are fine with stock Z28 valve springs. It's the high performance guys that seem to run into problems. I put a used flat tappet cam in my truck 5 years ago.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

$3700+ for the SP350/357:
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-19367080/

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

I think the only difference from L31 is the 357 cam and you don't get a balancer. All for $1,300 more than the old L31.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

This ^^^^^^
With proper break in oil and procedures I've never had one fail.

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Why is everyone so apposed to rebuilding a vortec vs paying all the money for a crate?

Re: L31 Crate Engine
 

Can't speak for everyone but I quizzed my local parts store, parts and machine work to rebuild one costs almost as much as a crate motor. Plus crate has a warranty if it fails in short order. Then there is no down time, just pull the old one and put in the new one.

In my case I don't have a vortec and by the time I did the roller cam and heads a crate starts to be become a bargain.