ok so i bought a lt1 off someone that told me it was a 1996 lt1 out of a corvette with 60k on motor and it came with the pcm for $500 but when i got it home and really started lookin at the motor i noticed it didnt have alum head so i know its not out of a vette and since he lied about what car it came out of im thinkin its not a 96 motor either so how would i tell what year lt1 i have?

 

I believe the only lt1s without aluminum heads are the ones out of the caprices

 

If it has a crank sensor on the timing cover, it's a 96 or 97. If not, it's 95 or earlier. If it has a rectangular ALDL connector and not a D shaped one for the diagnostic connector on the wiring harness, it is probably a 94 or earlier, if the PCM has a cal chip and the fuel rail doesn't have a cross over tube in front, it is probably a 93.

 

well it didnt come with the wiring harness

 

It's easy without the wiring.
93 fuel rail does not cross over the top front of the intake and the fuel lines attach near the DS center of the manifold.
94+ the fuel rail crosses T the top front of the intake
94 the distributor is not vented so there are no vacuum lines or ports on it.
95 the distributor is vented with hosed and ports
96 + 97 add a sensor to the timing cover (CPS) to the 95 setup.

 

thanks for the run down

 

With iron heads, it would have come out of a B or D body. They all had vented optis.

I'll bet this VIN derivative year designation would be the same as the f-body.

 

thanks shoebox i will check the block tomorrow for those numbers

 

This. The B-body, for whatever reason, got the vented opti first- Also, the iron heads actually flowed much better than the aluminum ones, and produced great torque. If it is a B/D body LT1, it has a slightly different camshaft, too- again, tuned for torque rather than absolute H.P.- stock rating was 260 H.P., 330 ft/lbs -

 

Hopefully it's a 5.7 too, and not the 4.3 LT1.

 

and how would i tell if its a 4.3 lt1 or a 5.7 lt1

 

Look on the back of the block, driver side top. 5.7 or 4.3 should be cast into the block, just above the transmission bellhousing mounting flange.