6.0L a Big Block?

mayhem · December 23, 2003

I am sure this question has been answered a million times but after running a breif search I came up with nothing. I was told today by someone at work that the 6.0L is a 366ci Big Block. I was always under the assumption that it was more like a 354 small block. What exactly is it???

Wingnut · December 23, 2003

It's a small block.

k1500chevy97 · December 23, 2003

small block engine

422 SS · December 23, 2003

364 inches of small block chevy power.The old 366 Big block that came in medium-duty trucks may be what the person was referring too.

1BADHD · December 23, 2003

364 inches of small block chevy power.The old 366 Big block that came in medium-duty trucks may be what the person was referring too.

Exactly!!!

Truckman031 · December 24, 2003

It is a small block. What is interesting is Dodge calls its 5.9 360 a big block.

robsawatsky · December 24, 2003

It is a small block. What is interesting is Dodge calls its 5.9 360 a big block.

I haven't seen that reference before.

From info I've found the 318 and 360 were the last iteration of the LA block (which is referred to as a "small block"). The big blocks were the B and RB blocks with displacements of B: 350, 361, 383, 400; RB: 383, 413, 426 Wedge (not Hemi), 440.

americanmuscleman · December 25, 2003

It looks like they've got this one covered, but just to reiterate, the 6.0L is a small block. Externally, its dimensionally the same as the 4.8L and 5.3L, as well as the 5.7L LS1 and LS6. The 8.1L is the only big block GM is building right now.

Chrysler's 360 is a small block.

Going off displacement alone can be misleading. The small block and big block names don't refer to the cubic inches the engine displaces, but rather the external size of the engine. For example, GM used to build a 400ci small block, and 396ci big block. With all the different custom engines out there, it isn't uncommon to see a "small" big block (a destroked big block) displacing only 360ci... while you can have "large" small blocks displacing 450+ci.

Just to confuse things even more, the 6.8L V10 ford builds is a small block. So is the 8.0L V10 Chrysler builds. The 6.8L V10 is just Fords 5.4L V8 with two cylinders added. Same with the 8.0L V10... its just Chrysler's 5.9L V8 with two cylinders added on. GM is really the only one of the big three still using a big block in production, the 8.1L.