Crate engines are all over the place these days. From the OEMs to big aftermarket companies to what seems like every guy with an engine stand and a torque wrench, everybody has a crate engine they want to sell you. Whether you like Chevys, Fords, Chryslers-even Pontiacs, Olds, Buicks, and oddball stuff like AMCs and flatheads-there is a crate version of it out there somewhere.

So how do you figure out which crate engine will provide the most reliable power for your hard-earned dollar? The best way is to look at the builder's track record:
• How long have they been in business?
• How many engines have they built?
• What are their machining and building procedures (and will they tell you)?
• Are their engines dyno-tested? 
• Are their engines backed with a warranty?

That brings us to BluePrint Engines. While the company is new to Summit Racing, it's not new to the crate engine game. BluePrint Engines began as a home business when founder Norris Marshall started building engines for his friends and neighbors in central Nebraska. The company quickly outgrew the garage as Marshall's reputation spread; He then expanded into factory replacement engines, which became BluePrint's primary focus.

Twenty years and over 200,000 engines later, BluePrint Engines is back to its high performance roots with a line of small Chevy, Ford, and Chrysler engines. Building all of those replacement engines paid off handsomely in terms of experienced technicians and state-of-the-art equipment, which gives BluePrint the ability to build high-quality engines at a more than fair price.

Attention to Detail
While Blueprint Engines is a big outfit, it still pays attention to the details. For example, every core block is hand-selected and sonic-checked to ensure there is no core shift. That means less machining time is required to true the block-and that saves money. BluePrint even goes so far as to use only factory four-bolt main blocks for its Chevy and Chrysler crate engines, which gives the end user a more durable bottom end without the added cost of converting a two-bolt block to four-bolt caps.

But that's not the half of it. Here's what else BluePrint Engines puts into its engines:
Top Quality Parts: No “rebuilder's special" stuff here. BluePrint Engines uses only the best in its performance engines-SCAT cranks, Keith Black hypereutectic pistons, Hastings moly rings, Melling oil pumps, Edelbrock carburetors, water pumps, and fuel pumps, and MSD ignitions.
Proper Machining: All BluePrint Engines' blocks get the treatment-squaring and parallel decking, align-honed main bearing bores, computer-controlled cylinder honing to within .0002 inches for straightness and roundness. The cylinder bores are also plateau-honed to ensure a bore finish that allows quick break-in and positive piston ring sealing.
Hand Assembly and Blueprinting: Even with all of the machinery at its disposal, BluePrint Engines still has real live human beings assembling its performance engines and short blocks. And true to the name over the door, each engine is assembled to blueprint specifications and tolerances. That means every clearance is held to strict limits, every torque sequence is followed, and everything is checked, double-checked, and checked again. Simply put, there is no mass production slop in a BluePrint Engines-built motor.

Balanced Rotating Assembly:  Every rotating assembly is prepped to close tolerances and balanced within 2 grams (the weight of two $1.00 bills). That guarantees a smooth running, durable engine that won't shake itself to death at high rpms.
Dyno Testing: Every engine is dyno-tested and tuned before it leaves the shop. You get a printout of the dyno sheet, and BluePrint guarantees your engine will hit the numbers when equipped as-tested. If you get a complete engine with induction and ignition systems, BluePrint will set the timing and the carburetor or EFI system for you. All you have to do is add oil and perform the proper break-in procedure before you go tearing up the asphalt.
Warranty: The BluePrint engines (except racing and marine engines) offered by Summit Racing are covered by a 30 month, 50,000 mile warranty. The warranty covers parts and labor if the engine is installed by a certified shop, and covers parts only if you choose to install the engine yourself. In the unlikely event you do have a problem with your engine, you can take it to your local shop-you don't have to send it back to BluePrint or some shop that's nowhere close to you.

Engine Smorgasbord
BluePrint Engines' crate offerings come in several flavors:
Value Power:  This is BluePrint Engines' entry level series, available as a long block (no carburetor, ignition system, or accessories) or fully dressed (carburetor, distributor, coil, plugs and wires, water and fuel pumps) with OEM-style cast iron cylinder heads.
Cast Rotating Assembly:  The next step up from the Value Power series, these engines substitute Dart, Edelbrock, or BluePrint-prepped aluminum cylinder heads (depending on application) for the cast iron heads. You can also get one of these engines as a long block, with carburetion, or with Edelbrock RPM Pro-Flo EFI (Ford and Chrysler) or Howell EFI (Chevy). The 408 cubic inch Chryslers are not available with a cast bottom end.
Forged Rotating Assembly:  You guessed it-these engines have a forged crank, forged connecting rods, and forged pistons. The 355/383 Chevy and 347 Ford versions also feature roller camshaft valvetrains and polished intake manifolds. Again, your choice of long block or fully dressed with carburetion or fuel injection. 408 Fords are not available with forged bottom ends.

You Chevy guys can also get 355 and 383 cubic inch short blocks if you have an itch to finish a motor to your specifications. The short blocks get all of the machining, blueprinting, and hand-assembly the complete engines get, and feature a hand-selected cast crankshaft, Keith Black pistons (your choice of flat top or dome), Hastings moly rings, resized GM “heavy beam" connecting rods, and screw-in freeze plugs.

As if all of this performance goodness wasn't enough, BluePrint Engines also builds small Chevy marine engines and small Chevy circle track engines for claimer classes. These are available through Summit Racing.

With all of the choices available from BluePrint Engines, you should have no problem finding a crate engine or short block to power your next project. You already know you'll get the most engine for your horsepower buck!