Re: Im looking to buy exhaust manifolds, what date would be numbers matching???
Again, it's not so much when the body was built as to when the engine was built that should be of concern for the dates on the exhaust manifolds. The body date only gives a week, a 7-day spead of dates. I've seen engines assemble stamped as much as 3 months prior to installation but a more common time frame is 1-3 weeks.
There's no rule that says the block MUST BE cast first. It's not like you have to cast/machine the block, then cast/grind the crank, then... in any special order. It could very well be there's a stockpile of heads, exhaust, or intake manifolds that predate the block date. Important thing is all engine components from the engine plant would more than likely be dated before the body was built. Engines and transmissions were stacked like cordwood at assembly plants just waiting for someone to order a car build for them.
