--- title: "Buying Temu Small-Block Chevy Heads Is an Even Worse Idea Than You Thought" date: "2026-10-31" modified: "2026-10-31" authors: - name: "Stephen Edelstein" job_title: "Weekend Editor" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/stephen-edelstein.md" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/buying-temu-small-block-chevy-heads-is-an-even-worse-idea-than-you-thought" categories: - "Aftermarket" - "Car Tech" - "News" tags: - "Parts" - "small block" --- # Buying Temu Small-Block Chevy Heads Is an Even Worse Idea Than You Thought ![Temu Vortec head]() *\Eric Weingartner via YouTube\* The phrase "Made in China" used to be synonymous with cheap garbage, and while that isn't even mostly the case anymore (just ask the electronics industry) one company continues to uphold the stereotype. Online retailer Temu sells lower-cost, and usually lower-quality, versions of pretty much everything—including [General Motors]() Vortec cylinder heads. But while the price may be tempting, there's a reason it's so low. [Eric Weingartner](), whose eponymous company Weingartner Racing specializes in cylinder heads, recently took a look at a set of Vortec-style heads purchased off Temu. What he found affirms why the name "Temu" is now interchangeable with "bad." The set cost just $350 assembled and shipped, which is incredibly cheap. As Weingartner points out in the video, the shipping costs must have been a big part of that total, given how much each head weighs. That makes the true cost of the heads themselves even lower, and it shows. ![Temu Vortec head closeup]() *Eric Weingartner Eric Weingartner via YouTube* At first glance, the intake and exhaust ports look normal. But the combustion chambers are completely wrong. Instead of the round shape used in genuine Vortec heads or high-quality aftermarket versions, they're distorted into what looks like a badly drawn heart straight off an elementary school Valentine's Day card. This was probably easier (and thus cheaper) to manufacture, but it's not going to perform as well. And while the ports looked okay, only the exhaust side passed a vacuum test. The intake valves also didn't have back cuts (a lip cut into the valve head) to improve flow, and the seats have lots of sharp angles that further decrease it. Limited retainer-to-seal clearance and weak springs also impact the types of camshafts that can be used with these heads. All of these flaws came together to produce very poor flow-test results, so bad that it probably wouldn't be worth using these in place of the stock heads on a non-Vortec small block. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvwFxefguD4 The reason why we're talking so much about flow is because that's what Vortec is all about. A fixture of GM engines beginning in the mid-1980s, it's the brand name of a head design meant to encourages a vortex (think mini-tornado) in the combustion chamber to get more complete ignition of the air-fuel mixture. Bolting them onto an older small-block V8 should be an easy way to boost power, if the heads were designed and manufactured correctly. That obviously wasn't the case here, but that's always the risk with [knockoff parts](). At least being listed on Temu is a warning in and of itself; nobody can argue that these fakes are being [passed off as the real thing](). ## Author Stephen has always been passionate about cars, and managed to turn that passion into a career as a freelance automotive journalist. When he's not handling weekend coverage for The Drive, you can find him looking for a new book to read. ### Author social links [Twitter]() ## More - [2019 Ford Ranger Will Offer 150 Yakima Accessories From the Dealership]() - [Audis in Germany Now Have In-Car VR Gaming Starting at 700 Euros]() - [The Legal Fight for ‘Right to Repair’ Continues in Maine]() - [Callaway Finally Supercharged a C8 Corvette, But It’s Not Ready Just Yet]() - [Flyin’ Miata Ends Sale of V8 Miata Swap Kits Due to Emissions Regulations]() - [Ringbrothers’ 1972 Chevy Blazer K5 Makes 1,200 HP, and That’s Not Even the Best Part]() - [Front Runner Debuts New Roof Racks, Awnings, and Gear Storage]() - [I Installed a Major Junkyard Upgrade on My BMW 128i]()