Why do people drool over an HEMI engine? (or 'abuse' the HEMI)

[TheGhost]

Why would you want 1000 hp on a street car?

[hemi68charger]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2xu_e839n8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXIGLrGZiU8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnf4i-iecT8


'Nuff said?

I hope to God that my turquoise beast will sound as good as yours Doug..............

Troy

[Mefirst]

Why would you want 1000 hp on a street car?

That was not what the question was about... Read what I wrote again....

[RD]

When talking about power.. -Which engine would make the most power for money spent? I do believe the Hemi engine is the one that would win.. -Yes, the Hemi would/might cost considerably more, not gonna argue about that, BUT a high powered 440 is not cheap either, not to forget you need to mod the block so it can handle al the power...

Another thing... If its so "easy" and "cheap" to make high power from a 440, as some of you argue, then why am I not able to find any stories or posts in forums about them??? I have read allot of stories about +1000Hp N/A pump gas Hemi engines that work on the street just as well as at the track, but I have yet come across a 440 based engine producing those power numbers N/A and runnig on pump gas... -May be I'm blind I do know of several balls to the wall smallblock engines that make well over a 1000Hp (well not with pump gas) but not a single 440...

So to you guys who argue about it, well prove it and show us/me how much "easier" or "cheaper" it is to build a N/A (pump gas) 1000Hp 440 block (iron/aluminium what ever..) based engine

/Tom

well the reason is simple... those that want to produce a 1000 hp engines dont worry about the cost and so they buy a hemi, where indeed, the race engine concept is for what it was designed.  if you go the "dough", you can spend for the "go"

the question was not, and never will be, if the hemi was not able to make big horsepower as that was its intentional design.  whereas the 440 was not designed to be the "race" block that the hemi was.  if it was.. there would have been more R&D and it would have replaced the hemi in NHRA, NASCAR, IHRA, etc.

the point being here is this.  if you game me $15K I could produce a 440 that would spank the holy living crap out of a hemi that cost $15K and have money left over to put into the car so that it could handle the HP without breaking.

Now I could go to my machine shop and give you an itemized list, but we all know that this is the truth. 

Hemi's are great engines, I am not denying that, but for $ per HP, the 440 kicks it ass (and it is more widely available to boot).

[Hemidoug]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2xu_e839n8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXIGLrGZiU8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnf4i-iecT8


'Nuff said?

I hope to God that my turquoise beast will sound as good as yours Doug..............

Troy

It will buddy...it will. You're in for a life changing experience...

Here is another one against a 69 with a 440......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIiS8o0mqxc

[RD]

I didn't know these new hemis don't even have hemispherical heads, so why can they call them hemis?

Part of the chamber is hemishperical.  Truth be told, the 426 isn't a perfect hemisphere either.

the only "true" hemi's are the early hemi's

[RD]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2xu_e839n8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXIGLrGZiU8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnf4i-iecT8


'Nuff said?

I hope to God that my turquoise beast will sound as good as yours Doug..............

Troy

It will buddy...it will. You're in for a life changing experience...

Here is another one against a 69 with a 440......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIiS8o0mqxc

what was the other charger's time.. couldnt see it. curiousity is killin me.

[Hemidoug]

I don't remember but I spanked him pretty good.....I want to say somewhere in the 14s....

[GeneralLeeTESH]

see attached reason WHY...

[CB]

the point being here is this.  if you game me $15K I could produce a 440 that would spank the holy living crap out of a hemi that cost $15K and have money left over to put into the car so that it could handle the HP without breaking.

Now I could go to my machine shop and give you an itemized list, but we all know that this is the truth. 

Hemi's are great engines, I am not denying that, but for $ per HP, the 440 kicks it ass (and it is more widely available to boot).

so it is partially a rich mans engine?

[Ghoste]

Partially? 

[CB]

ok you know what I mean

[Ghoste]

Oh I do CB and don't think I was mocking you.  I wasn't; that being said though I will let my comment stand.  The Hemi has in many ways always been a rich mans engine from the first Chrysler ones in the 50's right up to the present day.  Being purchase or upkeep, they are not for the faint of heart or pocketbook.  But then again, you don't often find a Secretariat or a Sea Biscuit out pulling a hay wagon.  It was a high performance engine from the get go and that costs money.  Period.

[TheGhost]

Why would you want 1000 hp on a street car?

That was not what the question was about... Read what I wrote again....

No, it's not what your question was about.  It's a new question that I asked.

[suntech]

Why would you want 1000 hp on a street car?
[/quote


Because you can!!!! 

There are always some that want something little more extreme, and i guess i am one of them. 

Anyway we should not mix want and need!! What we need, is a 50 mpg whatever shitty car, to take us from A to B. What we want is completety different, and we all have different taste!!!

[68charger383]

Here's a good documentry on the Hemi

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvZt4nTaYzk&feature=related

[mauve66]

this will make it simple for you............. even though i prefer a stroked 440..... you can't argue with perfection

  Putting this all into perspective:

Lets say the you are driving the average $140,000 Lingenfelter twin-turbo powered Corvette Z06.

About 2 miles up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged & ready to launch down a quarter-mile strip as you pass by it.  You have the advantage of a flying start.  You run the 'Vette hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line & pass the dragster at an honest 200 MPH.  Just as you pass the Top Fuel Dragster the 'tree' goes green for both of you.

The dragster launches & starts after you.  You keep your foot down hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums & within 3 seconds the dragster catches & passes you.  He beats you to the finish line, a quarter-mile away from where you just passed him.  Think about it - from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200 MPH & not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race!

That's acceleration!

[Foreman72]

this will make it simple for you............. even though i prefer a stroked 440..... you can't argue with perfection

  Putting this all into perspective:

Lets say the you are driving the average $140,000 Lingenfelter twin-turbo powered Corvette Z06.

About 2 miles up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged & ready to launch down a quarter-mile strip as you pass by it.  You have the advantage of a flying start.  You run the 'Vette hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line & pass the dragster at an honest 200 MPH.  Just as you pass the Top Fuel Dragster the 'tree' goes green for both of you.

The dragster launches & starts after you.  You keep your foot down hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums & within 3 seconds the dragster catches & passes you.  He beats you to the finish line, a quarter-mile away from where you just passed him.  Think about it - from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200 MPH & not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race!

That's acceleration!

hey mauve, got any good stories 2 share ...

[mopar_nut_440_6]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2xu_e839n8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXIGLrGZiU8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnf4i-iecT8


'Nuff said?

I mean no disrespect here but I built a 440 when I was 17 with not much extra cash. Basically stock 440 a bit of head work, done by myself using the MP templates. 509 cam, .030 over, Holley Street Dominator , Holley 750 DP, automatic with a stage 2 shift kit and a "STOCK" convertor as I could not afford a high stall. No balancing, blueprinting, port matching or extra goodies. A plain jane $1500 rebuild. I ran this car for may years on the street and strip so I definitely had it tuned it. I put over 1000 drag strip passes on it and ran 12.8 @ 110 consistently with 4.10 gears and small slicks. This was in a 68 Charger street car which I heavily abused on and off the strip. This was at 2000 ft above sea level.

That said I still love the Hemi's and would love to put one in my 68 R/T but that will have to wait until I can afford it.

Cheers,

James

I hope to God that my turquoise beast will sound as good as yours Doug..............

Troy

It will buddy...it will. You're in for a life changing experience...

Here is another one against a 69 with a 440......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIiS8o0mqxc

[gordo1968charger]

i d like a hemi in mine,in fact i d love one,just to say i have a hemi,all i can afford at the moment is the chrome hemi door badge.
a lot of people on here say that there is nt enough power for the money invested,where as a 440 "all singing and dancing" is a fraction of the cost with less tuning issues and more power.

[Hemidoug]

[
'Nuff said?

I mean no disrespect here but I built a 440 when I was 17 with not much extra cash. Basically stock 440 a bit of head work, done by myself using the MP templates. 509 cam, .030 over, Holley Street Dominator , Holley 750 DP, automatic with a stage 2 shift kit and a "STOCK" convertor as I could not afford a high stall. No balancing, blueprinting, port matching or extra goodies. A plain jane $1500 rebuild. I ran this car for may years on the street and strip so I definitely had it tuned it. I put over 1000 drag strip passes on it and ran 12.8 @ 110 consistently with 4.10 gears and small slicks. This was in a 68 Charger street car which I heavily abused on and off the strip. This was at 2000 ft above sea level.

That said I still love the Hemi's and would love to put one in my 68 R/T but that will have to wait until I can afford it.

Cheers,

James

Well....no disrespect taken....BUT..you have to understand that (and I'm not trying to make excesses) I believe that was the second or third pass....EVER with that car on the track....I still had a lot of dialing in to do...I eventually got high 11s @119 MPH and still had more improving to do before I dropped a valve seat. I don't think you were turning 12.8 right out of the box were you?

OH...one last thing....stock manifolds....BOTH intake and exhaust...along with a complete exhaust system.

[mopar_nut_440_6]

[
'Nuff said?

I mean no disrespect here but I built a 440 when I was 17 with not much extra cash. Basically stock 440 a bit of head work, done by myself using the MP templates. 509 cam, .030 over, Holley Street Dominator , Holley 750 DP, automatic with a stage 2 shift kit and a "STOCK" convertor as I could not afford a high stall. No balancing, blueprinting, port matching or extra goodies. A plain jane $1500 rebuild. I ran this car for may years on the street and strip so I definitely had it tuned it. I put over 1000 drag strip passes on it and ran 12.8 @ 110 consistently with 4.10 gears and small slicks. This was in a 68 Charger street car which I heavily abused on and off the strip. This was at 2000 ft above sea level.

That said I still love the Hemi's and would love to put one in my 68 R/T but that will have to wait until I can afford it.

Cheers,

James

Well....no disrespect taken....BUT..you have to understand that (and I'm not trying to make excesses) I believe that was the second or third pass....EVER with that car on the track....I still had a lot of dialing in to do...I eventually got high 11s @119 MPH and still had more improving to do before I dropped a valve seat. I don't think you were turning 12.8 right out of the box were you?

OH...one last thing....stock manifolds....BOTH intake and exhaust...along with a complete exhaust system.

That is very good performance through the exhaust and 12.8 for a street car which weighs 4000 pounds is excellent performance IMO! 

Are you running sub frame connectors and torque boxes?

No, I did not run that quick out of the box! In fact the first day out with that car the best I could get was a 16.22 due to severe vapor locking. A pretty embarrassing day getting beaten up by stock Camaros and Mustangs!!

[Hemidoug]

Thanks....she needed a little tweeking. I was limited by a lousy 60 ft times...best I could manage was 1.9. Not sure what the problem was, I never got the chance to work it out. My best run was at Pinks. I think that run was number 7 or 8 on the car. I lost a valve seat shortly after that and the motor is still apart.

Yes the frames are tied with a custom made set.....and she is an original Hemi car so all the Hemi mods are there...

[vert]

Looking good there Doug.  For the original poster, there are a couple of Youtube links in my sig....

[mopar_nut_440_6]

Thanks....she needed a little tweeking. I was limited by a lousy 60 ft times...best I could manage was 1.9. Not sure what the problem was, I never got the chance to work it out. My best run was at Pinks. I think that run was number 7 or 8 on the car. I lost a valve seat shortly after that and the motor is still apart.

Yes the frames are tied with a custom made set.....and she is an original Hemi car so all the Hemi mods are there...

That is a very clean car! I like the way you incorporated your safety loop into the connectors.I think I will do the same thing when I install  my connectors as I did not want to drill holes in my new floorpan.

My hats off to you for dragging that car. Most people would just keep that one as a trailer queen.

I am looking forward to seeing it back together again.. Do you have a thread going of the build? Are you going stroker?