Gen 3 Hemi swap total cost?

[Aero426]

I can't see a big MPG increase at all based on my 5.7 in my 04 Ram 2500 2wd.    Plenty of power, but it is one THIRSTY hombre.   

That's not exactly an equivalent vehicle though. 

It's a stripper, regular cab, 2wd with overdrive pulling nothing.     I am sure it's heavier than the Charger, but....

Best I have ever gotten on the hwy empty is 15-16.  Around town, it's 10-12.   It ain't great. 

But let's just say you pick up that 3-4 mpg in a Charger.   The payback on that will still take a LONG time. 

[Mike DC]

     
I agree it would take a long time to pay it off. 



I doubt that fuel injecting a 451 would be a great $$$/MPG payoff, but it would probably be a better payoff for the dollar than the new motor swap. 

And especially if we look at the price of the carb setup honestly.  People have a tendency to look at an EFI conversion as a totally added cost, and forget how much they were really going to spend on the carb & manifold & mechanical fuel pump system.

[Cooter]

Wiring and all the bullsh*t needed jsut to make a STOCK newer Hemi run in an older Musclecar is like what Round say $2K? By the time you put the pump in the tank and that crazy Corvette filter, etc.

Used/rebuilt carb(650-750 for 451), intake, and new Fuel pump is nowhere NEAR Fuel injection and you already had most of it.

[Aero426]

While it could be its own topic, a friend has put a MSD Atomic EFI kit on his 440 Superbird.  The 440 is lightly hotted up.  
He did it for many of the same reasons people want to install a Gen III Hemi: the cool factor, modern technology, improved mileage, etc.
He likes to drive the car and is not afraid to take it long distances.

So far, it has been a mixed bag.   Definitely not a failure, but not a rousing success either.  
There still is some sorting to do and we will see how it goes this summer.

The good:
Turn the key and it lights off instantly.  Very nice.
Installation was very simple.
It is hard to detect when looking under the hood.   It looks like a carb.

The mixed bag part:
Fuel Mileage is not improved, or even very good, even though his A/F ratio is spot on.    
Throttle response was very touchy.  I understand it has improved as the system has learned.  I have not driven it since just after install.
Fuel pump needs to be in the tank.   He experienced a vapor lock issue on the initial install.
The system is not cheap.

Where I am going with this, is that it always seems easy to go with the new fangled stuff that sounds good on paper.     But it isn't a lock that it's always going to be the improvement you want, or work right out of the box.    For what a GEN III Hemi costs, you can put that money to a lot of good use elsewhere.     If are flush with cash, hey, go for it.  

[Indygenerallee]

Wiring and all the bullsh*t needed jsut to make a STOCK newer Hemi run in an older Musclecar is like what Round say $2K? By the time you put the pump in the tank and that crazy Corvette filter, etc.

$1200 for the PCM reprogrammed and complete harness with fuse block with all connectors plug and play. The sender was $100 that a standard Walbro 55GPH fuel pump fits in ($150 fuel pump), the Corvette fuel filter with the built in regulator $45.00.

[sixty-niner]

I totally agree with AERO426, its hard to justify the cost to put 375 HP fuel injection but if you got the cash cool.  It would be more cost effective to make the 451.  I am half way there already....I think.

[Mike DC]

It is hard to detect when looking under the hood.   It looks like a carb.

That means it's a throttle-body system, which goes some way towards explaining the weak fuel efficiency and response.  Throttle-body systems are okay but the multi-port systems are better.