That Thing Got A Hemi? No it doesn't!

[67GTX440]

That 11 second et was accomplished through alot of mods....the stock GTX numbers were low 14's....hemi's best back then was high 12's...people were impressed by both for the ability to burn the stock skinny tires.....

The marketing for the Hellcat seemed to involve burning the pretty fat soft tires during huge smoke filled burnouts. Every time I saw that I thought "how stupid", but it did not keep me from buying one. I drove it eight months an sold it for what I paid for it. I think I am too old to ever drive a car like that safely to its capacity. As Clint Eastwood said "a man has to know his limitations."

 

[AR67GTX]

Yes, the time my 64 383 Sport Fury was matched against a stock 66 Hemi Charger at the old MoKan 1/4 mile track - he didn't exactly wipe me out. Beat me solidly but not by near as much as I had expected (of course after 45 years I may remember being faster than I was). And those skinny tires - even my 383 could burn them all the way through first gear and a bit into second with the torqueflight.

 

[TetanusShot]

I made the switch from a perfectly reliable and fun 440 in my road runner to a Hemi. The biggest royal pain in a$$ ever to build. Parts shortages, crooked sellers, bad quality repop parts... you name it, I dealt with it. It took a depressing 18 months to build out of my garage. Was it worth it? You bet your *** it was!

I don't know anyone who has looked in their Hemi engine bay and said "dang, wish I had a 440..."

As far as being unreliable or "finicky" its my daily driver/commuter. Solid lifters, points and all...

 

[terzmo]

I have solid lifters in mine also...put it together last July....over 2500 miles and still haven't had to adjust the valves with stock rockers/wide pad. I love the 440 as it can be built cheaper than a hemi and depending on what's done...can outperform the hemi....I don't understand why they didn't attempt more hemi heads for the 440 besides the stage 5. They'd sell a ton.

 

[TxDon]

I looked at some Hemi cars before I bought my 440 but they all either needed work or had fishy paperwork plus they were 2 to 3 times the price, made the choice easy. They used to say the 440 would match the Hemi until they hit 100mph, then bye bye Hemi...

 

[mmissile]

I love all my hemi-cars. I don't understand the big ta-do about a hemi being finicky. What's so different? I could change 10 sets of hemi plugs, before one set of 440 plugs. Everything else is the same. I'm sensing a lot of penis...I mean hemi-envy. It only took me 30+ years to get my first good/real hemi-car.

And for all those guys who don't really race. Picture standing at the finish line of a dragstrip. A 9 second car comes by....count one-one-thousand, two one-thousand. That's an 11 second car. Driving ability in a muscle-car, is much more under-rated than horsepower. In an illegal street-race....even more so.

 

[oldbee]

Denny H- I was a Shell Oil guy!!lol. I do remember street racing a new '68 Hemi txt from 0-100 & 20-100 on the interstate. Got me by car length from 0-100 & 2 cars from 20-100. Same 3.23 years and no other mods(mine was stock 383 at the time) Week later, he wanted to go again with his headers & God knows what else(?). I declined; mine ran 13.35 in the quarter the first time.(still have the time slip)

 

[68 HEMI GTS]

Wedge motors are easier to work on, less finicky. I noticed the lash gets off on the hemi it'll slow right down. Wedge's aren't as bothered by that kind of stuff. Like mentiond above hemi's like a steady diet of spark plugs also. Hemi is a great motor for someone who likes to constantly tinker. I have one of each, both run 10's in street trim. The hemi is cool, it looks a hell of a lot more impressive. either will run, just personal preference..

 

[Richard Cranium]

Indy heads!

 

[halojumper]

Look what I have. yeah, I know it's a first generation Hemi. 331 bored 0.30 over,10:1 compression ratio ,465 lift can, Arias pistons ,Hot Heads intake, Msd drop in distributor. it's going in my '67 Belvedere. I know I could go with a potent small block or big block, just something different

 

[terzmo]

Wedge motors are easier to work on, less finicky. I noticed the lash gets off on the hemi it'll slow right down. Wedge's aren't as bothered by that kind of stuff. Like mentiond above hemi's like a steady diet of spark plugs also. Hemi is a great motor for someone who likes to constantly tinker. I have one of each, both run 10's in street trim. The hemi is cool, it looks a hell of a lot more impressive. either will run, just personal preference..

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440's don't have the strength the hemis have and need a girdle to prevent movement on the low end...

 

[Speedbird]

I like driving more than working on them.
So, I'll always take reliability over things that make engines temperamental.
I ain't racing.

 

[mmissile]

Gotta laugh. I've got almost 3k/hard-miles on my roadrunner, and have had to change the oil.

 

[terzmo]

I was always of the understanding that the Hemi was a high-strung finicky track animal and the 440 was the solid street beast.

My 472 hemi was built last year(2015) and running since last July and zero adjustments anywhere except for a leaky rear main...valve lash has not been touched and it runs great...solid lifters...stock wide pad rockers...flat tappett cam

 

[not so famous bob]

My 472 hemi was built last year(2015) and running since last July and zero adjustments anywhere except for a leaky rear main...valve lash has not been touched and it runs great...solid lifters...stock wide pad rockers...flat tappett cam

Having had both , (440`s AND HEMI`s) , some of u guys are full of it. you have to start stroking 440`s to come close to the torque of a gen 2 hemi. also guess which one is easier to get in the elevens - tens , in a full stock bodied car, providing they both have big tires under them. "HINT" , they ain`t runnin wedge blocks in fuel cars are they ?

 

[not so famous bob]

In praises of the 440RB.

I love going to the auto parts store. I tell them it is for a 67 Plymouth GTX, and they respond with 7.0 or 7.2? I tell them mine has the big displacement engine, not that less reliable smaller displacement one, and it was like buying the car at a 50-75% off sale as compared to the smaller displacement block.

Most of the sales people are oblivious to what I am telling them. That it isn't a Hemi and that is a plus just about any time but resale time! I think 90% of them drive rice burners. You don't even want to get into the discussion that today's Hemis are not really Hemis at all.

You have to want a real Hemi real bad to overlook some of the shortcomings. The 440 is pretty much bulletproof and an easy engine to live with for a car routinely driven.

try telling them (parts people) it`s for a 505 Chrysler! LOL. 440 more bullet proof than a hemi? you ever see a main girdle on a 750 h.p. hemi ?

 

[mmissile]