Conference napalm::musclecars

    WHERE'S ALL THE BIG BLOCK PEOPLE????? 

    
    I'm not really a Mopar big blocker, but my fater was when he was drag
    racing. He had a 426cu HEMI dual quad, in a 1968 RT/500.
    
    Anyway, while I was down at Richs Auto parts yesterday getting some 
    motor mounts for a big block Chevy.
    
    Well, right next to where we were tinkering we noticed a HEMI!!!!!!
    
    Its a Desoto HEMI, 392cu, with tranny still attached.
    
    I'm not sure if any of you want one but its all there.
    
    If you want to know exactly where it sits let me know.
    
    
    Art
    297-4037

>    
>    Its a Desoto HEMI, 392cu, with tranny still attached.
>    

It's more likely a 326 as DeSotos don't came with 392 engines.  BTW, you can't 
get main bearings for that motor any more.


skip

    Or a 331 CID Hemi...Dave'
    

    CAN ANYONE TELL ME WHAT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A 383 SUPER COMMANDO AND
    383 ROADRUNNER ENGINE. I KNOW THE R/R ENGINE HAS THE HEADS, INTAKE AND
    CAM FROM THE 440. BUT I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE DIFFERENCE ON THE SUPER
    COMMANDO.
    
    THANKS,
    RICK

>
>    Or a 331 CID Hemi...Dave'
>    

The 331 hemi was only found in Dodge trucks, industrial/marine applications and 
in Chryslers and Imperials.

The passenger car versions were manufactured between 1951 and 1955.  The '51 - 
'53 motors had small port heads and a water-heated 2bbl carb.  In '54 the heads 
had larger ports and a Carter WCFB was used.  All '51 - '54 engines have the 
thermostat in the intake manifold.  '54 heads are the toughest to find as that 
was Chrysler's lowest production year in recent history.

In '55 the heads were modified to allow coolant to exit through the front of 
the head instead of between the two front cylinders on each side.  This helped 
keep the intake runners at a more uniform temperature.  '55 also saw the first 
300 series engine.  Solid lifter camshaft and dual 4bbl carbs.

'55 heads won't fit on earlier motors w/o dickering with the dowel pin sizes 
(stepped dowel pins) and a couple of water passages.

    Art I just made the same mistake .I bought a hemi out of a desoto at
    scotts in templeton .I will be picking it up in 2 weeks. Hope it isnt
    a 326.Does any on know what size it might be .It came out of a 55
    desoto and has a two barrel carb. Not knowing anything about mopars
    except knowing it was  a hemi I hope it isnt a  peice of junk good
    for nothing but a boat anchor.
            Val
    

    
    
    
    JaKe
    

the '55 is a 271 cid engine, the '56 is a 291, the '57-'58 is a 326

          I take it that this 55 hemi motor is really a load,and not worth
    using as a build up for a bracket racing motor.

    
    
    Down the shop we've been working on a 55 Dodge 2dr coupe. It's got the
    baby hemi in it. The motor looks mean until you notice the tiny carb
    and exhaust manifolds that look like they came off a lawnmower. There
    really is no comparison with the 426 other than the shape of the
    pistons. I think allot of people confuse the two.
    
    On a side note. I have  a chance to buy a set of factory chrysler wire
    wheels (I believe they are for 54-57?). One is missing the cap and they
    all need to be restored, although two are fairly nice. I know you can 
    get complete/rechrome/rebuild with stainless spokes for around 250 a wheel.
    They were offered to the guy with the dodge and he turned them down.
    I can have the set for 150. Anyone know what they're getting for these?
    
					- A.J.
                                              

    A.J.
    Does that bring back memories. Skip Readio's younger brother added
    a Hemi to a 55 Plymouth, back in the 60's. Always liked it as the 
    sleeper that it was.
    
    
    The Mad Weldor....Jim

>    a Hemi to a 55 Plymouth, back in the 60's. Always liked it as the 
>    sleeper that it was.

Actually, it was a '56 Belvedere 2 door hardtop.  The motor was a .060 
overbored 392.  Yea, it was a sleeper, all right.  Eric Hansen bought the car 
from my other brother (it got handed up to my other younger brother) and, 
as far as I know, still exists out in the Detroit area.  Eric went into the 
Fiberglas replacement body panel business a long time ago and he's still 
doing it, from what I understand.

Glass noses for race cars and all that jazz

        reprinted from the August '92 Pop Hot Rodding:
    
    				THE HEMI RETURNS!
    
    	Dodge will now sell you a brand-new Hemi block at the parts
    counter of your local MoPar hut.  No you are not having a Sixties
    flashback.  You see, the Mopar Performance guys were sick of seeing
    worn-out Hemi blocks selling for small fortunes at swap meets and
    their racers using the same old equipment.  Logical solution: Bring
    back the Hemi.  New tooling was created, but with the restoration
    crowd in mind, minimal changes were made from the original.  The deck
    thickness has been increased for greater rigidity and to allow racers 
    to mill the surface more than before, and the head bolt bosses extend
    deeper into the water jackets so the holes can be tapped deeper when
    the deck surface has been milled.
    	So there is no confusion between the new blocks and the old, the
    modern Hemis casting numbers have an "-M" on the end.  Part number
    P4529850 gets you a Hemi block for about $2800.  Re-cast Hemi
    cylinder heads and possibly a dual quad cross-ram intake will also
    be available soon.
    
    

    Just out of curiousity,(so  I know how hard too beat my head against
    the wall) How much does a dual quad cross ram manifold go for???
    
                                    I know this is going to hurt
         				Dave

    re:.15
    	Dave, 
    	From what I got out of the article, they haven't reproduced
    that part yet.  But, like you said, I'm sure it'll hurt when they
    do.
    
    	Tim

    Tim;
       I had one of the original ones,I had it on my 69 road runner,I
    picked it up from Fast Eddies in Clarksville Tenn.in1971 I belive
    its the same as the article talked about.I just got rid of it 2 years
    ago when I had to ,clean out my dad's garage after he died. I sold it
    for $50.00 along with a bunch of other goodies.that were gathering
    dust(dirt)I didn't plan to build another "GO FAST" at the time.But
    after tthe "wife" road in my run'in partners swiss cheese framed
    pontiac.I got an "Oh! build a fast car one more time"now I'm looking
    to build something radical.Maybe something with a wedge,HMMMMM! and
    maybe a 66 fury II with a super stock suspension and a beefed up 
    torque flight.Oh well.
    
    
    					Dave
    

They have not released either the heads or intake yet but, production is planned
to begin soon.

Mark

    
    
    Last week I had my "Its hard to be humble when you own a HEMI"
    tee-shirt on the other day. I had three guys at work, all in their
    mid to upper thirties ask me what a HEMI was. At the coffee shop
    and the supermarket the same day two late teens girls both said
    to me "Hemi, thats a motor right?"
    
    				- A.J.

    Something is wrong with America. -Matt

    Well there is still one Hemi I never want to have
    Hemi roids   :-)  Its hard to sit down when you own this hemi
    
    
            Dean

    A.J.,
    I'm still in my teens...and I know what a "Hemi" is....
    
    
    
    
    
    :-)
    
    TMW

>    A.J.,
>    I'm still in my teens...and I know what a "Hemi" is....


You old passed-gas,  You're as old as I am. !!!!!!!

skip

    Darn, someone who knows me.....
    
    Speaking of Hemi's, there is a picture of a 55 Desoto on the cover of
    the latest Eastwood Catalog..the hood is up....ah...memories.
    
    
    TMW
    

    Hey Jim, I just got that catalog and was wondering if that was a Hemi,
    is there any relation to the Chrysler Hemi, or not?
                                                         John M.
    

    
    Yes John, that's a hemi of sorts... it a small displacement something
    like 332 (skip would know) That one is a Desoto Firedome I believe.
    
    TMW
    
    btw Desoto was part of the Chrysler empire.

If they used the same engine in the 55 as they did in 56, that hemi displaces
330.4 cubic inches.  

A guy I work with has been restoring a 56 DeSoto FireFlite.  Being the resident
car nut, he has been over asking me lots of automotive related questions so I 
read up a luttle on Desotos.  FWIW, the 56 FireFlite put out 255 hp @ 5500 rpm.

Mark

'55 and '56 DeSotos were 271 and 291 cid engines.

330 engines came in '57.

    Thanks, all.
                              John M.
    

    Can anyone tell me anything about this engine by the numbers casted in
    the block?    4006630-440-7
    
    thanks in advance..
    

    -1
    	Can't anyone help me on this?? Are these the right numbers to tell
    the year? I believe its a 440, but looking for conformation. If these
    are not the right numbers, where should I be looking?
    
    Numbers  4006630-440-7  located on block left side just under the
    exhaust manifold.
    
    again, thanks for any info you can provide..

440 engine serial numbers and out of tolerance indicators are stamped on 
the pad on the left (driver's side) of the engine block right next to the 
distributor hold-down.  All RB blocks have this engine-identified machined 
pad.  All B blocks have the engine identifier located on the block deck at 
the front of the right cylinder head.

The letter identifying the year of manufacture is stamped on these pads as 
a part of the engine serial number.

    Thanks, I'll try and find the correct numbers and post them here next
    week..

    These are the Letters/dates you should find on that pad Skip is
    talking about:


                                 A = 1965
                                 B = 1966
                                 C = 1967
                                 D = 1968
                                 E = 1969
                                 F = 1970 
                                 G = 1971
    
    I had an S stamped on my 440 that was in my `cuda. I found out that 
    it was a factory replacement block. 
    
    The codes to look for which are stamped on the top of the block, 
    forward of the intake manifold valley pan, driver's side.
    
    
    /steve

    Seen last night turning around at Dairy Queen in Nashua:
    
    Two tone (brown and bronze, pretty combination) Satelite convertible,
    426 Hemi, 4 speed.  What a nice sound when he left even under only
    moderate acceleration.  I wish he had stopped long enough so I could
    have asked him to pop the hood.  My 17 month old daughter wanted a look
    at history.
    Wayne