Okay, after searching through an insane amount of posts at topics covering Hemis (A TON of which were on Mr. White's little coupe ) I was hoping someone could break things down a little more and focus on just the Hemi motor itself. I should be specific about WHICH hemisphericle design... Mopar. There are tons of Hemi models. Which one's should be avoided and which ones are a safe bet. Taking into consideration: parts, physical make-up (bell housing length, cranks, etc.), availability, intakes, streetability, cost. etc. Just need some black & white facts about the Hemis. I'm thinking of a motor to keep fairly stock, and maybe add a nice Strom-b intake to (3 or 4 of them). What do you guys think?
Go out and buy a copy of Tex Smith's "HEMI". Great reading and very informative. I am partial to Chrysler 354's and 392's. Lots of them out there and relativley easy to find speed equipment for. Understand that everything from machine work to replacement parts will be more expensive than your belly ****on SBC's, but the wow factor under the hood or sans hood is worth it IMHO.
Hmm... good tip. I'll check into that book. I have one of his frame books and it's very good. Just out of curiosity (since Tex probably won't cover this, or at least not to date), what is a 354 or 392 going for in "ready for a rebuild" condition without any major machining work like polishing journals, reworking the crank, or anything exciting like that?
Gonna keep an eye on this post as i'm thinkin the same way ,am partial to 331 and 354 myself.............Marq
my uncle bought a chrysler for 100, had the 341 in it i think. finding a old car would be the cheapest. i have seen them on ebay go for 400-3000 depending on size. if you just want the wow factor, the less popular ones are cheaper. my uncle has 7 hemis, different sizes. he wont let me have any of em
jst saw on ebay, two good deals, many rebuildable ones. prices are a bit nutty, imho. better to get it all in one piece id think. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/55-D...ryZ33615QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FACT...580061623QQcategoryZ34202QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I'm no expert, but I will suggest that you stick with the Chrysler Firepower Series of engine. Not to suggest that they are superior to the other (Dodges, Desotos, etc) just that the Chryslers are generally EASIER to find replacement parts for. Easier also equals cheaper (relatively speaking). Generally the 392's bring premium dollars with 354's lagging slightly behind and of course the 331's going fora bit less. The EXTENDED bellhousing motors bring the least of all - just a supply and DEMAND thing. Personally I have always tinkered with the 392's - the more cubes the better! But in all reality a good deal on ANY of them would be HARD to p*** up!!! Lately Ebay has seemed to make speed parts go INSANE for early hemi motors - I mean there's some people PAYING bizzaro prices - makes a fella tempted to unload all their Hemi Junk!!!!! But seriously the "going rate" will depend on where you live and how BAD you want that motor. Deals still are out there, but you have to really shake the tree branches! SOME rebuild parts are a little insane for cost but a clever fella can save a bundle if they're so inclined. For instance bearings are always one of the expensive parts for an early hemi, but if you're handy with a lathe you can adapt 440 Chrysler rod bearings for a fraction of the cost of '92 stuff. Lots of things will adapt - BBC water pumps, 440 lifters, 440 rods, I've even remachined pushrods adapting "discarded" nitro stuff for a street motor. As for prices - your guess is as good as mine. I paid 200 bucks for my last 392........that was a few years back. You want a DEAL - avoid EBAY!!!! EDITED COMMENTS: I just read the post before mine - LOTS of good points there. Ebay DOES yeild DEALS on the less popular motors!!!!! Let me restate my initial points.....teh replacement parts are more money for the LESS POPULAR Hemi's which is why the INITIAL costs are often very cheap. The Chrysler Firepower motors are generally HIGHER COST to initially purchase but in comparison to the other less popular motors are a tad cheaper to rebuild. Finding one in GREAT condition of course trumps everything I said!!!
I did the 392 for my car. If you want an ideal what they sell for check out hotheads web site under swap meet there is always engines there for sale from basket cases to fully rebuilt motors. Also the Hemi net is a good place to look in there cl***ified or just post in the wanted section. PAW has 392 rebuilt heads and block for $5900 carburated and $8900 supercharged/inc, you need everything else though. Good luck!
some simple facts i have learned while researching chrysler HEMI's is that it costs a considerable amount of coin to go fast with the earlier 331 ci short and extended bell housing castings. but a lot of us are just happy with the stigma of owning and running a HEMI. the 331 seem to be more cheaper than the 354/392's, ive gotten 3 of them, each for under $400 and relatively complete (heads, crank, rods, pistons, oil pans, exhaust manifolds). generaly, the larger displacement engines bring more cash value since nostalgia racers like to use them and of course the additional cubes will give more power. stock rebuilds are affordable... just like any other older engine it will cost more than your run of the mill small blocks (ford, chevy, mopar). you can stroke them and run the bigger 354/392 heads... again i dont remember which rods you can use (440? or chevy rods?).... rod length and rod end diameters will dictate what rods to use. i have only heard, (not experienced) that the 331 heads dont flow well for hi-po use... although, it will be fast enough in a light hot rod. i dont have my material with me but something to look into further would be cylinder wall thickness... how far can you go? speed parts are out there but can get pricey... some companies are in the process of repoping ufab 6x2 log manifolds but you can find intakes for the 331 at relatively affordable prices. dress up items that i have seen seem to be for the 354-392 HEMI's... but you can find them for the earlier castings, again... they can get very pricey.... as it was suggested above get Tex Smiths book... you can find it on amazon.... its an excellant intro into all things HEMI.
GREAT stuff here!!! I'm still kicking around other motor options, but the Hemi is my first love for motors (discluding flatheads). My first thought was that ebay is the last place to look unless I'm interested in buying the whole car ***ociated with the motor. I would prefer not to do that, if I buy a Hemi, just for convenience and space sake and would thus check cl***ifieds in my region or find a motor to pull from somewhere around here. Ebay is INSANE now! Pricing is starting to **** on everything, it seems!
ya, be prepared to drop some real coin on a 354/392.... some people dont give a **** or just dont know the going rates for these castings, deals are out there, but you might be searching for a little while longer.... i think in this case you need to figure out wether you want to cruise the streets, if so id go with a 331ci chrysler. you can build these on a budget. get a catalogue from these guys... excellant outfit. http://www.egge.com/
I honestly don't need to have the bigger cubes and would be just as happy with a 331 Firepower. My thoughts would be to find something to pull from a car or has been recently pulled from a car that is not stuck and is all there. At least that is a good place to start. I just got done dealing with a basket motor in something else and it was such a pain looking for all the parts and ended up spending more money than if I would have just found a complete and rebuilt it with what came with it. Knowing it started out all there is a comfortable thought... Knowing the cast numbers and what to look at is the key at that point I suppose.
The engine in my coupe is a 331 bored .125 over which makes it a 354. I also used 354 heads. This combo seems to work really good. I built that motor on a real budget, I spent most of my money on the machine work. If you would like you can p.m. and I could provide more details. Jimmy White
if you want WOW factor, drop a Hemi 265 into your car. with exceptions of the down under folks, few people have ever seen an inline 6 hemi...
The desirable 354 and 392 hemi parts are getting very expensive. I was bidding on a Weiand 3x2 intake, which is pretty hard to find, and I think it sold for over $800. Milodon oil filter adapters bring about $200. A Weiand timing cover can be $250 or more. The original Firepower valve covers with the raised ribs for adjustable rockers are over $200. Having said that, I bought a 354 about a year ago for $250, and bought some decent 354 heads for about $200. As for books, there another good one out there ***led Building Vintage Engines, or something similar. It covers four or five complete early hemi buildups inlcuding one or two with blowers. Lots of good info and color pictures. The engines we built by some guy in Canada I think.
Think the 392 stuff is expensive, I just picked up a rebuilt one year 1956 Desoto 330 Fireflight. Try to find speed stuff for this beast. I may run it stock till I can find a source for speed equipment. They just started making a front timing cover to adapt the SBC waterpump and I am scared to see what a intake might run for it!
The 331 can be found cheaper but be aware that the early ones with the cast on bellhousing reduces your transmission choices. I built one 43 years ago for my Ford and regretted not having a stronger transmission every time I break one and I have broken many over the years. Good Luck
I'm pretty sure it's a new one. Saw it for the first time about a week ago. I'll try to track down some more info and post it her.
It's brand new, published in 2005. ***le is "How to Build Vintage V-8 Hot Rod Engines." Here's the description from Amazon. Editorial Reviews Book Description Hot rodders and street rodders who love vintage engines will appreciate this books step-by-step coverage of the complete build-ups of 10 different vintage engines. Engines covered include the 354 Chrysler Hemi (naturally aspirated [NA] and blown), the 392 Chrysler (NA and blown), the 500 Cadillac, and the most popular engines of all: Three Chevy big-blocks (NA and blown) and two of the all-time favorite Chevy small-blocks. These are pre-electronic fuel injection (EFI) engines that can be built to deliver stunning horsepower, so theyre extremely popular a**** hot rodders. This book describes in detail how to build each of these street-going engines properly so they deliver peak performance and reliability. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Product Details Paperback: 208 pages Publisher: Motorbooks International (March 15, 2005) Language: English ISBN: 0760320845
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