I want to know my sh*t before I get behind the wheel of this Challenger so I can represent properly, not like some guy who plunks down some cash and drives off in a nice Dodge, thinking he's worthy. I'm going to put in my time, my brother.
AH! Well, why didn't ya say so?
MoPar History 101 - with Mac.
1. MoPar?
"MoPar" is a shortened version of "Motor Parts", the term coined by Chrysler Corp in the early part of the 20th century. It was used to prefer the parts and service division of the company. Later, it came to be used as a reference to any car, truck, or part made by Chrysler, Dodge, and Plymouth.
2. The Chrysler Hemi
Chrysler's first real success with a Hemi engine was in the P-47 fighter plane. Yep, a V-16 with hemispherical heads. The engine never went into production, but it proved just how much using hemi heads could improve power.
The original Chrysler hemis (301, 331, 354, and 392), while real Hemis, have little in common with "The" Hemi, the 426. They didn't have the horsepower nor torque that surpassed their C.I.D. like that later Hemi. They were dropped in favor of more the more powerful and more reliable 383 V8.
No, the early Hemis weren't the the forefathers of the 426. The forefather of the 426 Hemi was the 413 Max Wedge introduced in 1962. Its cross-ram intake setup and upswept exhaust made it look like an absolute beast; and its NHRA racing performance proved it was. The Max Wedge was useless on the streets, so tinkering was done to refine it. Thus was born the Stage II. The Stage II proved itself in the NASCAR circuit but still wasn't ready for trips to the corner store. Then came the Stage III in 1964. With refined heads and a new camshaft, the Max Wedge Stage III was truly magnificent. But it still wasn't right... and the wedge was dropped and Hemi was reintroduced. While you might think that the Wedge being dropped means it's not at all related to the Hemi... you'd be wrong. The time and resources spent perfecting the Wedge translated directly into perfecting the Hemi: intake, exahust, valve and port shapes, multiple carb setups... all came directly from the Wedge.
The 426 Hemi was introduced in 1964 and was meant to be strictly a racing engine. But after the #1, #2, #3 and #4 cars in that year's Daytona 500 were all found to running Chrysler Hemis, NASCAR said "Nuh-uh" and told Chrysler that only production engines could be used in stock car racing. Well, Dodge and Plymouth did sit out the 1965 NASCAR season, but in 1966, the B Bodies (the Plymouth Satellite, and Dodge's Charger & Coronet) got Hemis.
And the world has never been the same since.
That's your history lesson for today.