Is it just me or does it seem like Gen III Hemi's are still extremely expensive? I just looked at my local CL out of curiosity and all of the 5.7L Hemi's were $1500 minimum. I'd figure after being in production for 15 years in almost every car that Dodge/Ram/Chrysler offered that there would be enough out there to drive the prices down. It seems like you could buy a car with a Hemi in it for that price and scrap the unneeded parts to make the purchase cheaper.
Gen III Hemi Prices
- Thread starter MuuMuu101
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Peter Bates
1973 Cuda owner for 36yrs
Expensive but fun when done. I bought my 392 direct from the Chrysler dealer, got the employee discount from my friend there. For the motor all rotating assemblies, less air, and the CPU and harness for $9900. Plus it comes with a no questions asked 2 yr warranty. Trust me the first motor they shipped me blew cyl #2 and was smoked oil horribly at 168 miles into the break in. And I didn't even jump on it, not fibbing either. Chrysler sent me a new motor promptly. Now the new one has 1700!miles and it's flawless.
to be honest, its due in part to the valve drop issue. A LOT of the hemi's from the gen 3 era, especially the pre-2009 are in the junkyard for destroyed engines after the valve seat dropped out.
And 1500 is a good price considering around here, they go for nearly twice that.
yeah, especially a P-Pump cummins engine... gulp, 4-5 grand in some places. with 300,000 miles
pishta
I know I'm right....
Yup, buddies 300C dropped a seat, his 3rd party warranty wouldnt cover it as it wasnt lubrication related....got another head and ran the scarred piston. 200 miles later the other head went. Sold it. Bought an Evo.
$1500 is Craigslist profit.
Around here you can buy a wrecked, running 5.7 for $1000, the whole vehicle.
You have to know somebody with a dealer license. My cousin bought a wrecked Durago, fixable, pulled the engine and everything computer related to get it to run in another vehicle (69 Charger), then sold the remains to some guy that needed a trans for $1500.
cawcislo
Well-Known Member
I think a lot of scrap yards are making a killing on buying whole cars as salvage for $1000 and then all they need to do is sell the motor and recoup more than their investment. The rest of the car parts are all profit. Want to see what a salvage vehicle is running check out the online auctions like copart.com With a dealer licence you can bid online. But autobidmaster.com can get you around that hurdle for an extra cost as they will act as a dealer (middleman). May still be worth your while if you want a whole motor, related parts, tranny etc.
dano
Evil Handy Man
Add the word "Hemi" and it's a 10 to 100x price adder.
But there not really a true Hemi like the Gen1. Gen 2 is a lot better than the 3's. First I'm hearing about dropping valve seats. I guess I'll have to ease up on my 05 Ram Hemi, no more beating up on it. Any body have a time line on when destruction begins with them? I only have 80,000 on it so I would think 100,000 would be the magic number.
Fast340cuda
Well-Known Member
The dropped valve seat is most common in the early 5.7 hemis (2003-2008 pre-eagle) and typically occurs when the motor overheats and the aluminum head expands. I have 90k miles on my 05 5.7 Hemi ram, 140k on my 06 6.1 Hemi Charger, 47k on my 11 6.4 Hemi challenger and 21k on my 17 6.2 hellcat and have never had any mechanical issues. I believe proper maintenance is key.
from what ive researched, some as early as 20,000, others 180,000, usually after it overheats or from detonation with bad gas
Thanks for that info. I always keep an eye on temp. and always use reputable gas.
replicaracer43
Grumpy Old Man
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There is a almost epidemic of 2011 and up 5.7s failing camshafts and lifters. Don't forget the timing chain tensioner failures either. The 5.7 hemi engines have a failure rate about 10x what the magnum series small blocks had.
Fast340cuda
Well-Known Member
The main issue with the magnum series is cracked heads.
TrailBeast
AKA Mopars4us on Youtube
Luckily there are good aftermarket heads that don't break the bank.
Fast340cuda
Well-Known Member
This is very true. Would be nice if the airflow was similar to the Gen 3 Hemi.
You would think after building engines for over a hundred years they would finally get their act together. Their real world testing is a joke because they don't have failures til people start driving the new and improved garbage. It probably still all boils down to saving a dime per vehicle. I bought a 83 2.2 and it was junk. The only real good motors for longevity were the B& RB engines.
Fast340cuda
Well-Known Member
Oh yeah, owned a few of the late 80’s dodge/Shelby turbo charged 2.2L and went through at least a half dozen head gaskets and replacement cylinder heads.
pishta
I know I'm right....
Al the places here offer you $50 and free towing for your beater. Truth is the tow truck driver is given $500 to give you and he tries to whittle you down so he can pocket the difference. I had the tow truck come and get my non op truck. He offered me $100 for my truck (long time ago) "because it was incomplete, missing the valve cover" and I said let me check my notes and call your yard because they offered $200 as is. The Driver quickly backed off and stammered, "Oh, you already got a price..Ok Ok. I think I got it all right here" Bum......
PS> In CA, if the car is bought by the state as a gross polluter, they have to run the motor with silica instead of oil and seize the motor so no one can buy it for a runner. They paint a big X on the motor so you know its seized.
replicaracer43
Grumpy Old Man
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Which is a non issue. They SHOULD be replaced if your upgrading, but they run often to 300k miles without issue, even with cracked heads
Fast340cuda
Well-Known Member
Yes, many run fine with cracked heads, some don’t. With a magnum you still have a shortblock based off the poly 318 with 2 bolt mains and heads that flow nowhere near a late model Hemi. The basic 5.7 Hemi comes with cross bolted mains, great flowing heads, better factory machining, better gaskets/seals and puts out more power than any factory LA or magnum. Not to mention factory 6.1 Hemi blocks can support 800 HP with the addition of main studs.
Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy driving and working on my 340 but it takes a fairly radical LA or magnum to match what the late model offers from the factory.
What’s really nice is we now have a fairly affordable and plentiful option for a power plant for our cars.
cawcislo
Well-Known Member
You would think after building engines for over a hundred years they would finally get their act together. Their real world testing is a joke because they don't have failures til people start driving the new and improved garbage. It probably still all boils down to saving a dime per vehicle. I bought a 83 2.2 and it was junk. The only real good motors for longevity were the B& RB engines.
Click to expand...
Oh yeah, owned a few of the late 80’s dodge/Shelby turbo charged 2.2L and went through at least a half dozen head gaskets and replacement cylinder heads.
To be fair those little 2.2/2.5 motors improved over the years and with a better head gasket and ARP head studs they could hold a lot of boost and run pretty quick. You have to remember that was a cheapest of the cheap engine design which came from VW I believe that Chrysler employed to save the company from bankruptcy. At the end of the day these engine/cars are deisgned to make money. Everything has been accounted for to maximize profits and not to maximize reliability, customer loyalty, etc etc.
Click to expand...
Oh yeah, owned a few of the late 80’s dodge/Shelby turbo charged 2.2L and went through at least a half dozen head gaskets and replacement cylinder heads.
To be fair those little 2.2/2.5 motors improved over the years and with a better head gasket and ARP head studs they could hold a lot of boost and run pretty quick. You have to remember that was a cheapest of the cheap engine design which came from VW I believe that Chrysler employed to save the company from bankruptcy. At the end of the day these engine/cars are deisgned to make money. Everything has been accounted for to maximize profits and not to maximize reliability, customer loyalty, etc etc.
John Bischoff
67Dart270
What I have been seeing is dropped valve seats on the pre-2010 engines (Non-VCT). Chrysler would not recognize it and did not recall them due to it would bankrupt them. Now, they are trying to make up for it with huge prices on the ones that work, and remanufactured engines. It is tough to find a good used >2010 hemi in NoCal salvage yards for less than 4 or 5K.
Seems like here in the Midwest, average price for a decent low mile Eagle, is around a couple grand .
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