Best Mopar engine of all time

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like a lot of the others said, it depends on what your definition of "best " means. Performance wise the 426 hemi gets my vote.
 
fanofpetty said:
like a lot of the others said, it depends on what your definition of "best " means. Performance wise the 426 hemi gets my vote.
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Agreed. True, the hemi has some drawbacks, I guess its weight, size and cost to manufacure.....and the fact that they weren't as streetable as a 440, but come on, it's beyond legend!! The 440 six pack is a pretty nice setup too. Not exactly exotic or anything, that's for sure tho'. I think I'm going to say the early Max Wedge motors. Now that's a pretty bad-*** engine! And for the year that it came out especially! Special heads with larger and taller ports? What was it, optional 13.5 to 1?! Those crazy exhaust manifolds and dual quads? People must've freaked when that thing was unleashed......or should I say Ford and Chevy must've freaked!

Max_Wedge_Engine.jpg
 
I agree with Rani, the 440 sure puts a smile on my face. Plus you can have like 3 of them for the price of a hemi.
 
...define "Best".... power,efficiency,weight,cost,longevity,etc
...they all have their good and bad points depending on what they are used for.
having said that ... those 340's were favorites during the Muscle car era!
 
RaniDart70 said:
for me nothing beats a 440 4 barrel for best overall.

ppl like to go exotic right away and say 6 bbls or hemis but hemis were expensive to make and have been limited and over rated from the begining.

six barrels are nice ...love the extra CFM and you dont run out of carb and manifold very easy but its tough to tune a six pack ...i have have done but face it ....the average person wont.

a 440 4 bbl has great street manners and is never lacking for power when needed. There is a reason it was standard equipment in the R/T and GTX when they were real muscle cars and were some the badest cars ever made by Detroit.

440 4 bbl. "go ahead and smile when you pass them on the freeway with four hundred and forty cubic inches of V8 power !!! "


Plus RB engines are the prettiest to look at =P~
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couldn't have said it better myself..... 440's rule
 
Hyper_pak said:
Too Easy....................
You walk into a room, you can have only one engine.....................
They all there, brand new, just built...............................
225 Hyper Pak...........................
383 2 4 barrel.........................
413 Cross Ram............................
426 Max Wedge................................
383 Road Runner...............................
340 Six Barrel..........................................
440 Six Barrel.............................................
Late model Hemi, 360, 400, 318, 273, 318/360 Mangum...........

And a 426 RACE HEMI.........................................
YOU TELL ME WHICH ENGINE YOUR WALKING OUT WITH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For me it's no contest...................HEMI
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Sums it up for me!
 
426 Hemi is the top of them all, still being raced after almost 50 years.

you can buy new blocks right here and build your own:
http://www.keithblack.com/racing.html

they can be stroked all the way to 605 c.i. and can be dual turboed, supercharged, injected, whatever. best of all they will handle the power. that is their main benefit.
 
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IF0VbUb_Ug"]Chrysler Turbine Car - YouTube[/ame]

chryslerturbine1.jpg




engine had the following specs:

30 horsepower at 3,600 rpm (output shaft speed); 425 lb-ft of torque at zero rpm!
Weight: 410 lb - 25 inches long, 25.5 inches wide, 27.5 inches tall (without accessories, which make the overall length 35 inches).
Compressor: centrifugal, single-stage compressor with 4:1 pressure ratio, 80% efficiency, 2.2 lb/sec air flow
First stage turbine: axial, single-stage, 87% efficiency, inlet temperature 1,700 degrees F.
Second-stage turbine: axial, single-stage, 84% efficiency, max speed 45,700 rpm
Regenerator: dual rotating disks, 90% effectiveness, 22 rpm max speed
Burner: single can, reverse flow, 95% efficiency
Maximum gas generator speed: 44,600 rpm
Maximum output speed, after reduction gears: 4,680 rpm
Exhaust temperature at full power: 500 degrees Farenheit.
Car weight: 4000 lbs
 
Big blocks are torque monsters, Hemis rule the street/strip, slants are indestructible, but nothing beats the sound of a screaming (7500+ rpm) 340.
 
Best at what?? 440 strong great design , 413-426 maxs Hot!, 426 well you know. all great motors[ heavy] 383 h.p nasty hot rod motor, 318 I don't think you could kill one with a grenade ...so I guess it come down to my favorite T/A 340 just a over achieving butt kicker and two cool. 68-71 340 also gets my vote!!
 
1970Duster said:
The turbine motor.
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Niiiice!

I only wish.

If I had any idea as to how they would stand up in a car, this would have been my first choice.

I'm still sticking with a 245 Hemi Sixpack. I6 has the best crank angle firing, upright six has maintenance, room and weight advantages over the slant and it's a hemi head. Best of all worlds.

awesome links, SirDan!

One engine noteworthy of mentioning, regarding pre-production cutting floor motors was the DOHC hemi. That engine would have been a RIOT. We've got NASCAR to thank for killing that idea.

images


Dick Landy ended up with one of the test engines in a '70 Superbee.
 
Dartnut said:
The Best overall Mopar engine to me (stock) is the LA series 318.
The reasons are:
-Always just enough power in all body styles and light trucks to actually do the job.
-With proper maintainance, they will almost run forever.
-Decent gas mileage, and run on any low grade gas.
-Easy to get parts for. (And usually pretty cheap)
-Simple to work on.
-Mellow enough to cruise in but enough power to pass on the highway.
-Fits in all engine compartments easily.
-Responds well to minor performance mods without sacrificing reliability or driveability. (Dual exhaust for instance)

The only bad points are:
-Lousy factory timing chain and gears.
-The heat crossover under the intake manifold plugs up quickly.

Honorable mention goes to the slant 6, but it doesn't have enough power for the larger vehicles, especially on the hills or passing.
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X2,...I've had a couple of dozen in the last 35 years,...fairly reliable, fairly cheap to build and maintain, and easy to hop up for the street,...

I've had some b/rb engines as well, but usually didn't have tha cash to build or feed them,...
 
This is subjective.. What does BEST mean?

HP? hemi
Torque? Cummins
Innovative? Turbine
Reliable? Slant or 318
This could go on and on..
 
Back in the day, up til '72 (changed mid year or later); It you got tires, pinion snubber, and maybe some slapper bars- abody 340 beat a bbody 383. Add headers, cam and carb; tune it- watch out.

Heck, with a 318 2bbl swapped to a 500 Holley, then jetted down, stiffer springs on the factory cam, manual 3 speed, open 3.23; at the strip- beat my friends. 383 cuda, 396 350 hp Chevelle, 351 Mustang.

Then bought a 340, and learned it. Nice. Still have it, and the spare 340. It's all in the combo of setting it up to use factory x heads.
 
okay just my two cents lets just say any mopar engine over a chubby or ford even though there are a few fords i like
 
It would have to be 383 for me. They like headers cams and carbs as much as any other.
 
Best at what? Hard to top the mountains of air that a 2g HEMI moves.
 
This all,depends on your experience.And expectations. The fact,all these wonderful mills,we have all have personal experience ,with . Can't say that,with Ford's past. Chev's ,got some sweet stuff,Mopar works for us.I come ,from the modified ,today crowd. Like the W2 combos,408 strokers,low deck 451 strokers .As for all original,68 to 70 340 mills(BACK THEN).
 
I like the 318! A great performer! Never had a big block or hemi, but would like to one day!

All mopar engines are great!!
 
How 'bout the Chrysler V-16 inverted aircraft Hemi? :D It's actually upside down! Look....



fs_1945_Chrysler_WWII_XI_2220_Inverted_V_16_Aircraft_Engine_with_Hemispherical_Heads_fvl__WPC_Museum__N.jpg
 
Best Mopar engine of all time
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Best engine for what purpose?

Reliability?
Durability?
power out put?
Economy? (lowest cost per mile lifetime)
Fuel Economy?
Visually?
Ease of maintenance?
Parts availability?
"Reputation" (opinion)?
Legend?
Legacy?
 
Ok - I guess I should have been more specific. I meant out of the factory and overall, considering all the contributions a particular engine made to it's period, which would get the Blue Ribbon? I didn't mean necessarily the fastest or the most economical to build into a racing monster. However, very interesting to see all the positives for everything from a 426 wedge to a late model 360. Clearly that was an all star lineup.
 
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