The Chrysler hemi in all of its glorious forms is one of the great engines in hot rodding history. From the little hemi engines of the 1950s to the mighty second generation engines of the 1960s and the powerful generation three engines today, the word “hemi” has been synonymous with high performance forever. The whole business is so engrained in our lives today that it seems almost funny that Dodge would need to spend time and money explaining what the hemi engine was and why it was a killer combo for people to option into their cars. They did. This video is a walk through of the then new Dodge Red Ram Hemi.
The video talks about how the Red Ram was the most efficient engine of its time, capable of shoving a car down the road at 100mph. Today these are not exactly bragging points but when the majority of your competition is powering their cars with flathead inline six engines or stuff even more lame than that, we trumpeted every advantage you had! The engine you see here displaced 241ci, had a compression ration of 7:1, and made 140hp. The little Red Ram hemi had very tight bore centers which kept the block and all compact but did nothing for being able to expand and grow the engine in the aftermarket. Later versions included more bore spacing and thus allowing more displacement growth.
Today these engines are coveted by restorers or anyone building a period correct hot rod. Because of a few factors they can’t be built into really killer pieces like their younger and larger brothers but the look is unmistakable and let’s be honest, this mill would look awesome in the nose of just about everything.
