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8/15/03
Dear Scott,
I'm a little puzzled -- as well as being a little ticked off -- by the so-called Pro Stock "Hemi" engines being used by Mopar teams in NHRA Pro Stock. The current Pro Stock "Hemi" engines aren't even close to being true hemispherical heads and that's my gripe. Being a long time Mopar fan, as well as a past "Hemi" owner -- unless you include the current 3.0 Mitsubishi V-6 engines that have "Hemi" heads on them, but because of trademark/tradename protection, they aren't called "Hemi" engines -- I'm upset by this deception.
When originally designed by Chrysler engineers in the 50's (early model Hemis), and later refined into the 426 engine in the mid 60's (late model Hemi), and even now in the current Dodge 5.7 liter "Hemi," hemispherical head engines had a horsepower advantage over other engines, because sparkplugs were placed in the center of the combustion chamber allowing maximum volumetric efficiency, as well as a more uniform rate of burn of the fuel/air mixture in the cylinder (flame travel/ignition). In fact, their horsepower advantage is what led to "Hemi" engines being banned from competition in NASCAR and being weight penalized in NHRA Pro Stock competition in the 70's.
My question is simple. Isn't the current "wedge engine," labeled as being a "Hemi" by Mopar, a case of Mopar forgetting its roots and forgetting what made the "Hemi" engine the dominating engine that it was?
In my opinion, Mopar or someone working there, is trying to Chevyize these engines and in the process, they're losing the full potential of this engine design.
Thanks.
Patrick Clement
Patrick,
I appreciate your knowledge
of and loyalty to the Hemi and its roots. Unfortunately,
what was a good thing then is not competitive
now -- thus design changes.
Look at the alcohol and
fuel ranks. Anderson, Johnson and Veney all
have modified the original design to make today's
power.
And speaking of "Chevy-ize,"
have you looked at today's big block Chevy cylinder
heads? You wouldn't find them on a '60s Corvette.
Scott
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