The 426 Street Hemi. Photos courtesy FCA.
Neither the 426-cu.in. V-8 nor hemispherical cylinder heads were new ideas at Chrysler in 1962, but it was Tom Hoover and his group that married the two in an attempt to build an engine that would win the 1964 Daytona 500. Though developed for stock car racing (and later banned), the 426 Hemi V-8 would go on to have its closest association with the sport of drag racing, a fact recently recognized by the British Drag Racing Hall of Fame (BDRHoF), which honored the Hemi V-8 with its Global Achievement Award.
Introduced by the BDRHoF in 2014, the Global Achievement Award is given in recognition of achievements that have had a global impact on the sport of drag racing. Named in honor of Pat Garlits, Don Garlits’s late wife, the trophy can be awarded to a person, organization or product that has advanced the sport technically or in popularity on a worldwide basis. Fittingly, the first recipient was “Big Daddy” himself, Don Garlits.
Cutaway drawing of the 1966 426 Hemi V-8.
Mopar head Pietro Gorlier was on hand to accept the award, handed out by Donna Garlits, daughter of Don and Pat. Gorlier was quick to recognize Tom Hoover’s efforts in the development of the 426 Hemi V-8, acknowledging him as “the father of the 426 Hemi.” A popular figure at Mopar shows for decades, Hoover died on April 30, 2015, at the age of 85.
Chrysler’s relationship with the sport pre-dates the introduction of the 426 Street Hemi, which first appeared in production cars in 1966, by nearly a decade. The Ramchargers, a group of Chrysler employees with a passion for drag racing (including Tom Hoover), helped to prove the viability of the 354-cu.in. Hemi V-8, and later the Max Wedge 426 V-8, as racing engines. It was the 426 Hemi V-8, however, that came to symbolize Chrysler’s most significant contribution to the sport, and its lasting legacy. Though the 426 Hemi officially went out of production in 1971, it remains popular in NHRA competition, thanks to the efforts of aftermarket companies like Keith Black Racing Engines.
The 6.2-liter supercharged Hellcat HEMI v-8.
Now measuring 5.7 liters (345-cu.in.), 6.2 liters (376.3-cu.in.) or 6.4 liters (392-cu.in.) in displacement, Hemi engines are still used in vehicles from Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram. In normally aspirated crate engine form, the 392 HEMI is rated at 525 horsepower and 510 pound-feet of torque, while in production form, the wholly different 6.4-liter “Apache” HEMI V-8 produces 470 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque. The highest output HEMI V-8 currently in production is the supercharged 6.2-liter engine found in the Hellcat Challenger and Charger models; running 11.6 pounds of boost, the engine is rated at 707 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque.
For more information on the British Drag Racing Hall of Fame, visit BritishDragRacingHOF.co.uk.
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