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426 Race Hemi

In the Winner's Circle 1964-1970

As the first-generation Hemi faded from the scene, the Wedge-head engines took over the dynamometer labs and engine bays. In 1957, the 318 ci Wedge was introduced in the Plymouth Fury. The 350 and 361 ci Wedge engines were released in the Dodge line in 1958; Plymouth got the 350 ci Wedge the same year. The 383 and 413 Wedges in Chryslers came out the following year. The Imperial was now powered by a 413 Wedge, not the Hemi.

Interestingly, the 1959 Chrysler 300 E, now powered by the Golden Lion 413 Wedge, produced no more power than the 392 Hemi of the previous year. Some automotive writers thought this a moot point. Horsepower was horsepower, after all. One test pegged the 380 hp 300 E at 17.2 sec. for the quarter mile doing 92 mph through the lights.

The Wedge V-8 continued its evolution into the new decade. In truth, the new Wedge engines were more than adequate in the street cars that Chrysler built. The Max Wedge 413 and 426 high-performance racing engines proved their capabilities on drag strips around the country, whether they were cam-paigned by the Ramchargers (and Plymouth's rival Golden Commandos) or the big and small names in drag racing. Circle-track racing—NASCAR—was an-other matter.

Chrysler cars, specifically Dodge and Plymouth, were not frequently in the stock-car winner's circle. A resolution passed by the Automobile Manufacturers Association (AMA) on June 6, 1957, banned car manufacturers from openly supporting racing wins as a reflection of their street car's performance. The AMA felt such practices encouraged reckless driving. The manufacturers went along with the resolution, fearing that failure to do so would result in unfavorable legislation from Washington. The car makers were forced to sell the racing cars and parts, usually to those teams they sponsored, and back off. The AMA did not clamp down on the production of high-performance street cars, however. NASCAR did not view the AMA ban as a threat, because it once again permitted the little guy to have a fighting chance for the winner's circle.

What the resolution succeeded in doing was force the handful of car makers active before the ban to become creative in their means of researching, developing and distributing racing hardware. This was achieved in part by the NASCAR rules that took shape stating that if a given make, model and engine was to be raced, it had to be a production vehicle or option. This had more or less been the case for some years, but it was made explicitly clear when rather exotic engines or induction systems made their way into cars that had no production-line counterpart that could be verified, and NASCAR would immediately disqualify the entry.

The manufacturers shifted the research and development to street cars with racing parts available over the parts counter at the dealer. There was some under-the-counter activity between the factory and now-independent racing teams to be sure, but the major objectives by the AMA had been achieved. Thus, the late fifties and the early sixties stock-car racing was pretty much a team effort as opposed to a factory effort.

February 22, 1959, was the biggest day in NASCAR history—the first running of the 500 mile race of the newly opened Daytona International Speed-way. The Daytona 500 race would play a pivotal role in the decision to implement a crash program for a new Chrysler racing engine.

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426 RACE HEMI

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426 Race Hemi

426 RACE HEMI

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Cars Directory : Auto, Automobile, Automotive, Car, Cars, Vehicle, Vehicles, Used Cars, New Cars, Used Car, New Car Price

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