This is in the letters section of the October 04 edition of Automobile Magazine.

Letter writer: So, Is the Hemi a Hemi or not?
I saw a cutaway drawing of the engine and it looked like a pentroof combustion chamber. Yet every media article I have seen uses the word Hemi in every reference to the engine. Does this engine have hemispherical combustion chambers like the revered and time-honored Chrysler engines of the past?

Answer from the Technical editor and from Chrysler Engineers:

The engine Chrysler touts as it's "Hemi" definitely does not have hemispherically shaped combustion chambers. While Chrysler engineers commenced development with a hemi chamber inspired by the air cooled Porsche 911 engine built from 1964-1997, they saved very little from that concept. The chamber depth was vastly reduced, and filler lumps were added between the valves. The only "Hemi" feature saved was splayed valves located in a plane perpendicular to (instead of parallel with) the crankshaft.


So there all you Hemi freaks! Your engine design was copied from the Germans and then only half a$$ed. So really it is all marketing!!

hehe...

 

The trucks still runs like a raped ape. Our business had one for a company vehicle, and I enjoyed driving the HEMI as much as my truck.

 

I don't care what it is technically- That Hemi is Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad.

 

I got sumthing for your badddddd hemi..............

Its called a Lightning

 

sweeeet!

 

 

 

According to howstuffworks.com, the hemi configuration isn't the best out there.... It still amazes me how they can get so much power out of it....

 

Yeah, it's only a hemi if you look at it an one exact angle, and then only on one plane.

The relentless pursuit of marketing.

But it's working, as evidenced by the boatload of Hemi vehicles they are selling. I think it's a good motor. Just wait till someone supercharges it...

I wish FoMoCo had a domestic challenger to the Chrysler 300C, Magnum & upcoming Charger.

The Marauder was almost there from the factory - it takes some aftermarket work to get them to run fast.

 

IMO, the HEMI isnt all it's cracked up to be. My buddy has a Reg Cab Short Bed HEMI 4x2 w/ 3.55 diff and I beat him in my new 04 F-150.

I have a Reg Cab Short Bed 4x2 5.4L with 3.73 Limited Slip. We ran the 1/8 mile and I beat him by .15 three times in a row.

The Reg Cab Short Bed HEMI's w 3.92 diffs are a little ballsier. However, I was expecting ALOT more.

 

Gears just make a world of difference.

 

Yep, cant wait to get mine.

The whole thing about the HEMI being a HEMI does seem like a marketing factor. No doubt Dodge made a great engine..but it takes away from the legacy of the original HEMI. No current factory HEMI is pulling a 12.5 sec 1/4 mile naturally aspirated like the 426 did.

 

I would still drive around in one of those 300C, especially when the get the 6.1l SRT-8. My dad brought home one from Chysler to test drive for a few days. That thing was nice. I just dont like the grid shaped grille on the front. I would throw a blinging verticle grille on one.

31C

Oh yeah, they dont have one to match my L's colors so I cant get one

31C

 

Just drove my buddy's dad's 300C.

I was thinking of getting a used 540i as my second car. Not anymore.

That 300C is a sweet machine. Great power, and the interior is killer too.

I'm seriously considering getting a used one in a few years. I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for reliability ratings, though.