2006 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab 173962 Miles 4x4 on 2040-cars

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Mopar teases a big Hemi crate engine for SEMA

Mopar has released a new video teaser hinting at the release of a large and powerful crate Hemi engine at SEMA later this month in Las Vegas. The video functions like a lesson on symbolism in an English lit class. It opens with smoke and settles on a pair of backlit, large-clawed paw prints that look to be feline in origin. Then we hear earth-shaking pounding sounds of something larger than the paw prints that stomps over them. Then cue an overhead shot of what looks to be a vintage-model Dodge Charger and its growly Hemi engine entering the frame and then gunning the engine. Mopar already offers three crate Hemi V8 engines, topped by the 6.2-liter supercharged Hellcat, good for 707 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque, found in the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat and marketed for pre-1976 classic muscle cars. So promising that "Something big is coming" is really saying something. Could it be a crate version of the 808-hp Hemi 6.2 that was found in the Dodge Demon, which was rated at 840 hp on racing fuel? Or is it something different? Curiously, Mopar says its reveal is planned for Tuesday, Oct. 30 at the odd time of 4:26 p.m. Could that time be a reference to the 426 Hemi — and specifically the Generation III 426 Hemi "Elephant" that Chrysler made several years ago? That technically qualifies as "bigger," and it would also align with both the muscle car-era Charger and round, earth-shaking footprints shown in the video. Time will prove whether we were right. Related Video: Image Credit: Mopar SEMA Show Chrysler Dodge Performance Classics dodge demon dodge charger srt hellcat

Junkyard Gem: 2005 Dodge Neon AAR

Chrysler sold the Neon in North America for the 1995 through 2005 model years, with respectable sales for most of that period. The Neon had decent power for the price, and could be very quick on a road course in the hands of a good driver. With so many made, the Neon came to have a strong aftermarket for performance and customizing components, and many owners opted to spruce up their cars for added coolness. Here's a last-year-of-production Dodge Neon SXT with some SRT-4 body components and aftermarket "AAR" stripes, spotted in a self-service yard in Fargo, N.D. Chrysler sold AAR-badged Plymouth 'Cudas in 1970, inspired by Dan Gurney's All American Racers team in SCCA racing, and the stripes on those cars looked great. However, no factory-made AAR Neons ever came off the assembly line, so the owner of this car applied these aftermarket stripes. The VIN tells me it's an ordinary Neon SXT. The SRT-4 hood looks mean. While this car does have a proper manual transmission, its power came from a distinctly non-SRT naturally-aspirated 2.0-liter 16-valve engine. With 132 horses, this car would have been reasonably quick. Brake calipers look better with the application of a little spray paint. Someone loved this car very much, so it made me sad to see it among all the rust victims of Fargo. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. "Here comes the hot Neon SXT. Always sporty and sooo extra good!"

Junkyard Gem: 1987 Dodge Ram 50 with V8 swap

Chrysler did very well selling Mitsubishi Forte pickups with Plymouth and Dodge badging in the United States, even after Mitsubishi began moving the same trucks out of their own American dealerships in 1982. The 1987 Ram 50 2WD short bed weighed in at just over 2,500 pounds, so it was reasonably perky with its 2.0-liter G63B four-banger making 90 horsepower… but there's no replacement for displacement! At some point along the line, a Chrysler small-block V8 engine found its way into the engine compartment of this truck, now residing in a car graveyard in Sparks, Nevada. This was the cheapest new Dodge-branded pickup Americans could buy as a 1987 model, though it had to compete with its near-identical Mitsubishi Mighty Max twin for sales. The 1980s were great times for little pickups in the United States, but a desire for bigger cabs and more creature comforts doomed them by the dawn of the following decade. The most interesting thing about this engine swap is that it didn't involve a Chevrolet or Ford small-block V8. Both the Chevy small-block and Ford Windsor V8s are a few inches narrower than the Chrysler LA-series V8, which makes them easier to stuff into a small vehicle. It appears that engine length was the critical dimension in this case, since the Mopar seems to have had enough side-to-side clearance to avoid any slicing of Mitsubishi steel to make it fit. My guess is that whoever did the swap happened to have the engine handy and that's why it's here. Keeping it all Dodge might have been a factor in the decision as well, though the truck's Mitsubishi ancestry makes that unlikely. It was over 100°F out when I found this truck, so I wasn't motivated to check block casting numbers to determine exactly which LA engine we're dealing with here. The easiest LAs to get cheap for the last four or so decades have been the 318 (5.1-liter) and the 360 (5.8-liter), so one of those two is the most likely candidate here. Power levels for these engines got pretty dismal during the Malaise Era, but anyone with the wrenching skills to do this swap would have applied some basic power-enhancing wizardry before the engine went in. We can see there's an Edelbrock Performer intake manifold, and you might as well stab in a better camshaft if you're upgrading the intake. How much power? With a four-barrel carburetor on a dual-plane intake plus a meaner cam, 300 to 350 horsepower is easily achieved with one of these engines, even with stock exhaust manifolds.