Up Front

These Numbers Mean Something

426.

To most people those three numbers mean nothing in particular. To the Mopar® Nation they mean something. In fact, they mean everything. The original 426 HEMI® roared on to the scene in 1964 and quickly sent seismic shock waves through the racing community that continue to this day. Just a single decade after its introduction, NASCAR essentially legislated the engine out of competition if that gives you some perspective on its domination.

Fortunately, the 426 HEMI lives on in the hearts and minds of Mopar enthusiasts the world over. Not all that long ago, we received an e-mail from a Mopar fan in Geneva, Switzerland. He’s 19 years old. And he wrote simply: The 426 ROCKS! That it does. Just ask anyone who’s staged up next to a HEMI-powered dragster. Do the math and you’ll discover that this young man was born a quarter of a century after the introduction of the original 426. And he lives halfway around the world from those of us in the U.S. That makes a statement.

Speaking of making a statement, there was a 426 HEMI event last summer in the unlikeliest of places: Salem, Ohio. Salem is a small, but historic town tucked into the northeastern corner of the state. The town thrives on steel producers and coal mines in the surrounding countryside. But for one weekend in August, Salem rocked to the thunder of 426 HEMI horsepower. A couple of 426 HEMI fanatics named Dick Towers and Jim Kramer put together what they called the All-HEMI Reunion. Well, not All-HEMI. Only 426s needed to apply. The pair’s done this before. In 1993 they organized a reunion limited to 19 HEMI Darts and ’Cudas and got over 30 cars. A couple of years ago they pulled off another reunion and 37 cars showed up at Fred Englehart’s place in southern Minnesota. This time around they thought they might break the 40-car barrier.

Two hundred and thirty 426 HEMI cars showed up!

Let’s do the math again just for fun. According to Chrysler specs at the time, horsepower for the original 426 was rated at 425. That’s a total of 97,750 horsepower in one sleepy northeastern Ohio town. The good folks there are probably still wondering what happened.

Yes, indeed, the infamous 426 HEMI lives on in the hearts and souls of Mopar fans everywhere.

Just ask a 19-year-old kid in Geneva.

—Editor