Jesus H...
The 396 (the older hemi, found around '58 I think) is a VAST and HEAVY mother. FWIW, the much more famous hemi (and rightly so) is the much later 426. Lots of differences. The 426 in stock trim around '70 was known to put out well over its rated 425 (gross) HP. Supposedly some were dynoed and they were more like 550. They also have an absolutely brutal amount of torque.
Dodge actually made a HEMI Dart in '68 and cranked out about 52 units. It came with a fiberglass front end, swiss cheesed-aluminum seat mounts, no back seat, no carpet, battery in the trunk, pull-down plastic windows, and primer only. This was possibly the most radical thing ever to come out of detroit, (tuned much hotter than even the normal stock hemi and supposedly in the 700+ actual gross HP range from the factory) and would pull mid-TENS in the 1/4 BONE STOCK with slicks.
Either one in a Z would probably make it an absolute boat. I bet either one weighs nearly twice that of a small block Chevy mill. You'll need some serious weight in the back in order to A) Hook up, and B) Make the weight distribution close to sane.
Good luck!
Jon
> Okay, so a friend of mine rolled his HEMI
> 'Cuda. Too bad for him cause it was a badass
> ride... but good for me as well. He said
> he'll sell me the HEMI and trans out of it
> cheap because it needs a rebuild real soon
> anyway. But, here's my question. Its the 396
> ci HEMI, is there any way it would fit into
> the engine bay of my 71 240Z? I know I'm
> going to have to strengthen the chassis
> because of the torque of the HEMI, but I'm
> curious if the process is that more involved
> than with a small block chevy? Also, has
> anyone ever seen a Z with a HEMI in it
> before, if so I'd love to see a link. Okay,
> well thanks in advance.