There isn’t any extra iconic engine than the Chrysler 426ci Hemi V-8, which powered the quickest Mopar muscle cars of the basic period. It can be probably the most collectible engine to have beneath the hood, bringing over one million {dollars} at public sale in the appropriate Dodge or Plymouth. The Street Hemi, the model put in in common manufacturing fashions, could seem ubiquitous as a result of it looks like each cool Mopar on the market has one, but it surely’s really extraordinarily uncommon.

The 426 Street Hemi was solely produced and factory-installed from 1966 to 1971, which is simply six quick mannequin years. At that point, a surprisingly low variety of autos left the manufacturing unit ground with a Hemi engine. Everyone agrees it’s a uncommon engine choice, however opinions differ on how elusive the 426 actually is. Almost each supply will cite an estimate of round 10,000 whole 426 Hemi engines being produced, and the rationale for that’s that there isn’t a helpful on-line database with the official numbers.

The data is on the market, however it’s scattered everywhere, and typically tough to seek out. TopSpeed went by means of all of the disparate chunks of data to get a whole image of the particular 426 Street Hemi manufacturing numbers. We’ve damaged it down by years and fashions to offer a straightforward information for Mopar muscle automotive fanatics. To kick issues off, there have been precisely 10,669 426 Hemi engines ever produced, with 891 race Hemis and 9,778 Street Hemis for autos offered to the general public.

Dawn Of The 426 Street Hemi

Chrysler had, for no matter motive, discontinued their highly effective HearthPower engines with hemispherical combustion chambers in 1958. In the early Sixties, they resurrected the thought as a result of the distinctive design allowed for larger valves, which meant higher consumption and exhaust, in addition to optimum combustion chamber strain, which added as much as extra energy.

The 2X4 barrel carburetor set meant loads of juice was getting in, and the center-positioned spark plugs ignited it as effectively as doable. The 426ci Hemi V-8 was a marvel of automotive engineering on the time, producing 425 horsepower and 490 pound-feet of torque, which blew away something the opposite automakers had.

426 Street Hemi Specs

(Specs sourced from Stellantis)

Chrysler by no means supposed for the 426 Hemi to be obtainable at an area Dodge or Plymouth dealership, as it was developed as a race engine only. The superb energy it produced, nevertheless, was the rationale it ended up being offered to the general public. First put in within the Plymouth Belvedere and Dodge Coronet fashions to be used on the NASCAR circuit, the 426 proved too dominant and was quickly banned.

Chrysler needed to meet homologation necessities to promote a sure variety of manufacturing automobiles with 426s to be allowed again on the observe and with that, the Street Hemi was born. For these questioning what the distinction between the engines is, the race Hemi had increased compression, in addition to higher-performance cams, carbs, and exhaust manifolds, producing probably 45 extra horsepower.

1966 Street Hemi Total Production: 2,730

For the 1966 mannequin 12 months, Chrysler made the 426 Street Hemi obtainable for its intermediate automobiles, which meant the Plymouth Satellite and Belvedere in addition to the Dodge Coronet and the newly launched Charger. There was no rule that restricted the Hemi to two-door autos, however the overwhelming majority ended up being outfitted that means. Conceivably, somebody may have ordered a Belvedere station wagon with a 426, although no person ever did, however Dodge did produce five four-door Coronets with Hemis, as a bizarre means of selling the brand new engine.

1966 Street Hemi Production by Model:

• 1966 Plymouth Satellite: 844
• 1966 Dodge Coronet: 741
• 1966 Plymouth Belvedere: 677
• 1966 Dodge Charger: 468

(Production numbers sourced from Hagerty)

1967 Street Hemi Total Production: 1,136

In 1967, a high-performance version of the Belvedere was introduced because the GTX and added to the roster of Street Hemi-eligible autos. Dodge additionally created a kick-ass variant of the Coronet with the R/T. Street Hemi manufacturing was down from its introductory 12 months, and the overwhelming majority of them went beneath the hoods of the efficiency fashions, however just a few made their means into common trim autos, making for some extraordinarily uncommon automobiles. The Hemi engine choice in 1967 value $908, which does not look like lots and will have been a no brainer, however that was the equal of $8,490 in 2024 {dollars}.

1967 Street Hemi Production by Model:

• 1967 Plymouth GTX: 720
• 1967 Dodge Coronet R/T: 283
• 1967 Dodge Charger: 118
• 1967 Plymouth Belvedere: 6
• 1967 Plymouth Satellite: 6
• 1967 Dodge Coronet: 3

(Production numbers sourced from Hemmings)

Rise Of The 426 Street Hemi Muscle Car

The basic period of the muscle automotive period is acknowledged as beginning in 1964 with the introduction of the Pontiac GTO, however there have been actually muscular American rides earlier than that. Prior to 1968, Mopar muscle automobiles have been mainly regular manufacturing autos with crazy-fast engines beneath the hood, however all of that modified with the second era of the Dodge Charger.

The Charger was launched in 1966 as a peculiar-looking pony automotive, and was type of a flop, however the redesigned 1968 mannequin actually outlined the golden age of muscle automobiles. With a modern “Coke bottle” physique form and aggressive stance, the 2nd-gen Charger was horny and imply on the similar time.

1968 Charger R/T Power and Performance

(Performance specs sourced from Stellantis and MotorTrend)

The new Charger was insanely fashionable, shifting 96,100 models within the first 12 months, taking Dodge fully unexpectedly. The firm had deliberate a manufacturing run of 35,000, which was optimistic contemplating that they solely offered 15,700 Chargers in 1967. Not solely was the general public loopy for the new-style Charger, however Hollywood was enamored as nicely, casting the killer Mopar in movies just like the Steve McQueen basic Bullitt.

Second-gen Chargers had all engines obtainable together with (why?) the 225 cubic inch inline-six with a single-barrel carb. There was no higher choice than the 426 Street Hemi, and regardless of seeming synonymous with the mannequin, is extraordinarily uncommon.

1968 Street Hemi Total Production: 2,289

When the Street Hemi was first launched, it might be ordered in any obtainable mannequin, however for 1968, Chrysler restricted it to its designated muscle automobiles, however someway two common Coronets slipped by means of the cracks. For Dodge, the 426 might be had within the Charger and Coronet R/T variations, plus they created the stripped-down Super Bee, primarily based on the Cornet, which was made for uncooked energy. Plymouth additionally launched a no-frills trip within the Road Runner, which was a sleeper hit and probably the most Hemi-equipped automotive of the 12 months.

1968 Street Hemi Production by Model:

• 1968 Plymouth Road Runner: 1,019
• 1968 Dodge Charger R/T: 468
• 1968 Plymouth GTX: 446
• 1968 Dodge Coronet R/T: 229
• 1968 Dodge Super Bee: 125
• 1968 Dodge Coronet: 2

(Production numbers sourced from Hagerty)

1969 Street Hemi Total Production: 1,724

426 Street Hemi manufacturing dropped considerably in 1969, regardless of the Dodge and Plymouth fashions all having nice gross sales years. The two new additions to the Hemi-eligible lineup have been the Dodge Charger 500 and the Dodge Daytona, which type of had an adversarial relationship.

The Charger 500 was alleged to be a dominant NASCAR racer, however its design created an excessive amount of carry, so Mopar engineers created the Daytona aerocar, with a nostril cone and big flying rear wing. In order to get the Daytona certified for competitors, they needed to promote 500 to the general public, which they did plus three, however solely 70 got here with the Street Hemi.

1969 Street Hemi Production by Model:

• 1969 Plymouth Road Runner: 788
• 1969 Dodge Super Bee: 258
• 1969 Dodge Charger R/T: 232
• 1969 Plymouth GTX: 209
• 1969 Dodge Coronet R/T: 107
• 1969 Dodge Daytona: 70
• 1969 Dodge Charger 500: 60

(Production numbers sourced from Hagerty)

The Beginning Of The End For The 426 Street Hemi

As shortly because it began, the basic muscle automotive period pale within the new decade, with 1971 being the last good year for Mopar performance. Dodge and Plymouth fashions would proceed for just a few extra years, however with detuned variations of previously nice V-8 engines, making them muscle automobiles in title solely. 1971 was additionally the final 12 months for the mighty 426 Street Hemi, and hardly any of them went into conventional Mopar muscle automobiles. There have been, nevertheless, two nice additions to the lineup that gave the 426 one final little bit of road glory.

Fastest Street Hemi-Equipped Mopars

From the start, the 426 Street Hemi was only available in B-body cars, however in 1970 a pair of E-bodies received in on the motion. Dodge launched the Challenger, an all-new mannequin that was a bit of extra compact than the Charger and positioned to compete within the pony automotive class towards the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro.

Over at Plymouth, they got here out with the mechanically related third-generation Barracuda, with a 426-dedicated trim within the Hemi ‘Cuda. Both of those Hemi-equipped smaller muscle automobiles have been the quickest accelerating autos of the basic muscle automotive period, dominating the quarter-mile and each road problem they confronted.

1970 Street Hemi Total Production: 1,543

In addition to the Dodge Challenger and Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda, the Street Hemi-eligible lineup received the Superbird in 1970. As Plymouth’s reply to the Daytona, the Superbird was an aerocar, primarily based on the Road Runner. Like its Dodge counterpart, it was designed to dominate NASCAR and required homologation to compete.

The guidelines was that 500 wanted to be offered to the general public, however in 1970 NASCAR modified it to 1 automotive offered for each two producer sellers, which meant Plymouth needed to promote 1,920 Superbirds. They really moved 1,935 models, simply in time to get banned, just like the Daytona, from NASCAR competitors.

1970 Street Hemi Production by Model:

• 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda: 666
• 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T: 356
• 1970 Plymouth Road Runner: 152
• 1970 Plymouth Superbird: 135
• 1970 Dodge Charger R/T: 112
• 1970 Plymouth GTX: 72
• 1970 Dodge Super Bee: 36
• 1970 Dodge Coronet R/T: 14

(Production numbers sourced from Hagerty)

1971 Street Hemi Total Production: 356

1971 was the final time a 426 Street Hemi left the manufacturing unit beneath the hood of a Mopar muscle automotive and by far the smallest manufacturing 12 months. As unhappy because it was to see the Hemi go, the upside is that anybody with a ’71 426-equipped trip has a critically uncommon car.

The solely change to the lineup for the ultimate 12 months was that the Coronet-based Super Bee was discontinued and have become a no-frills trim for the third-generation Dodge Charger. With solely 22 Hemi Super Bees produced, it is without doubt one of the rarest basic Mopars ever.

1971 Street Hemi Production by Model:

• 1971 Plymouth Cuda: 115
• 1971 Dodge Challenger R/T: 71
• 1971 Dodge Charger R/T: 63
• 1971 Plymouth Road Runner: 55
• 1971 Plymouth GTX: 30
• 1971 Dodge Super Bee: 22

(Production numbers sourced from Hagerty)

426 Street Hemi Production Numbers

For these questioning why Hemi-powered Mopar muscle automobiles value a lot, this demonstration of their rarity ought to clarify every thing. Dodge and Plymouth fashions have been the good wanting of the basic period, however weren’t produced in the identical numbers as Fords or Chevys, in order that they have been already uncommon and fascinating. When outfitted with the 426 Street Hemi, that rarity grows exponentially and these unusual rides can, and do, break the bank at auction.

• 426 Street Hemi Years of Production: 1966-1971
• Total 426 Street Hemi Production: 9,778

426 Street Hemi Production by Model (All Years)

Another factor to think about is that 426 Street Hemi was a robust V-8 that noticed loads of use in beginner drag racing and road competitors, which is one other means of claiming numerous them have been destroyed over time. There is sadly no dependable information on what number of factory-equipped, Hemi-powered Mopar automobiles nonetheless exist, but it surely’s a assure that it’s considerably lower than the 9,778 examples produced from 1967-1971.