Chrysler built engines for a very long time. The automaker started its journey in 1924 and continued production of engines until Stellantis took over operations in 2021. In the near century of making engines, Chrysler had some of the coolest and most powerful engines in existence .
In fact, Chrysler is often cited as the reason the Hemi-style engine became popular. Chrysler used the design during World War II and brought the Hemi back as early as the 1950s. It's a mainstay in several vehicles, including Dodge and other Stellantis vehicles.
That brings us to the Chrysler 331 Hemi, often known as the FirePower. It's not among the most powerful Hemi engines that Chrysler ever built , but it is a very important and special engine. It's the first Hemi engine that Chrysler built and put into consumer vehicles.
Chrysler built the 331 cubic inch V8 from 1951 through 1958, although the automaker only put the engine in its own cars until 1955. The engine was powerful in its day, heralding 180 horsepower and 312 lb-ft of torque at its worst and 300 horsepower and 345 lb-ft of torque at its best. The cast iron engine was only put in a handful of cars, but all of those cars are collector's items if you can get your hands on them.
The 1955 Chrysler 300 is the most powerful car to run the Chrysler 331 Hemi. It produces 300 horsepower and 345 lb-ft of torque with the 331 Hemi, as it was tuned to produce more power than the standard version of the engine. The modifications included a race-ori.