New to the forum and new to Dodge ownership

[Ehermsen]

I joined this site to learn what people like and dislike about the Hellcats, in particular the motor. I have a 68 Charger that i’m prepping / researching to do a restomod on. I’m on the fence on doing a Hellcat create engine or going with built 440. I’m ordering a complete chassis for it from the Roadster Shop and need to make a decision so they can put the correct motor mounts and the correct rack. If anyone has any experiences or insite on the Hellcat swap good or bad it would be appreciated.
Thank You

 

[HellcatFan]

Welcome aboard

 

[Hellcat Cuda]

Welcome to the site and Dodge ownership. That is a beautiful car and one of the most cherished Charger model years. If you are putting a complete RS chassis under it, then by all means go with a Hellcat engine. Anything less will be a bit "ho-hum" compared to the rest of the body / chassis combination. That car will DESERVE more than a 5.7, 6.1 or 392. Go for it, you won't regret it.

FYI, I'm doing a resto-mod '69 Cuda. I first bought a MP 5.7 crate motor; upgraded to a 6.1; upgraded the 6.1 with a full stroker kit, heads ported, etc, etc but nothing was really good enough for how the rest of the car was progressing and being upgraded. I finally got a nice, new Hellcrate engine for it and feel "content" now. lol

 

[Hunter]

Welcome.
Beautiful Charger.
You need to find someone near that can give you a ride in a Hellcat.
That will help your decision.
Had a 440 in my 70 Challenger, but there is no comparison between it and a Hellcat 6.2 SC engine.

 

[Ehermsen]

Welcome to the site and Dodge ownership. That is a beautiful car and one of the most cherished Charger model years. If you are putting a complete RS chassis under it, then by all means go with a Hellcat engine. Anything less will be a bit "ho-hum" compared to the rest of the body / chassis combination. That car will DESERVE more than a 5.7, 6.1 or 392. Go for it, you won't regret it.

FYI, I'm doing a resto-mod '69 Cuda. I first bought a MP 5.7 crate motor; upgraded to a 6.1; upgraded the 6.1 with a full stroker kit, heads ported, etc, etc but nothing was really good enough for how the rest of the car was progressing and being upgraded. I finally got a nice, new Hellcrate engine for it and feel "content" now. lol

Thank you for the input. I really want to go with the Hellcat for the power it has, my only concerns are am i going to loose that low throaty sound of a old school motor, and are their any extra issues when hooking up the electronics. I’ve read blogs about guys not being able to get the hellcat to run properly due to the computer need looking for inputs from sensors that they did not have installed ect... Unfortunately there isn’t a “Dos and Don’t Guide when doing a hellcat swap so i appreciate your input and any advise you may have.

 

[Paladin06]

Welcome and good luck with the car. My wife is buying me 69 Charger this year but I could never restomod it.

 

[Grape Ape]

Come on in! Welcome to the forum!

 

[Smitty]

Might want to check with a dealer and see if Mopar makes a harness for the swap. I believe they do for the Hellephant so they might for the HC engine too

 

[Paladin06]

Might want to check with a dealer and see if Mopar makes a harness for the swap. I believe they do for the Hellephant so they might for the HC engine too

You can buy a crate Hellcat with all wiring and PCM controls.

 

[Hellcat Cuda]

Thank you for the input. I really want to go with the Hellcat for the power it has, my only concerns are am i going to loose that low throaty sound of a old school motor, and are their any extra issues when hooking up the electronics. I’ve read blogs about guys not being able to get the hellcat to run properly due to the computer need looking for inputs from sensors that they did not have installed ect... Unfortunately there isn’t a “Dos and Don’t Guide when doing a hellcat swap so i appreciate your input and any advise you may have.

I was in doubt of getting a used Hellcat engine, so I bought the Mopar Performance HellCrate engine. It's literally an engine taken from the assembly line (after the run-in dyno that all the Hellcat engines receive) and put inside a crate for shipping. Everything you need to run the engine in your car is either on the engine, or is available in separate Hellcrate "kits":
Alternator; AC pump; PS pump; various sensors; engine wiring harness; ECM; and a small fuse block all wired in to the harness. The engine connects to the ECM and there's a couple of extra wires to connect to the car's electrical system and you're ready to start it up. What's especially nice is the ECM is programmed like a regular 2017 Hellcat (the year these HellCrates came out) but it's also "unlocked" so you can modify the tune for more power if you wish, just like what many Hellcat owners do (but use somebody that knows what they're doing).

The problem for many of the conversions out there is they start with a used engine and get the ECM and wiring harness from the car it all came out of. A stock ECM needs a lot of additional input from many sensors throughout the car. This crate engine is set up so you don't need all that stuff that's on a newer car. They designed it with just the couple of wires for things like power and ignition switch and from there, it's just a plug and play setup. I can't imagine you having any problems like some of the guys write about. I've heard of plenty of those nightmares on other forums I belong to, but it's always been with used equipment, wiring and a stock, locked ECM.

It's late as I type this, but I can get my invoices and get you part numbers for the engine and the accessory kits over the weekend if you'd like.

 

[BULL]

Hey, welcome!

(Quite a few members signing up this week, 'must be something in the water.)

 

[Ehermsen]

I was in doubt of getting a used Hellcat engine, so I bought the Mopar Performance HellCrate engine. It's literally an engine taken from the assembly line (after the run-in dyno that all the Hellcat engines receive) and put inside a crate for shipping. Everything you need to run the engine in your car is either on the engine, or is available in separate Hellcrate "kits":
Alternator; AC pump; PS pump; various sensors; engine wiring harness; ECM; and a small fuse block all wired in to the harness. The engine connects to the ECM and there's a couple of extra wires to connect to the car's electrical system and you're ready to start it up. What's especially nice is the ECM is programmed like a regular 2017 Hellcat (the year these HellCrates came out) but it's also "unlocked" so you can modify the tune for more power if you wish, just like what many Hellcat owners do (but use somebody that knows what they're doing).

The problem for many of the conversions out there is they start with a used engine and get the ECM and wiring harness from the car it all came out of. A stock ECM needs a lot of additional input from many sensors throughout the car. This crate engine is set up so you don't need all that stuff that's on a newer car. They designed it with just the couple of wires for things like power and ignition switch and from there, it's just a plug and play setup. I can't imagine you having any problems like some of the guys write about. I've heard of plenty of those nightmares on other forums I belong to, but it's always been with used equipment, wiring and a stock, locked ECM.

It's late as I type this, but I can get my invoices and get you part numbers for the engine and the accessory kits over the weekend if you'd like.

 

[Ehermsen]

That would be great if you wouldn’t mind doing that. This way I can check it against the list i thought i would need. i can’t tell you how much I appreciate you taking the time out of your day to answer my questions and give me your advise. I have been saving my pennies for a lot of years to do this and I just want to make sure I’ve done my homework before dumping $45,000 on a chassis and motor. Thank you again, sure glad i joined this forum.

 

[coolblue]

Welcome.
I am the same (sord'a). I went from old Chevy iron ('55-'57 Chevy's and big block power) to the an SRT and then Hellcat leap. I definitely think your right to ' go all the way' with frame and hellcat swap if you're going to resto-mod it and can afford it. There's guys on here (even guys who've had classic hemi's) who'll tell ya there's no comparison with modern, fuel injected, blown, computer controlled engines as far as power and drivability. I can't help with advice on the conversion; I've never done that. BUT I can give advice on what I don't like about the modern Hellcat's and that's OVER controlling things with the computer. Meaning being tied into 'the cloud' and EVERY aspect of the machine.. If you fart in the car it sends a signal to FCA who then e-mails you you're in imminent danger. If you pull a vacuum line while engine is running every light on dash comes on and (again) you get emails and service appointment advisements. And they can even 'update' the system from the cloud. I'm sure they sell self contained ECM and wire harnesses for these type conversions so it probably won't be a problem for you. For me that aspect is so irritating I'm seriously thinking of going back to old iron.
Very good luck on this great looking project!

 

[CPRHDSRT]

Welcome to the forum.

I was in FL for biz this week and stopped by Mecum. This car got my attention for sure - done nicely. It hammered today for $150K ($165K with buyers premium).

Good luck with building your 68 Charger !!

 

[Hellcat Cuda]

Hey E, I apologize for not getting you that information over the weekend. I will gather up all the invoices and get the info to you in the next couple of days. Again, sorry.

 

[Hellcat Cuda]

So big E, here's what I have. BTW, the engine comes with a flywheel; dual disc clutch and housing for a 2017 Challenger. In what instructions that come with the kit, it refers to the 2017 Challenger Hellcat as the vehicle application for any replacement parts you may need. I will post my cost on everything, which is less than suggested retail and I have not included the tax.

68303089AA Engine Complete $14,745
77072452-AB Electrical Harness, Engine Controller $1,931
77072493-AC Kit, Air Conditioning $309
77072492 Front accessory FEAD kit $556 (Alternator, PS pump, Idler pulley, tensioner pulley, belts, bolts)

I bought all this when they first came out in 2017 from my local (somewhat) dealer that I've used for commercial and personal vehicles for about 20 years. I found a couple of slightly better deals on the internet, but then you had to add in shipping and a truck with a lift gate for delivery to my home. One of the better deals seemed a little shady also, so I decided to spend my money locally.

 

[a143gsxr]

lots of good info in here. welcome

 

[HRJ]

I joined this site to learn what people like and dislike about the Hellcats, in particular the motor. I have a 68 Charger that i’m prepping / researching to do a restomod on. I’m on the fence on doing a Hellcat create engine or going with built 440. I’m ordering a complete chassis for it from the Roadster Shop and need to make a decision so they can put the correct motor mounts and the correct rack. If anyone has any experiences or insite on the Hellcat swap good or bad it would be appreciated.
Thank You

Is that a 69 Camaro in the last picture, sitting next to the Charger? The one with the tunnel ram intake? If so, what's going on in the headlamp area there? Kinda hard to tell from the angle of the photo...

 

[Magnified]

high rise intake manifold and double pumpers.... yum