Tom Hoover, the “Father of the Hemi,” Passes Away at 85

[kscarbel2]

Car & Driver / May 4, 2015

Tom Hoover, whose work at Chrysler included development of the legendary Max Wedge and 426 Hemi V-8 engines, the 1970 Plymouth AAR ’Cuda, and the 1978 Dodge Li’l Red Express truck, has died. Hoover passed away on April 30 after a long illness. He was 85.

Often credited as the “Father of the Hemi,” Hoover trained as a physicist at Juniata College in his hometown of Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. He received his master’s degree from Penn State and later earned a master’s degree in automotive engineering from the University of Michigan while working for Chrysler.

Hoover joined Chrysler in 1955 just as Carl Kiekhaefer’s Mercury Outboard–sponsored Chrysler 300s were dominating NASCAR stock-car competition with little aid from the manufacturer itself. But while Chrysler was reluctant to go racing, a group of young engineers within the company was eager to hit the track. Hoover became one of the leaders of this group of about eight drag-racing-fanatic engineers that, by 1958, had formed itself into the Ramchargers team. That led to “High and Mighty,” a 1949 Plymouth Business Coupe, which the team campaigned into 1960.

“Even in those days,” Hoover related in a speech at the Chryslers at Carlisle event, “it became evident that if you really wanted to get serious about setting some national records, participating at the big meets and so forth, you couldn’t do it in a car that you drove to work every day in the winter of Detroit. The two are incompatible.”

The Ramchargers success with “High and Mighty,” including several national speed records, led in 1961 to the team receiving direct support from Dodge. And by the spring of 1962 that led to the development of a drag-racing performance package for 1962-model Dodges: the Maximum Performance Wedge 413-cubic-inch engine, which was soon shortened down to Max Wedge. By 1963, that engine grew to 426 cubic inches.

While the Max Wedge engine was instantly successful in drag racing, it wasn’t competitive against GM and Ford engines in NASCAR racing. By that time Hoover was head of the Race Engine Group at Chrysler and under the direction of the corporation’s new president, Lynn Townsend, he was tasked with winning the 1964 Daytona 500.

Although development of the 426 Hemi didn’t start until April of 1963, progress was rapid. The basic idea was to use the Wedge engine’s block with new cylinder heads that took advantage of Chrysler’s successful hemispherical-shaped combustion chambers from earlier engines. In particular they used what were basically the combustion chambers designed for the stillborn “A-311” Indy racing V-8 developed in the early ’50s.

“For high output and high air-flow configuration we knew the most about and had the most confidence in the Hemi,” Hoover told Hemmings Motor News in 2006. “We recommended in very short order that we adapt the Hemi to the raised B engine. Jack Charipar and some of his people made a presentation then to the executive council shortly thereafter. We got the approval. So, beginning in April of ’63, we set out straightaway to win the Daytona Beach NASCAR race in February of 1964—and we did, with the 426 Hemi.”

In fact, the Hemi was so successful in NASCAR that Richard Petty’s victory in the 1964 Daytona 500 was but one of nine victories he’d take that year in Plymouths as he cruised to his first season championship. And it led NASCAR to change its rules for 1965 that effectively banned the Hemi engine and led to Chrysler’s boycott of the series for most of that year.

But NASCAR changed its rules again and that led Chrysler to develop the 426 “street” Hemi for the 1966 model year in order to homologate the engine for NASCAR competition. Soon the Hemi-powered Dodges and Plymouths became legendary performers on the street and the most cherished (and most valuable) of collectible muscle cars.

While the Hemi continued to dominate NASCAR—in 1967, Petty won an amazing 27 races driving Plymouths—it was also proving a sensation in drag racing. The 426 Hemi soon dominated the Super Stock classes while supercharged versions running on nitromethane became so overwhelmingly successful that today virtually all Top Fuel and Funny Car engines are based on the 426 Hemi design.

Hoover retired from Chrysler in 1979 and went on to work for several other companies before settling back down in his hometown when he was finally done with work.

What Hoover did was bring enthusiasm with him into the workplace. Under his leadership, a small group of engineers working within the smallest of Detroit’s “Big Three” automakers produced true legends. The greatness they fostered springs to the fore every time a classic Hemi-powered machine is auctioned for big bucks, and it’s the same elixir that today’s Chrysler taps to market its current generation of Hemi V-8s.

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[41chevy]

Seems to come in 3's

George Berejik a very respected name in the world of Oldsmobile drag racing. George was an Oldsmobile dealer in Needham, Massachusetts, for more than 30 years, and started out as a street racer on the ring roads outside Boston. It didn’t take long before he turned pro in a successful and spectacular manner.

His father, Anthony, who owned the dealership, gave George permission to pursue two drivers who drag raced for a rival Oldsmobile retailer. Once the Berejiks hired Lloyd “Woody” Woodland and Bobby Andresen, Anthony made George the team manager, and Berejik Oldsmobile was off for a wild five-year run of racing everywhere from Maine to Indy at the height of the muscle era, setting several NHRA national records in the Stock categories. Berejik was recognized as one of the nation’s top Oldsmobile drag teams, which led to a sponsorship from the Smothers Brothers. In an interview with Hemmings Muscle Machinesthat appeared in the April 2004 issue, George remembered getting a call from a representative of the Smothers Brothers and being flown first-class to a meeting in California that involved Tom and Dick Smothers, Goldie Hawn, and racing industry giants Marvin Richfin and Carl Scheifer. That was where the oddball arrangement between two entertainment superstars and a family Olds dealer from New England was cemented.

Funny Car racer Eliott J. Platt—who died this weekend at the age of 75—notched up enough victories to be considered one of the top black drag racers in the country for a short time in the early 1970s and, probably more important, showed that black racers could obtain major national sponsorships.

Platt, who grew up in the Boston area and worked for Eastern Airlines at Logan Airport as a jet engine mechanic after his time in the Air Force, began drag racing in the early 1960s, according to his cousin and later racing mechanic Charles Roberts Sr. Though also interested in motorcycle racing, he remained focused on drag racing, even after opening his own auto repair shop in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston.Not until the early 1970s did he transition to Funny Cars when he bought his Camaro-bodied car from a group of racers in Stoughton, Massachusetts, and powered it with a fuel-injected 454-cu.in. Chevrolet big-block V-8 running on nitro and putting out a claimed 1,200 horsepower. He called it the American Eagle and took it up and down the East Coast, reportedly running a best time of 7.03 seconds at 170 MPH.

Platt likely leveraged his status as an Air Force veteran to land his first major sponsorship with the U.S. Navy recruitment office. The BAR thought so highly of that accomplishment that it highlighted the sponsorship in its newsletter as a model for how black racers should go about funding their racing exploits. BAR’s racing team later went on to get sponsorship from Viceroy cigarettes.Even with that success, though, Platt found it difficult to continue racing. In around 1973.

[grayhair]

41 Chevy... When you said Smothers brothers, I thought at first you really meant Summers brothers. I didn't know the Smothers brothers (Tom and Dick) had any interest in racing.

The Summers brothers Bob and Bill, made history in 1965 with four hemis in their streamliner. Incredibly engineered, home built machine that set a Bonneville record of 409 mph, a record that that stood for 41 years.

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[41chevy]

41 Chevy... When you said Smothers brothers, I thought at first you really meant Summers brothers. I didn't know the Smothers brothers (Tom and Dick) had any interest in racing.

The Summers brothers Bob and Bill, made history in 1965 with four hemis in their streamliner. Incredibly engineered, home built machine that set a Bonneville record of 409 mph, a record that that stood for 41 years.

.

I was at the Smithsonian when the restored Golden Rod was unveiled a few years ago. Impressive.

Dick Smothers went and raced in stock eliminator at the 1968 US Nationals, he prefered road racing in Sports cars and Can Am style cars and even let Paul Newman drive their road race car in the movie "Winning". Co owned a Fueler with the Beachboys

Here is an interview with a young Steve Evans after Dick Smothers makes a couple of runs in his 12-second Oldsmobile. The interview is great because Smothers is a true gearhead and car guy but his preference always tilted towards the road racing/sports car world. His description of coming off the clutch and ripping gears in the Olds

https://youtu.be/m6EkakMpYzs

clicky pickies

[mowerman]

interesting,,,,i do remember smothers in racing..nice lookin olds,,,love those cragers..bob

[vision386]

Paul,very cool,i've always been interested in the "oddball" teams in drag racing Olds,Buick,Pontiac etc. really neat to see somebody rake a four-speed!.........................................Mark

[vision386]

Here's a few pictures of a family friends car from my neck of the woods,Bud Greens AMX,the Green family used to own/operate the Rambler/AMC dealer in Penns Grove,NJ (my wifes hometown).............................................Mark

[41chevy]

This was my Uncle Harry's Vette. 292 GMC 6 ran AHRA Gas and Modified Sports in IHRA. Taken a Thunder Valley early 70's I think

[grayhair]

And here's a really trick modern-day hot rod hemi item. Besides their original cast aluminum hemi block, Donovan also makes a "billet" hemi block, ncc machined from one solid piece of high grade aluminum. Their website says 5 million lines of code to machine this thing. Never priced one but I imagine it ain't cheap.

[mowerman]

sure looks nice,,,,when its new.lol.bob

[mrsmackpaul]

This was my Uncle Harry's Vette. 292 GMC 6 ran AHRA Gas and Modified Sports in IHRA. Taken a Thunder Valley early 70's I think

Paul gotta love them extractors I have had 2 292 in chevy C 60 trucks they are pretty un heard of out here when I was rebuilding one of them for a truck I thought how much better could I get to go I woke early one morning on the phone to states for parts got heaps of machining done head got some big over size valves spent a fortune on it bought a four barrel offenhauser mainfold extractors 14 - 1 pistons had the crank and rods balanced and shot peened then I discovered the cool power Mack and as they say the rest is history

never got the motor finished gave it to my mate who has a 1950 chev sedan with a blue flame six in it so I have no idea how well it would have gone I guess I will find out one day maybe

So do you have any figures on on the 292 of Uncle Harry apart from cool !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Paul

[41chevy]

Low 12's at 120 something. Grumman Aircraft and Engineering made a lot of one off parts for it on the sly...after hours

Tube axle in front and 3/4 ton Chevy pick up full floater rear.

Odd combo but I remember seeing a 1967 Camaro SS with a Full race Ford Flathead V-8 running I /gas and consistently winning. Have a photo of that some where.

As for the Hemis Sitting in my shop in VA is my 1957 Blown 392 Hemi the I ran in 1971 and 2 in my Alky Funny car... sitting next to my new 392 crate hemi I originally bought for my 300-Hurst project. Big differences over the decades.

[other dog]

My Daddy had a '66 Chevrolet pickup with a 292, 3 speed on the column. I used to drive it to school my senior year...probably wasn't as quick as the 'vette though.

I saw a lot of impressive six cylinder cars at the dragstrip in Suffolk, Va. in the 70's. There were two 66-67 Chevy II Novas there running 11's with 6 cylinders, don't know what size engines they were, might have been 292's.

But my favorite was the solid black 60-something Corvette that had the big GMC truck engine in it. It had a big hood scoop that sat off to one side and was one of the most consistant cars i'd ever seen. Seems like it would run a 10.00 or 10.01 every pass. Had wheelie bars on it and every time he hit a gear the front wheels would hop up a couple inches, all the way to high gear.