Bolting on the right set of Hemi heads can yield impressive power gains.
The factory Hemi heads offer exceptional power potential, but CNC-porting can unleash even more flow.
The impressive head flow offered by the stock Hemi heads is both a blessing and a curse. On the plus side, they offer impressive power right out of the box, but just don’t expect huge power gains when upgrading the heads (especially on your 6.4L). To understand the reason for this, we need to first understand the correlation between airflow and power potential. There is, of course, a very generic equation used to calculate the “potential” horsepower offered by cylinder heads using the airflow data. This formula reads as follows: HP = .257 × airflow × number of cylinders. Using an early 5.7L Hemi (with 285 cfm) as an example, we see that the formula suggests (.257 × 285 cfm × 8) the stock heads can support 585 hp. Were you to upgrade the heads on a stock or mild 5.7L (making significantly less than 585 hp), the gains offered by the head swap might be less than desired, since the stock heads already flow more than enough to support the current power level.
Aftermarket ported 5.7L–6.4L heads are usually purchased based on flow numbers. The problem with purchasing cylinder heads based on airflow is that the airflow numbers represent only a potential power output. Like the example given previously, just because you have a 585-hp head, it doesn’t mean your combination is in a position to take full advantage of the available flow. This is especially the case in ported 6.4L Apache applications in which the ported head’s flow can exceed 375 cfm. It would take a serious super stroker to tax the flow limits of the best Apache heads. This is especially the case if the maximum flow rate given for the heads you plan to purchase exceed the lift of the cam you plan to run. Big flow at .700, .750, or .800 lift is useless if you plan on running a .550 or .600-lift cam. Besides, you should be more concerned with the mid-lift flow numbers because the valve spends much more of its time sweeping through the mid lift (opening and closing) than it does at peak lift. The upshot of this is that you shouldn’t expect huge gains from ported heads unless you have an engine that will take advantage of what ported heads have to offer.
The early 5.7L heads flow the least, but factory 6.4L heads can flow as much as 340 cfm.
Another great thing about the Hemi engine family is potential interchangeability. Cylinder heads from an early 5.7L bolt physically onto the 6.1L, 6.2L (Hellcat), and 6.4L. There would be differences in chamber volume, valve sizing, and even valve length, but the heads bolt-on and can be used. Going the other way, the larger 6.1L heads required a different intake manifold (5.7L and 6.1L intake ports differ) as do the later 5.7L Eagle and 6.4L Apache heads. The Apache heads will also require something larger than the factory 5.7L bore of 3.917 inches because the 6.4L featured a bore size of 4.09 inches. The larger valves and revised valve position in the Apache heads (the reason they flow so well) require a minimum bore size of 4.060 inches (think 6.1L block). Unless you find a set of Apache or even 6.1L heads cheap (which is difficult), the best bet for the typical 5.7L Hemi owner is to install a cam and beehive valve springs and call it a day. If you want more, porting the stock 5.7L heads will yield flow numbers equal to the 6.1L and better (exhaust flow) than the 5.7L Eagle heads.
Test 1: Stock vs Ported 5.7L Heads on a Stock 5.7L Hemi
Many tests in this book were designed to illustrate what happens if you install the right part on the wrong application. Hemi owners are lucky in that the factory cylinder heads already offer tremendous airflow. In terms of head flow, stock Hemi heads flow better than fully ported Magnum heads. The impressive head flow is why it is so easy to make power with any of the modern Hemi combinations. As we will see in this chapter, the factory 5.7L heads can easily support more than 500 hp thanks to peak flow numbers nearing 270 cfm. Those numbers increase to more than 700 hp for the new 6.4L heads. Given the impressive flow rates of the stock heads, the question becomes will ported heads offer any power on an otherwise stock 5.7L Hemi application? Let’s spoil the surprise and say that ported heads should not be the first modification on your otherwise stock Hemi.
Even though the stock 5.7L Hemi heads flow well, porting them can offer even more power potential.
This test was run on a stock 5.7L Hemi pulled from a truck. The engine was equipped with a set of long-tube headers, a converted DBW throttle body, and FAST XFI management system. Everything else on the engine was left stock, including the camshaft, displacement, and compression ratio. This test was run to illustrate what happens when you increase the head flow on an engine that already has enough cylinder head. Run with the stock Hemi heads, the stock 5.7L truck engine produced 373 hp at 5,200 rpm and 412 ft-lbs of torque at 4,300 rpm. We then installed a set of fully ported 5.7L heads (flowing more than 300 cfm). While the additional head flow would support far more than 600 hp, run on this stock application, the ported heads improved the power output to only 381 hp and 418 ft-lbs of torque. Does this mean the ported heads don’t work? The answer is a resounding no because ported heads work very well on the right application that can utilize the extra flow.
Installation of ported heads on a wild combination can yield substantial power gains (see tests 3, 4, and 5 in this chapter), but don’t expect big things on an otherwise stock engine.
Stock vs Ported 5.7L Heads on a Stock 5.7L Hemi
Stock 5.7L Heads: 373 hp @ 5,200 rpm
Ported 5.7L Heads: 381 hp @ 5,400 rpm
Largest Gain: 12 hp @ 5,900 rpm
Replacing the stock 5.7L Hemi heads with ported versions netted only minor power gains, but not because the porting was performed incorrectly. The test engine simply could not utilize the extra airflow (up 35 cfm) on this otherwise stock 5.7L.
Stock vs Ported 5.7L Heads on a Stock 5.7L Hemi
Stock 5.7L Heads: 412 ft-lbs @ 4,300 rpm
Ported 5.7L Heads: 418 ft-lbs @ 4,300 rpm
Largest Gain: 12 ft-lbs @ 3,900 rpm