Hi Lori,
 > A hemi was available to the public as early as 1952,
 > but it wasn't a
 > 426, it was a 392, a early elephant.
You must have missed my eariler message to you. The 392 was NOT BUILT till 
1957 and was only in production for 2 years and only available in the 
Chrysler and Imperial lines, not the Dodge or Plymouth. The eariler versions 
were available from about '51 or so (will look it up for you), and were under 
300 CID in size. I believe the first mopar lines to get them were DeSoto and 
Chrysler. The nickname for the 392 was not an Elephant, It was called a WHALE 
motor, at least here in SoCal, the early home of Hot Rods.
Gerry
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