What engine is in the Ala Kart

[Madd Trucker]

what engine is in the Ala Kart and where do the plug wires run to on the sides of the engine or under the valve cover. any help will be greatfull to finish this kit

[Harold]

I believe its a DeSoto Firedome. The wires feed in to the front center of the valve cover as a group. The flat are in the center of the covers was a wire cover.

[Jon Cole]

AlaKart engine in a deuce:

[george 53]

It's an early Hemi, a 392 I THINK. That's why the Dizzies in the back. The wires feed into the plugs from the top of the valve covers,just like a newer Hemi. They feed into a loom at the rear of the valve cover, and are covered by their own cover. Does that make sense?

[mr moto]

The Ala Kart has a Dodge Red Ram hemi. They were smaller than the Chryslers. Don't know the displacement of the one in the Kart but some versions were under 300 cubic inches. The plug wires enter at the rear of the valve covers and run under the removable cover (with the 3 screws) in the center of each valve cover.

[Madd Trucker]

Thanks fo rthe feed back anouther willbe finished by weeks end

[horsepower]

The Ala Kart has a Dodge Red Ram hemi. They were smaller than the Chryslers. Don't know the displacement of the one in the Kart but some versions were under 300 cubic inches. The plug wires enter at the rear of the valve covers and run under the removable cover (with the 3 screws) in the center of each valve cover.

The baby"Hemi" in the AlaKart is a 331 cubic inch engine.

[ChrisPflug]

The early Hemis came from the factory in many displacements:

Chrysler FirePower

51-56 331

56-57 354

57-58 392

DeSoto Firedome

52-54 276

55 291

56 330

57 341

57 345

Dodge Red Ram

53-54 241

55 270

56 315

57 325

[Ken]

Isn't the engine in the Ala Cart undersized??

Sorry, couldn't help myself...

[Madd Trucker]

Ken yes it is undersized for the scale of the car I think the only mistake AMT made on this kit other then suggested colors of some of the parts compared to photoso of the actual car. Also want to thank every one for the info on this car this will be my first car build in a vvvvery long time

[Guest]

Isn't the engine in the Ala Cart undersized??

Not really. The Red Ram is a smaller engine to start with. Actually the engine in the original 60's release of this kit was a tad bit big. Does anyone have a link to good pics of this car? I cant seem to find any.

[Junkman]

I once had a '57 Dodge with the Red Ram in it. I was amazed how compact the engine was compared with the 392 Chrysler. And this teensy wee little 1bbl carb on top of it! But it went like ###### off a shovel and the mileage would put many a modern car to shame.

[Madd Trucker]

midnightprowler try this site it also has pics of Sams merc

http://www.rodandcustommagazine.com/featuredvehicles/0812rc_1929_ford_roadster_pickup_1949_mercury_coupe/index.html

[Art Anderson]

The Ala Kart has a Dodge Red Ram hemi. They were smaller than the Chryslers. Don't know the displacement of the one in the Kart but some versions were under 300 cubic inches. The plug wires enter at the rear of the valve covers and run under the removable cover (with the 3 screws) in the center of each valve cover.

241cid Dodge Red Ram Hemi

Art

[Ken]

Hey Trucker, I meant no offense. When the 'new' tool came out, there was a huge amount of flack over the size of the enigine. I too think that it is an excellent kit. The chassis and rims have ended up under a bunch of projects ever since. I bought every single copy I saw on clearance. I have a bunch of the original issue kits as well. Someday, I will actually build an Ala Cart rather than rob them for parts

[fumi]

Just out of curiosity I tried to look up the dimension of the early Hemi, and found some numbers in classichemi.com. All dimensions in inches.

For the Dodge Red Ram:

Width ( oil filter installed ) 32 3/4

Height ( bottom of oil pan to top of air cleaner ) 31

Length ( back of flywheel housing to front of fan ) 28 3/16

For the Chrysler Fire Power:

Width ( oil filter installed ) 32 3/8

Height ( bottom of oil pan to top of air cleaner ) 36 1/2

Length ( back of flywheel housing to front of fan ) 36 3/4

Edited February 8, 2010 by fumi