It’s hard to beat the story behind a good hot rod build. How the car started, the pains behind the build, and the origins of the components are always interesting. Some are more interesting than others, like the origin of a certain first generation Hemi.
This 1947 Dodge truck includes several cool features including a sectioned body and made-from-scratch frame. What’s interesting about the engine is that it’s not a “FirePower” Hemi, or a “Fire Dome”, but a “Chrysler Industrial”. What were Industrial Hemis used for? Why for powering air raid sirens, of course! As the cold war was ramping up in the 1950s, Chrysler fulfilled their military contract obligation in part by supplying power plants for giant nuclear air raid sirens in about 100 locations throughout the country. Read more about these sirens here.
