By Brian Roberts
The Chrysler Hemi engines are an American muscle car classic cherished by many, but how many are aware that Toyota produced a Hemi of their own? That’s right — in the mid-60s, they did develop the first of several versions starting with the “V.” The following versions were the 3V, 4V and then its last version was the 5V. The appearance of these Toyota Hemis has a strikingly similar appearance to the American Hemis.
The Toyota Hemi was developed for wealthy Japanese businessmen who wanted a larger more powerful option like found in muscle cars in America. Until Toyota developed their Hemi, these same wealthy businessmen were purchasing American V8 cars. Seeing this, Toyota wanted to capture that segment of the market in their country.
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In 1964, Toyota launched the Crown 8 model which was a luxury sedan with the “V” a 2.6L Hemi V8, that Yamaha helped with development of the block and heads. The bore was 78.000 MM and the stroke was 68.000 MM for 159 CID. This small displacement engine produced small numbers like 113 HP and 145 LB-FT of torque. This engine was in production until 1967.
In 1967, Toyota rolled out the Century model with the new 3V 3.0L V8 Hemi with a cylinder bore of 78.000 MM and an increased stroke of 78.000 MM increasing displacement to 183 CID resulting in 143 HP and 178LB-FT of torque. This engine was in production until 1973 and replaced by the 4V 3.4L Hemi V8. The 4V cylinder bore increased to 83.000 MM with a 78.000 MM stroke increasing displacement to 207 CID and increasing power to 177 HP and 205 LB-FT of torque. The 4V lasted until 1983.
In 1983, Toyota launched the last of the V8 Hemi engines with the 5V, a 4.0L Hemi V8. The 5V had a 87.000 MM bore with a 84.000 MM stroke for 244 CID producing 188 HP and 239 LB-FT of torque. In 1997, Toyota finally retired the Hemi V8, for over 30 years Toyota had a production V8 Hemi engine.
The unique thing about the Japanese versions of the Hemi was its construction; the blocks were all-aluminum, which was rare back in those days. This dramatically reduced the weight of the engine compared to the American version. Looking at the numbers from 1964 to 1997, we see very low horsepower and torque numbers compared to the American V8 Hemis — about a third of what a Dodge 426 Hemi produced. This, however, was done intentionally as Toyota was not focused on massive power gains, they wanted reliability with modest power. By not pushing the design to its max potential with massive displacement, the strain on the components was reduced, leading to better reliability.
Toyota Hemi engines are very rare as not many were produced due to the target market of wealthy businessmen. As a result of low volume, there is no aftermarket support for these engines. Toyota has also stopped supporting them and discontinued all parts years ago. This makes finding one of these engines a challenge and getting parts even more challenging. Most parts will need to be custom-made if possible.
I honestly have to say, I was never aware of Toyota having a Hemi engine and found it fascinating that they developed them to satisfy a small market that desired them. The pride in having a Japanese vehicle offering instead of relying on an America alternative proved to be a great kick starter for Toyota to develop their Hemi V8. It also did not hurt to have some deep pocket businessmen to help pay back some of the development cost. While these engines were no match for the power of the American version, they offered a lighter weight engine and reliability that Toyota is known for.
Read this article with all images in the digital issue of Engine Professional magazine https://engineprofessional.com/2024EPQ3/#p=36