Chrysler 5.7 Hemi Tuning

"All you need to know about tuning and performance parts on the Chrysler 5.7 345 cu Hemi engine!"

Herein we provide a guide to 5.7 Hemi tuning and highlight the best modifications. Chrysler 5.7 Hemi make a good tuning project and with the optimum tuning parts like remaps, turbo upgrades and camshafts you will dramatically maximise your driving experience.

The Hemi 245 was on the Ward's 10 Best Engines list for 2003 through 2007, and again in 2009 - no wonder it is so popular with tuners the world over.

History, Power & Specs of the 345 cu Engine

5.7 / 345 Hemi

• 345 hp (257.3 kW) and 375 lbft (508 Nm)
• 340 hp (253.5 kW) and 390 lbft (529 Nm)

Applications

• 2003–Present Ram Pickup
• 2004–2009, 2011–Present Dodge Durango
• 2005–2008 Dodge Magnum R/T
• 2005–Present Chrysler 300C, 300S V8 (2010, 2012-Present)
• 2005–Present Jeep Grand Cherokee
• 2006–Present Dodge Charger R/T
• 2006–2010 Jeep Commander
• 2007–2009 Chrysler Aspen
• 2009–Present Dodge Challenger R/T

2009 Revisions, 5.7 Eagle

These had a revised cylinder head giving better flo and we see variable camshaft timing used and an oil control valve.

• 300C: 363 hp (271 kW), 394 lbft (534 Nm)
• Charger R/T: 370 hp (276 kW), 395 lbft (536 Nm)
• Challenger R/T Automatic: 372 hp (277 kW), 400 lbft (542 Nm)
• Challenger R/T 6 Speed Manual: 375 hp (280 kW), 410 lbft (556 Nm)
• 2009-2012 Ram 1500 Truck: 390 hp (291 kW), 407 lbft (552 Nm)
• 2013+ Ram 1500 Truck: 395 hp (295 kW), 410 lbft (556 Nm)
• Ram 2500/3500 Truck: 383 hp (286 kW), 400 lbft (542 Nm)
• Jeep Grand Cherokee and Jeep Commander: 360 hp (268 kW), 390 lbft (529 Nm)
• 2011+ Dodge Durango: 360 hp (268 kW), 390 lbft (529 Nm)
• 2009 Chrysler Aspen and Dodge Durango non-HEV: 376 hp (280 kW), 401 lbft (544 Nm)
• 2009 Chrylser Aspen and Dodge Durango HEV: 399 hp (298 kW), 390 lbft (529 Nm)

Tuning the Chrysler 5.7 Hemi and best 5.7 Hemi performance parts.

Best 5.7 Hemi mods

The optimum 5.7 Hemi mods on an engine are sensibly the ones that give the biggest return for your cash.

We won't be swayed by popular 5.7 Hemi mods, they need to be cost effective.

The cam profile plays a big part in the engines power output so cam upgrades make quite a large difference. The intake and exhaust durations will alter depending on the chosen cam profile, so large engines power gains are on offer for cam upgrades.

Fast road camshafts commonly increase the bhp and torque through the rpm band, you could sacrifice a little low end bhp but higher rpm power will be higher.

Race camshafts, increase the higher rpm power band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

For a typical daily driver should ideally to optimize your engines power to your preferences.

You will never find a 5.7 Hemi Motorsport camshaft is a pleasure to live with when driving in heavy traffic. The low end idle will be very lumpy and irregular, so something you would notice on a track when you drive in the upper third of the rpm band, but on roads this is a serious issue and we've heard from lots of drivers lamenting their decision to add an extreme competition cam profile to their engine.

Some 5.7 Hemi engines respond better to more or less aggressive camshaft durations so view each engine as unique.

The engine timing and fuelling also have an effect on the bhp gains you'll hit.

Altering valve durations can alter the bhp band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

Please watch our video which covers the 5 principles of tuning your car. Be sure to keep up with our latest YouTube content and subscribe.

Best Engine Mods for your car

1. Engine Tunes - engine tuning/remapping provides the most advantage in terms of cost savings,  aftermarket ECUs, and piggyback ECUs are all alternatives.
2. Fast road cams are one of the most significant mechanical changes, but they must be installed by someone who knows what they're doing and they are not always easy to source but you might find a local firm to regrind a stock camshaft.
3. Intake and Exhaust - Note that on their own these mods will NOT ADD POWER in most cases, but they can help enhance power after other mods by removing the restriction.
4. Upgrades to turbochargers and superchargers - forced induction is the most efficient approach to increase air supply, allowing you to burn more fuel and make more power. It is one of the most costly upgrades but provides the best gains.
5. Head work - The goals of porting and flowing the head are to get air flowing into the engine while removing flow restrictions and turbulence.

Typical stage 1 mods often include:
Fast road camshaft, Panel air filters, Sports exhaust header/manifold, drilled & smoothed airbox, Remaps/piggy back ECU, Intake manifolds.

Typical stage 2 mods often include:
Fast road cam, induction kit, Ported and polished head, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, high flow fuel injectors, fuel pump upgrades.

Typical stage 3 mods often include:
Engine balancing & blueprinting, Competition cam, Twin charging conversions, Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression.

A remap allows a tuner to unlock the full potential of all the tuning mods you've done to your 5.7 Hemi.

(In some cases, as the factory ECU is locked flashing is not an option, so an aftermarket ECU is the route to take, and many of these will outperform factory ECU's but make sure it has knock protection and that you get it setup properly.)

It will usually give you around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NA (naturally aspirated) engines, but figures achieved will differs on the tuning mods you've applied and the condition of your engine.

Pulling fuel and air into your 5.7 Hemi is the whole point to any engine performance tuning task.

Intake manifolds transmit the air during the suck phase from the filter and allow it to be sucked into the engine and mixed with fuel.

Shape and flow rate of the Intake manifolds can make a big effect on to fuel atomisation on the 5.7 Hemi.

Commonly we find the plenum chambers are improved through motorsport parts, although some car makers provide reasonably good plenum chambers.

Increasing the 5.7 Hemi valve size, doing a bit of 3 or 5 angle valve jobs and porting and head flowing will also increase bhp and torque, and importantly will permit an improved bhp and torque increase on other mods.

Turbo upgrades

NA (naturally aspirated) engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your 5.7 Hemi

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes superb power gains.

When the engine is fitted with a turbocharger parts are going to make more power and we find turbocharged engines already contain stronger components.

There are tuning limits for every engine, with some being incredibly solid and some just sufficiently able to handle stock power

It is important to find these restrictions and fit higher quality crank and pistons to cope with the power.

We've seen guys spending a a stack of money on turbo upgrades on the 5.7 Hemi only to have the whole thing literally blow up when it's first rolling road session.

Larger capacity turbo units tend to experience a bottom end lag, and low capacity turbo units spool up really quickly but do not have the high rpm torque gains.

Thankfully the choice of turbo chargers is always increasing and we are seeing variable vane turbo chargers, where the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp.

Twin scroll turbo chargers divert the exhaust flow into 2 channels and direct these at differently designed vanes in the turbo. They also help the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is not unusual that there's a limit in the air flow sensor MAP/MAF/AFM on the 5.7 Hemi when considerably more air is being sucked into the engine.

We note 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor limited power at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large power gains, although more challenging to setup. We have this feature on twinchargers if you want to read more.

Fuelling

You will need to ensure that the engine is not starved of fuel so need to look at the fuelling when you start extending past 20% of a power increase.It makes sense to over specify your injectors flow rate.

The rule of thumb is to add 20% when buying an injector, which takes into account injector deterioration and affords a little spare capacity should the engine need more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Exhaust

You may need to upgrade your exhaust if the existing exhaust is actually creating a flow problem.

On most factory exhausts you'll see your flow rate is fine even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts increase the flow of air through the engine.

But if the exhaust is too large, ie: it's over 2.5 inches bore, you will lose a great deal of the flow rate and end up losing power and torque.

Common exhaust restrictions come around the emissions filters installed, so adding a freer flowing race alternative such as a sports catalyst pretty much removes this restriction, thanks to it's larger size and surface area, and will effectively raise the performance to levels you would expect without having a catalyst installed, but keeps the car road legal.

Weak spots, Issues & problem areas on the 5.7 Hemi

The 5.7 Hemi engines are generally reliable and solid units, as long as you follow the manufacturers service schedules, and use a good quality oil to ensure longevity. Few problems should happen as long as they are regularly serviced and maintained.

Carbon build up in the head, particularly around the valves which will sap power or create flat spots, this is a larger issue on direct injection engines but should be looked out for on all engines. We have tips on removing carbon build up.

Some of our members have had issues with flat spots or glitches after applying mods and upgrades or tuning, this is not usually related to this engines design, so instead see our article on diagnosing flat spots and problems after tuning which should help you get the bottom of this issue.

Regular oil changes are vital on the 5.7 Hemi, especially when tuned and will help extend the life and reliability of the engine.

If you would like to know more, or just get some friendly advice on Tuning your 5.7 Hemi engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our 5.7 Hemi owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

Please help us improve these tips by sending us your feedback in the comments box below.

We love to hear what our visitors have got up to and which tuning parts work best for you on your car. Which helps us keep our guides and tips up to date helping others with their modified car projects. Your feedback and comments are used to keep this page up to date, and help improve the accuracy of these 5.7 Hemi tuning guides which get regular updates and revisions.

Please Check out my YouTube channel, we're regularly adding new content...

Click to accept YouTube Cookies & Play.

This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Chrysler. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

If you liked this page please share it with your friends, drop a link to it in your favourite forum or use the bookmarking options to save it to your social media profile.