! DO NOT MESS With Rick's "MAX-WEDGE" !

Part of the 1962 Chrysler B-body universal appeal to period racers is that its somewhat stodgy styling hid a technologically advanced drivetrain that made it capable of trailering everything it met. In other words, the B-Body 413 Max Wedge was the perfect sleeper: even after everyone woke up to it, it was still unbeatable. In his 2004 book Tales from The Drag Strip, Don Garlits describes driving a 413 Max Wedge with his wife Pat on the highway to Texas in 1962: With a 3.31 gear, [we are] leaving rubber at 120 mph and we just drove away from that Ford! I bet that guy talks about that to this day to his grandchildren!

The Max Wedge began life in 1959 when Chrysler engineers added deck height to the 383 B-Block to stroke it out to 413 cubic inches, resulting in the Raised B-Block or RB-Block. The new engine had a bore/stroke ratio of 4.19 x 3.75 inches, twin Carter four-barrels on a cross-ram intake, a solid lifter cam, dual valve springs to handle 6000-plus rpm, magnafluxed rods and, of course, wedge-shaped combustion chambers. The 11.0:1-compression Max Wedge made 410 horsepower and 460 lb-ft of torque, while the 13.5:1 version was rated at 420 horses and 470 lb-ft of torque. There was nothing else like it.