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The best indoor cars, the best outdoor cars and the best interiors; we pretty much covered it all at this year’s SEMA Show, but we couldn’t call it a wrap without diving into some of the best engines. Check out some of our top favs below!
Nelson Racing Engines’ 1968 Charger Maximus
King of the performance engine, Nelson Racing Engines brought one of our favorite cars back to SEMA this year. Of course, we’re talking about Maximus- the Nelson Supercars 1968 Charger.
Now, if you’ve ever laid eyes on this fine machine, you know why it’s part of our top five engine choices of the SEMA Show. After all, we’re talking about a 9.4L alloy HEMI engine that has custom CNC machined twin turbochargers, twin intercoolers and twin fuel injection systems.
A choice between 600hp and 2,000hp at the touch of a button? Count us in!
The total output for Maximus is up to a killer 2,000hp, though the car can be dialed back with a simple touch of a button in the car’s interior, taming the beast to a more manageable 600hp.
Cheryl Herrick’s Jet Hot 1967 Chevy Nova
Packed into one of the autocross circuit’s most well known cars, the Jet Hot Nova, is the next engine on our list.
Built by Kurt Urban Performance, this engine is an LS-based masterpiece. Based on a 5.7L LS block, the engine features 4-inch sleeves, L92 heads, a FAST intake and throttle body, Moroso wet sump oil pan, and a 4.0 inch stroke crankshaft. Of course, being an official Jet Hot Ceramic Coatings car, we can’t forget to mention the car’s ceramic coated headers.
The result of all these components is a 402ci, 600hp beast of an engine capable of producing 530 lb-ft of torque and whipping the car around the autocross course like no other classic car we’ve seen. Now if that’s not something to write home about, we don’t know what is!
CR Supercars’ 1968 Mustang “Villain”
Built by Classic Restorations’ new supercar division, CR Supercars, the 1968 Mustang Fastback named Villian was a much anticipated car for us. Not only is it the spawn of a new custom performance car company, it’s also backed by a built Ford motor no one can argue with.
Backing this potent engine is a Centerforce clutch and a Tremec T56 Magnum 6-speed transmission.
The Car Fix 1971 Camaro
Built by Jared Zimmerman and Lou Santiago of Car Fix, this gorgeous second-gen Camaro features a 416ci LS3 engine fitted with custom stainless headers that feed into a custom stainless exhaust with an X-pipe and a custom rear flow design for the mufflers. The car is also equipped with an aluminum radiator with dual electric fans.
The output for this beast is a whopping 575hp and 569 lb-ft of torque.
Of course, this wouldn’t have been possible without the help of Sta-bil, the fuel treatment company that sponsored the build, debuted the car at SEMA and helped run a national contest for one lucky winner to take home the car as their own!
Armegeddon GT1000-Equipped 2014 Hellanor Mustang
Front and center in the Garrett Turbos booth is where we found this incredible engine on display in a modern Mustang.
Built atop a Ford 302ci Boss engine, the Armageddon twin turbo kit is what really sets this setup apart.
Included in the build are twin turbochargers (you can choose either 76mm or 82mm Garrett turbos), a Fluidyne aluminum high-flow intercooler, X2 TiAL Sport 44mm MV-R wastegates and Kooks stainless steel headers and downpipes.
What this does for the 2014 Mustang is give it upwards of 1,000hp and a dyno-proven 1,214 lb-ft of torque.
We also couldn’t resist giving out some honorable mentions, which go to Trenton Ulicny’s 1929 Ford Roadster Pickup “Atomic Roadster” with its MSD-equipped engine and Proform for its extremely unique rhinestone-encrusted Ford and Chevy engines they had on display!
Our top five choices (and honorable mentions) may not be among your top five, so we encourage you to share your top engine picks in the comments below.
Also, be sure to browse through more photos of our favorite engines in the GALLERY below!
