The so called short ram manifold (above) used on the 1962-1964 413 and 426 Max Wedge is a one piece aluminum casting. Here’s a vintage shot of Max Wedge program director Tom Hoover posing with an engineering test mule in a Chrysler dyno cell.
Before the engineers settled on the final production manifold casting several hand fabricated sheet steel intake manifolds (right) were assembled and tested. The bolt on plenum covers let them manipulate carburetor placement to see what worked best.
Look closely, this isn’t a normal Max Wedge engine bay. Instead, it’s one of the hand fabricated test manifolds cobbled together for in car testing. Found in the personal files of noted automotive journalist Roger Huntington, this – and other – photos depict what appears to be a 1962 Plymouth Savoy or Belvedere engineering mule. Note the non-production straight brake line routing (Max Wedges are curved 180 degrees), on-engine wiring harness (Max Wedges are routed along the passenger side inner fender), standard pulleys (Max Wedges are twice as deep), road draft tube (Max Wedges use a PCV valve feeding the back of the plenum), and cobbled Chrysler 300 twin-screw air cleaner housings (Max Wedges have specific low profile 14-inch housings with single wing nuts). A look at the radiator part number shows 2099898, correct for a 361 wedge powered 1962 B-body. This car offers mute testimony to the fact that plenty of in car testing complimented the countless hours of dyno cell development as Hoover and the boys perfected the Max Wedge prior to its May 1, 1962 release date.