Chrysler A engine
The Chrysler A engine is a small-block V8 gasoline engine built by Chrysler with polyspherical combustion chambers. It was produced from 1956 until 1967, when it was replaced by the wedge-head LA engine. It is not related to the hemispherical-head Hemi engine of the same era.
Chevrolet big-block engine
The combustion chamber of the W-series engine was in the upper part of the cylinder, not the head, the head having only tiny recesses for the valves. This arrangement was achieved by combining a cylinder head deck that was not perpendicular to the bore with a crowned piston, which was a novel concept in American production engines of the day. As the piston approached top dead center, the angle of the crown combined with that of the head deck to form a wedge-shaped combustion chamber with a pronounced quench area. The spark plugs were inserted vertically into the quench area, which helped to produce a rapidly moving flame front for more complete combustion.