What da hey? A Mopar collectible that is available at Copart? How’d that happen? Admittedly, our subject car is a 1970 Barracuda, not a performance-oriented ‘Cuda. Still, even a generic ’70 Barracuda still has mojo in the old car market. So, what’s really going on here? Stay tuned and we’ll find out. This Plymouth Barracuda is located in Trenton, New Jersey and is available, here on Copart for a no reserve upcoming auction. The estimated retail value is $35,050 and there is a $28,513 estimated repair cost. Thanks to Jasper for this most unique find!
I have some familiarity with Copart, I’ve actually sent two cars there. The first was a Jeep Liberty with a 3.7-liter V6 engine that managed to drop a valve and pretty well take out lots of critical lower engine parts. Number two was a 2012 Impala that made a hard stop into the rear of a stationary Toyota Land Cruiser. The Impala was KO’d, the Toyota? Not so much so. Copart is nationwide and their yards are just about everywhere. Much of their inventory has met a similar fate as the two that I sent there – but they do have some interesting inhabitants from time to time.
This Barracuda tip came in with a title that proclaimed, “Fish Couldn’t Swim”. Well, that’s at the root of the matter here, this Plymouth apparently went scuba diving and has water damage. The interior does look soggy, and it appears that this Barracuda is actually a Gran Coupe (second VIN digit is “P” for Premium) which would have been a cut above standard. The fabric and vinyl buckets are definitely nicer or were nicer, than the standard vinyl fabric.
I wonder about the “WL” chalk mark in the above image, does it mean “water level”? If so, this Barracuda has experienced a real floodarama. The exterior is finished in what appears to be Limelight Poly and topped with a black vinyl top, it still presents well. The odometer shows just 56K miles but the way that the odometer is presented makes one think of the grand staircase clock on the Titanic which stopped at 2:20, just as the stern slid under the surface. There is no visible evidence of rust or crash damage though the grille and front bumper are showing some signs of friction.
The VIN indicates that a 230 gross HP, 318 CI V8 powered this Plymouth but WR on the roof would mean that the engine room definitely got flooded. Salvageable? Hard to say. Same for the TorqueFlite three-speed automatic transmission.
It would be really interesting to know the whole story behind this submariner Barracuda – and most of all, what a shame that it has come down to this. It’s being sold with a salvage title due to the flood damage so there may be some issue with returning this Barracuda to an insurable state. At least that’s what I was told in the case of my Impala when I tried to buy it back from the insurance company. I don’t have a lot of experience with flood-damaged cars so what do you think, beyond hope or is a dry-out possible?
Flooded in what, salt water, fresh water, mustard, mayonnaise, what?
Probably a fresh water flood. Still means taking it all apart and probably
replacing a LOT of stuff, especially if its been sitting for any length of time.
Agree…..salt leaves a different residue……is Galveston on my mind ?
Could be a fun project but not for me at that price.
Yes, WL is for the water line. A flood? Someone punched it into a pond? Who knows. I bet it stinks in there lol.
On a car this old. I’m not afraid of flood damage. I would be changing out the drive train anyways and the electronics are minimal.
Maybe take a zero off the price, yeach!
lol !!
parts at best
You guys really don’t have a clue…..GC would be a start.
Don’t think you want to get this Cuda a chance way to much money
I like the color, but what is that smell?
Smell???? Honey, was that you???
lol !!
I’ve bought and driven a number of flood titled cars that were new on dealers lots with good results. Usually fresh water flood cars come right back to life after a thorough drying out and all new fluids/flush. Fresh water up to the rockers is one thing, however salt water above that is completely something else. At the level this car appears to have been submerged I’d take a hard pass unless bought for a song.
It’s at $16,100 so far with 3 days to go. It will be interesting to see what it sells for. Wouldn’t take too much heavy lifting to coax this back to running/driving condition. The odometer shows 57,000 miles and from the looks of it, I doubt it rolled over. Great looking Mopar!
I’ve restored several fresh water flood cars, from a 1985 Rolls-Royce Silver Spur Centennial, to a 1969 Volvo P1800 coupe.
There are several things that dictate how restorable the vehicle is:
1. How long was it submerged & how deep in the water? The deeper and longer it’s underwater, the higher the chance of water getting into places like the inside of the rear axle and other drive line locations. We actually had a drive shaft that had a tiny [not visible] hole in the welds at the end of the shaft. Yes, the shaft had water in it. We had to heat the shaft up to drive the water back out, that’s how we found the hole location. The Rolls-Royce I mentioned had a “sealed” Bosch electronic ignition module, yet it had moisture in it.
2. Was the engine running when the car went underwater? If so, there is a good chance the engine cylinders ingested water. This can cause serious mechanical problems because water doesn’t compress like air, so the engine comes to a sudden rotational stop.
3. All “organic” items like upholstery, carpets, padding, anything that can hold water, will likely need replacement. Leather seating can be dried out, but will be stiff and require plenty of work to make it soft again. But it will need to be removed from the actual seat structure.
4. If it can be come apart, it needs to come apart. Everything. Things like dash pads with molded foam, may be OK provided the foam is non-porous.
Unlike some of the vehicles that end up on this site this one has been washed.
I have seen many rusted out hulks much worse than this coming back to life. However, this gonna bei a total disassembly, cleaning and replacement job. If one has the patience and money why not. How about a Gran Coupe with a Hellephant? Smile…
A rust-free low-mile e-body? Who in hell cares??? Beats driving anything built in the past 20 years.
nearly half of all MBz 280SE 3.5 were salvaged cars upon leaving Europe in the 80s & 90s. miraculously they all suddenly now have ‘clean’ U.S. titles. Imagine that.