True or False: The Ford Mustang was the first so-called “pony car” to enter the market. And False is the answer. The Plymouth Barracuda beat the Mustang to the game, which debuted at the 1964 New York World’s Fair, by 17 days in April of that year. A redesign came in 1967, and a convertible model was offered for the first time. The seller’s vehicle is one of them, and it was just pulled from a barn after 41 years of hibernation. Located in Fogelsville, Pennsylvania, this solid restoration project is available here on Facebook Marketplace for $11,500. When it comes to tips, Zappenduster strikes again!
Just as the Mustang had its roots in the Falcon compact, the Barracuda shared its foundation with the Valiant. For the 1964-66 first generation, the car was only offered in one body style, a fastback, which had a huge wraparound rear window. The car sold in much smaller numbers than the Mustang, perhaps at first due to a lot less hype. While Ford sold 1.2 million Mustangs in 1964-66, Plymouth only delivered 126,000 Barracudas. Once the Chevrolet Camaro arrived in 1967, the Barracuda would always remain in the background.
As the story goes, the seller pulled this Barracuda from a barn where it had been since 1985. We don’t know why the car was parked after 18 years and 93,000 miles. Everything about the machine seems original, from the blue paint, white top, and matching interior. Because its domicile was dry, the vehicle has survived without major disruption to its framework. The car is said to be complete, so chasing rare parts (some of which were shared with the Valiant) might not be as difficult as many projects like this can be.
The automobile’s 273 cubic inch V8 is not locked up, and its TorqueFlite transmission may or may not function. All the seller has done is clean up the car and vacuum out the interior to gauge the degree of effort that may be required to restore the little Mopar. Only 4,228 of these ragtops were produced in 1967, the convertible’s best year until it was discontinued in 1971. We’re told (and a photo backs it up) that the canvas top still goes up and down. We hope that the buyer will choose to revive the car without mods, such as dropping in a larger engine.
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