Choosing a likely candidate for a restoration project can be a complex undertaking. Potential buyers need to balance how much work they can perform themselves versus how much money they will have in their bank account to pay somebody else. That makes rust-free cars an attractive proposition, and that desirability increases if the vehicle in question has a freshly rebuilt engine under the hood. That brings us to this 1967 Plymouth Barracuda. It has some cosmetic needs, but returning it to its former glory should be a straightforward and relatively inexpensive process. It has clocked a mere 5,000 miles on a freshly rebuilt V8 and runs and drives well. If you find yourself drawn to this classic, it is located in Seattle, Washington, and listed for sale here on eBay. Twenty-six bids have pushed the price beyond the reserve to $4,800, and there’s still time available for any readers wishing to stake their claim. Once again, Barn Finder Larry D has uncovered an excellent project car. Thank you so much for that, Larry.
Before potential buyers hand over their hard-earned cash on a project car, they need to spend time working their way through their objectives and which tasks they can complete themselves. This is vitally important because more than one enthusiastic owner has found themselves in a position where they may have bitten off more than they can chew. They can reach a point where they throw their hands in the air and consign the whole thing to the “too hard” basket or throw buckets of money at the problem because they feel they have reached the point of no return. One of the most complex parts of this process is undertaking some serious self-assessment. If a person has no discernable welding skills, it is unrealistic to think they can learn as they go on rust repairs. A few people succeed with this approach, but many crash and burn. That’s one of the characteristics that make this Barracuda so attractive. There’s no denying that its Turbine Bronze paint is tired, and its panels have accumulated dents and bruises. However, the seller’s claim that it is rust-free means that those without welding skills could still look at the car as a viable hands-on proposition. The chrome and trim look acceptable for a survivor-grade vehicle, although it wouldn’t take much money or effort to lift items like the bumpers to an excellent state. The glass appears flawless, so if you are searching for a project car and this one has you rubbing your hands together, I can understand that reaction.
Plymouth offered a variety of engines in their 1967 Barracuda range, and one of the more popular and affordable was the 273ci V8 that produced 180hp. That is what we find under the hood of this classic, while a three-speed TorqueFlite transmission rounds out the mechanical package. If the original owner had pointed this classic at a ¼ mile when it was new, it would have romped through in 17.4 seconds. That may not sound devastatingly fast, but it stood up well for a car that cost its owner around $2,500 in 1967. If this car’s rust-free status seems like all the good news you could hope to hear, there’s more to come. The owner claims that the Barracuda is numbers-matching and that its V8 has only accumulated around 5,000 miles since he treated it to a rebuild. He uses the Plymouth for weekend outings and says it runs and drives well. Therefore, this could prove a hot ticket for a buyer seeking instant gratification linked to the prospect of a restoration as time and circumstances allow.
This Plymouth’s interior will force its next owner to make a few choices. Some of these will be pretty easy, while others will pose a challenge. The front seat upholstery is trashed and split, and it will probably be a no-brainer if the buyer spends $520 on a replacement front set. With the rear seat, door trims, headliner, and dash pad looking okay, that appears to be it for upholstery. The carpet is worn and faded, but $230 will secure a replacement set, and fitting it while the seats are out for a refurbishment would kill two birds with one stone. That brings us to the tough decision, and it surrounds the dash. It looks presentable, but the bright finish has disappeared from the gauge bezel. It is not the end of the world, and the buyer could choose to leave it untouched. However, if they seek a high-quality finish, it could cost them. Reproductions are readily available, but they ain’t cheap! Are you sitting down? Good, because one of those will lighten your wallet by $830! Alternatively, the buyer could play the waiting game, hoping that a decent secondhand example might surface on one of the online auction sites. As a final alternative, there are some excellent plastic paint products on the market that could allow the buyer to restore the bezel themselves. It’s an option worth considering, and a bit of patience during the preparation and masking process could return respectable results at a fraction of the cost of a replacement. There are no aftermarket additions, with the factory AM radio retained in its rightful spot.
When it comes to restoration projects, it seems that this 1967 Barracuda is up with the best of them. Its cosmetic needs are pretty minor, and the buyer need not spend wads of cash on replacement panels. Any exterior defects look repairable, and if they can undertake most of the work themselves, the most expensive aspect of the project could be whipping the interior into shape. However, as we have already seen, even that is hardly likely to break the bank. I can understand why the bidding has been spirited on this classic, and if you chose to join the party, I could hardly blame you. So, are you tempted?
Not a bad car, but that thing has had more hits than Evlis had, maybe Mr Magoo drove it without his glasses on :) but yes a good car all the same.
That should be Elvis not Evlis
Sorry dude don’t understand your post could you please explain it to me thanks Tim
Elvis had many hit records, and Mr Magoo was a cartoon character who used to drive into everything without his glasses on.
I like it, yeah it’s got a lot of dings and scrapes, but at that price it’s a steal. New wheels/ tires, some cheapo bucket seat covers from the Wall Mart, and I’d rock around town Roadkill-style!
Never understood the 273 vs 318 choice in LA engines. Was that such a big difference in cost? 318 would seem a no brainer.
318 wasn’t available until 68 model year
My Wife’s first car bought new in 1967. We/she had it until 1972. Dark metallica blue with blue interior. I repainted it in laquer and it took forever to wet sand and buff, but it looked great.
This one had manual brakes and steering Both could be updated along with front disk brake conversion. After that, it would be a great daily driver.
My first Car in 1976 was a 1967 formula S Barracuda with a 273 high performance engine front disc brakes with a four speed dark blue with a white interior and white stripe across the cars top. What a beautiful car. Second car six months later another formula S light blue only cost me $250.00.
I’ve always found the ’67-69 Barracudas to be attractively styled. It’s unfortunate that it never shook that “sporty Valiant” image. A name change probably would have helped. Ford went to great lengths to disguise the Falcon underneath the original Mustang. Plymouth left the original Barracuda’s Valiant bits out in the open and paid the price.
Had one with the 235HP version (one was recently dyno’d at 240). Great driver but fit and finish was horrible.
I had that exact car with a white interior back in the early 1970s & until today, have never seen another in that color. Wish I still had it(along with a bunch of other that have passed thru my hands).
That’s the same color of my ’67’ Cuda. It was a coupe, not the fastback. It had the 273 hi po. It ran great and I could outrun the big boys till they caught up with me almost a 1/4/ mile later. Had to replace the engine with a 318 when I put more oil in it than gas. The 318 got better gas mileage, but was a lot slower with the 2 barrel.
I had a 67 fastback similar to this in college. Mine was a lighter copper color with the shifter in the console. I bought it in 1972 with 35,000 miles on it. It also had the 273 and automatic. It would top out at 125. I bent the rear springs to pieces overloading it moving to and from college. I put a pair of heavy duty springs from J. C. Whitney on it, cranked up the torsion bars to level it out, and kept going. I sold it cheap to my brother-in-law when he needed a car, sometime in the early 80s. At 135,000 miles, the 273 still ran great. How I wish I had kept it.