Long-term indoor storage is always a great plus for any classic, and this 1965 Plymouth Barracuda hits the jackpot. This particular offering had been stowed away in a heated garage for approximately 40 years, meaning it likely has far less cold-start wear and tear than other similarly-aged vehicles. The offering also benefits from a rebuilt 273 cubic-inch V-8 engine. If you are looking for a clean, running early-generation Barracuda that you can readily enjoy while finishing up minor details, this could be a great candidate. You can find it here on Craigslist, out of Powell River, British Columbia.
The 1965 Plymouth Barracuda was designed to be a sportier or performance-oriented version of the Plymouth Valiant, which was a compact everyday car. It was designed as a two-door fastback coupe with a characteristic wrap-around rear glass. Under the hood, the Barracuda can feature two versions of a 273 cu in V-8 engine. The more aggressive one being the 4-barrel ‘Commando’ engine. This particular Barracuda’s engine started out with a 2-barrel carburetor, but in 2016 it was rebuilt, now featuring a 4-barrel. They also added a true dual exhaust. This iteration has a more aggressive camshaft and a higher 10.5:1 compression ratio than the Valiant’s Slant-6, delivering sharper throttle response and superior torque and horsepower than a standard factory setup.
Its 4-barrel carburettor allows the engine to draw in more fuel and air when more power is needed. Two barrels are active during normal cruising, and the other two barrels are secondary, meaning that they only engage under heavy acceleration. As a result, this engine delivers crisp, low-end response while cruising, and high-end power surges under full acceleration when the secondaries are engaged.
The seller also mentions no rust, which is great. Early A-body Chrysler platforms like the one that underpins this car have been prone to rust. In this case, the vehicle was kept in a clean, temperature-controlled environment. The car is finished in blue, and while the seller notes that the car is not perfect, it appears to be in nice, clean condition overall.
Inside, the cabin benefits from brand-new carpeting. The rest of the interior details aren’t deeply elaborated on in the ad, but the seller does mention that the car comes bundled with some great extra parts to help the next owner continue its restoration, including a spare back window and a front disc brake conversion kit sourced from an old Dodge Dart. Before getting too carried away, treat the ‘no rust’ claim as a starting point rather than a guarantee. An in-person inspection is essential though. You should also ask receipts and details on the 2016 engine rebuild and four-barrel conversion. After 40 years in a heated garage, and a rebuilt V8, it’s certainly tempting, but does it tick enough boxes to end your search, or is it worth holding out to see if a better early A-body comes along?
Nice car, good pick Nicholas. As has been mentioned time and again here, the Barracuda beat the Mustang to the punch, but Ford had a haymaker with their ad department and knocked Plymouth for a loop.
This one is especially impressive with some nice extras and the built 273 doesn’t hurt; the “camando heads” might be for a Commando engine but at a loss as to what a “gadket kit” might be..
If that’s $25000 Canadian is about $18000 US which would be a terrific deal if it’s as clean as they say!
Quick question to all-is anyone else having connectivity issues with the forum? All the other links on this computer register immediately but BF loads very slowly then doesn’t seem to stay connected afterwards.
Haven’t had that problem but since the first of the year I’ve had to sign in twice to get back in. Now, on at least one car while scrolling through the comments, I wind up with a whole bunch of ads. Weird.
It’s nice…not sure $25g’s nice – it’s just a hard market for these early A-Bodies – as an owner for years. Yep finding one nice to build up like this would be hard for the price he’s asking….it’s out of the states so figure in that cost as well…..good luck to the new buyer.
The car looks good on the outside but I beg to differ about the interior. The seats look dirty as well as the dashboard. They’ve got a sticker on the glove box that says Old School. And if there’s new carpeting, I don’t see it. I see what appears to be floor mats with Barracuda pictures on them. Unless it’s underneath those, I’m not convinced.
I’m with you on this one the interior looks dirty and drab and I doubt about the carpets.I think the price may be a tad high but in my mind the interior is the let down.
looks pretty good in the pics but some of the wiring under the hood is debatable though. never understood putting pics of the car at a show helps with the sale. i guess it shows that it does move.
Spare back window=$$$$$$$. These windows are difficult to come by, nice addition to the sale!
I don’t think these are rust-prone cars, except for the rear quarter panel sheet metal rusting. Just pull off the plastic caps from the inner panel and shoot the area- quick easy job- that the line workers neglected to do.
In the mid 70s, I tangled with one of these, obviously a 273 4bbl, 4 speed job. I had my 351 68 Stang. I won, but it was a contest to be sure. These were good little cars.
Love these little sleepers. I had two,one with super 225 slant sux with hurst shifter and 4 speed. The second one was a 263 but 250000 miles. I blew that motor and found a aar 340 six pack and swapped it in there. 440 and hemis had a hard time keepin up with it. I would love to have this clean example.