Until recently this 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda had been sitting forlornly in a barn, a spot that it had occupied since 1981. It has been brought out into the light of day once again, and the owner has breathed new life into this desirable classic. It now runs and drives, and it would seem as though it will take little time or effort to return the ‘Cuda to a roadworthy state. As an added bonus, this is a very solid car, meaning that the next owner won’t be facing a mountain of rust repairs in the future. The ‘Cuda is located in Alabaster, Alabama, and has been listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding has reached $20,211 in what is a No Reserve auction. Just how popular are these awesome Plymouths? Well, apart from the fact that this one has attracted 46 bids up to this point, there are also a staggering 308 people who are currently watching the listing.
The ‘Cuda received a repaint in its original Lemon Twist back in the 1970s, but apart from that, the car is said to be original and untouched. The paint generally remains quite presentable, although I wouldn’t blame the next owner if they were to choose to treat the Plymouth to another repaint. The Black vinyl top also looks to be quite reasonable, and I think that this could be revived without the need to replace it. One of the big plus-points with this vehicle is the lack of rust problems. The owner mentions some rust holes in the trunk pan, but it isn’t clear how large these are. He doesn’t mention any further problems, and the panels themselves look to be very clean and solid. One amazing fact with this particular car is that not only does it still feature its original hood pins, but even the wires are original. These have normally been changed or removed completely by this point in time.
The ‘Cuda is a numbers-matching car, featuring the 340ci V8 engine, the heavy-duty A-727 automatic transmission, along with power steering and power brakes. The 340 should be capable of producing 275hp, meaning that an easy sub-16-second ¼ mile ET is well within the grasp of this car. After sitting for so many decades, the ‘Cuda did require some work to revive it. The owner has fitted a new fuel tank and sending unit, but doesn’t mention what other work might have been performed. Regardless, the 340 has roared back into life, and the owner says that the vehicle now runs and drives. There is no doubt that there will be other work required before the car could be considered to be roadworthy, but at least the next owner will be starting from a pretty decent foundation. I used the word “amazing” earlier in this article, and I really have to use it again. The storage environment for the Plymouth must have been close to ideal because it is amazing that this 50-year-old car still wears its completely original exhaust system. The owner claims that the ‘Cuda has a genuine 79,000 miles on the odometer, and if it really has been sitting idle since 1981, then this is certainly conceivable.
The good news with this classic just keeps coming, with the original Black interior presenting extremely nicely. The seats and other upholstered surfaces appear to be in fantastic condition, while the console, dash, and pad all look to be perfect. The fact that the Plymouth features bucket seats and a console is a pretty nice bonus, and while the car isn’t loaded with optional extras, it does come complete with a Music Master AM radio. In reality, the new owner won’t need to spend a penny on the interior, because it does seem to be in better than average condition for an original survivor.
When you find classics like this 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda emerging from hiding after decades, and they are in the sort of condition that this one appears to be in, it makes you wonder why they were parked in the first place. So often, these cars will emerge, and what comes with them is an enormous list of work that will be required to have them looking and performing at their best once again. That doesn’t appear to be the case with this particular car, and that is one of the reasons why it has garnered so much interest since being listed for sale. Of course, the fact that these are desirable classics that have been steadily increasing in value certainly doesn’t hurt this ‘Cuda’s cause. This really does seem to be a great car, so it will be interesting to see if any of our readers are willing to join the bidding frenzy.
Change the fluids, check the brakes, grease it up and drive it! What a great find. Not a real fan of yellow on a car but I’d own this one given the opportunity.
Those Rallye rims look exceptional for a barn find.
The condition looks remarkable for a car stored since 1981. As a young married man I had a 1970 ‘Cuda 383 automatic in the early 80’s in Ohio which had some “some rust holes in the trunk pan,” too. It was a Midwest car had originally been Sassy Grass green but had been repainted black over some questionable bodywork. One evening the trunk pan gave way under a load of groceries, and the rusty ‘Cuda was sold soon after.
Sassy Grass Green is an incredibly rare color on a 1970 model as it was introduced mid-year. Much more often seen on ’71s, though still pretty rare in that model year too.
I’m just crazy about yellow and yellow is crazy about me …They Call me mellow yellow…that’s right slick 🎸🎼🎹
I could get into this car as is .. other than a four speed conversion.
Then it would be off to drive at high speeds like Kowalski in Vanishing point minus the dozer blade hopefully… 😏
Just a walk in the park Kowalski 👍
Oh THANKS, Classic Steel-Now I’ll have that running nonstop in my head all day!!! 😱
Quite right….
340 powered Mopars routinely clocked in the 14-sec. range in quarter mile road tests of the day.
I saw it somewhere…1970 340 4 speed Challenger 14.6 seconds. 2019 Challenger V6 AWD 14.9 seconds.
AND, the new one is much heavier. Imagine if it had the V8 engine, too. Modern cars are a small miracle.
It’s not so much the motor.
The new chally would be in the 15s if it had the ’70’s 4 speed manual or non locking up 3 speed auto, neither of which are overdrive, & the 70’s MECHANICAL engine driven fan & ’70s bias ply tires & pts & condenser. & heavy power robbing non modern mickey mouse a/c compressor. lol
What’s not brought up is the durability of the new ones – would you rather have/put the hammer down on a ’70s dana rear & 2 universal joints, or on the new one with 6!!! crappy CV joints? – only as strong as the weakest link.
& equipped with the modern hemi, that thing has had a lot of recalls too.
I owned a 1988 Taurus with the 3.0 V6, and the list of hot rod parts it came standard with in the name of efficiency was impressive. Roller rockers and lifters, and a windage tray. And the net result was about 175 horses and a car that would roll all day at 70 with the air on and return 30 mpg.
You know, all I’ve seen are tests on showroom stock cars. I haven’t seen any where everything that doesn’t make it go faster has been removed.
Hemi cars are nice but if you need to drive in the snow the AWD version wins hands down.
If you were going to be in the “Rapid Transit System ” 14 sec was a requirement.
Cool, I didn’t know that.
I loved the Rapid Transit car magazine ads.
Pic
$21K as of this moment with 3+ days to go. Should easily glide past $30K and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it closer to $40K at the end.
Yada yada yada, so much of the same. I want the stunningly restored dark blue Mirada I saw at Iola last summer. Who ever owns that really has a unicorn on his hands, a lucky man for sure. Go ahead, pay 50 grand on this, but people are going to yawn when they see it, been there, done that, got the tee shirt. Quite the crowd around that awesome Mirada. People couldn’t believe their eyes, people were talking up a storm about the last time they had actually saw one in the wild. These? People smile, and walk by. Maybe 20 years ago they would have drew a crowd, now just too many restored ones around. Now, not a bad thing, but if you want to stand out, be different. Emersonian logic at its best. Too bad I can’t post a picture to get your opinions, Lord knows I took a lot of them that day.
There’s an abandoned dealership in Ohio just south of Midland, PA that had a nice gold Mirada in the showroom. Maybe the local police or the Ford dealership next to it could tell you who the owner is?
Thanks for the tip Dave. I was pretty smitten by the incredible blue one at the Iola car show. Left a note on the windshield in case the owner would be willing to talk numbers for a sale. Never heard back, but of course, doubt I was the only one with that idea. In the past, I have seen other people put notes on nice car windshields and quietly pocket another one that was already there. Sometimes the old car world can be really cut throat.
They’re not bad looking cars! I haven’t investigated it because I’m afraid that there’s a zero miles Caravan or Voyager in the garage and the owner says to just take the cars before the building collapses! If you find it on Google Maps you can see the cars in Street View.
It’s just to the left of Tri State Ford on Pennsylvania Avenue, or Ohio Route 39.
Same Message Different Automobile
Very nice looking car. It should make the new owner proud.
Steve R
Are all those wrinkles in the front seats, & 2 rubber hoses to carburetor factory stock?
Nice find. This just proves old cars are out there. Drive it. Life short.
A High school friend had one almost identical to this one, except it had a stick. He let me drive it once, scared the living daylights out of me.
What did it sell for ?
I tried searching through EBay completed and sold listings but it doesn’t come up.
Probably too old of a listing.
Yes, they did a good job storing this one, which is just average i’d say. Most old Mopars that show up here seem to be stored in the back pond which i never understood. I’ve got a car i’ve owned for almost 30 years in the NE, have driven it in winter, stored sometimes inside, sometimes outside and it’s not rotted out. Just don’t put it under a plastic tarp or in a humid dirt floor barn and you should be ok. Come to think of it, I don’t think i’ve owned a car that rotted out on me. Just wash or spray them off every once and a while.
I don’t know much about Plymouths, but wouldn’t a ‘Cuda have the gills in the front fenders, and louvered rockers?
1971 only and was an option then I’m sure or I will be corrected….another reason some Cuda’s are sought after…..the rocker trim on some were also simulated gill type…..my 1968 S Cuda had a little small – maybe 1 foot one……still have a set somewhere…