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One Of 604: 1970 Plymouth Barracuda

It wasn’t until 1970 that the Plymouth Barracuda would shake its heritage with the Valiant. From its introduction in ’64 and through ’69, the Barracuda shared the platform and some of its sheet metal with its compact cousin. But in ’70, Plymouth gave the Barracuda (and the new Dodge Challenger) its own E-body platform, which was a shorter, wider version of Chrysler’s existing B-body. That translated into a sales boost for a time as the pony market had begun to reach saturation. This 1970 Barracuda is from that first year of the new body, has a 383 with a 4-speed, and appears to have been out of commission a long time. It’s available in Riverside, California, and here on craigslist for $28,500. Thanks to Rex M for bringing this tip our way.

The third generation of the Barracuda would run from 1970-74 before being retired due to declining sales. But in 1970, Plymouth was flying high as Barracuda orders were up more than 50 percent from the sagging numbers of the year before. Only coupe and convertible body styles were available as the fastback had been retired. While total sales nearly topped 50,000 in ’70, standard Barracuda coupes that came equipped with a 383 cubic inch V-8 with a 4-barrel carburetor and 4-speed manual transmission added up to just 604 copies. That is what we believe the seller’s car is. There is no VIN provided to verify, this doesn’t appear to be a Gran Coupe, and there are no ‘Cuda markings anywhere. Thanks, Mopar1, for the production info.

Finished in what we believe is the original “hi-impact” color Vitamin C Orange, the seller’s car comes with a little history. The seller mentions finding it in a barn where it’s been since 1989 and apparently brought it home to resell. The license plates show it was last registered as a California car, so the dry climate has no doubt been a huge factor in its being practically rust-free. While the seller says zero rust, one photo of the inside of a wheel well does show one little spot. So, from the body’s perspective, this car should provide a solid base to do a restoration from.

The interior, at least the front portion, looks to be a lost cause. The seats, dashboard, steering wheel, carpeting, and probably the door panels will need to be redone. The back seat doesn’t look bad and we don’t know about the headliner. Back in the day, when the driver got behind the wheel and punched it, this car should have hauled the mail. The “HIPO” or High-Performance 383 would have been good for 330 horses reaching the ground by way of the Mopar Pistol Grip shifter.

If this were a ‘Cuda in top shape, it could fetch $70,000 according to Hagerty. But this car is neither, yet it could still be worth half to 2/3 of that with the engine and transmission selected. Restoration on a car like this with a sound body will still not be cheap and you’ll be starting out with a high cost of entry. The asking price may be rich given what this car is going to need, but it is one-off only 600 or so made.

Comments

  1. Avatar Moparman Member

    This could be a nice one, but as Russ stated, the high cost of entry and restoration will be hanging over the head of the buyer. GLWTA!! :-)

    Like 8
  2. Avatar Chris M.

    Question is, does this car remind Cool Joe Machado of the one he bought new in ’70 or one of the other 18 Cudas he’s owned in his cool Mopar life? Patiently waiting for Joe to give us a morsel! Lol

    Like 8
  3. Avatar Kev

    It was $28000 on the first day of the ad but then changed to $38000
    It went up 10k overnight

    Like 1
  4. Avatar Ron

    He wants $38k for it, not $28.5.

    Like 1
  5. Avatar 370zpp Member

    Is the Mopar pistol grip shifter not the most truly awesome floor shifter, ever?

    Like 21
    • Avatar Mitchell Gildea Member

      That and the Hurst Lightning Rod shifter

      Like 7
    • Avatar Leslie Martin Member

      YES! But I always thouht the insanely long version of the pistol grip that early Roadrunner and Super Bee 4 speed cars came with was crazy cool too. Not the shortest throw, but more like slicing through the gears with a bowie knife than pistol whipping them!

      Like 5
    • Avatar stanley kwiecinski

      The holy grail. We found a plumb crazy 70 super bee with white hockey stripes.white int. a banged right quarter. not that bad though. ball shifter on hurst. sorta disappointed. Low and behold the pistol was in the trunk! B had; 69 side scoops on it. i liked them! 361 with blown throw out bearing. Anson scatter shield. ..wonder what he did with it? we street raced it on weekends. LOL

      Like 1
  6. Avatar Skip

    $28,500? Price seems to have gone up to $39,000???

    Like 4
  7. Avatar J_Paul Member

    It’s interesting that you could get the 383-4 engine in a regular Barracuda, instead of having to step up to the ‘cuda package. Kind of unusual.

    My question for the Mopar experts — what is the difference between this car and a ‘cuda with the same powertrain? Is there any?

    Like 4
    • Avatar Stephen Miklos

      This is the first time I seen a Barracuda with a 4 bbl. They came with a 383-2bbl. Those I seen plenty of. Without the VIN number don’t know the whole story. 😄

      Like 3
    • Avatar Mark

      ‘CUDA had the rallye dash

      Like 1
  8. Avatar Timmyt

    This car won’t bring 28,500

    Like 2
  9. Avatar Nick

    Actually a worthwhile muscle car, somewhat rare on BF of late, and also an actual somewhat rare, also a little different from what some sellers have alleged.
    The 383 Magnum was the top of the line engine for a Barracuda and with the optional 4 speed no less. This engine have been standard equipment for a ‘Cuda. All the bigger engines, and the 340, were unavailable on a Barracuda and optional on the ‘Cuda.
    This car also has optional PS, PB and Rallye dash, hard to tell if those are front discs though the wheels looks like they could be the optional 15″s.

    Like 5
  10. Avatar Matt in L.A.

    $39,000 now. This hobby, so core to most of us on here, has become untenable. A great base for a project but that price is insane. I don’t know anyone that can really afford this. Like property values here in California. How are that many people doing this?

    Like 3
  11. Avatar Kevin

    This car has gone from 28k to 39k overnight
    It was 28k on the first day of the ad

    Like 2
  12. Avatar Stephen Miklos

    After looking at the photos it hard to believe the mileage under 40k and the the interior looks like 138,00 sitting out in the sun. It’s a bloody mess. I wish it had a photo of the fender plate to read it. If its a true 383 Magnum it will read BH23NOB .. the N is the hi-po engine. Mopar did some strange things back then.😄🇺🇸

    Like 7
    • Avatar karl Spencer Member

      I bought the Barracuda your talking about. It’s to be delivered tomorrow, will have more information on authenticity. I have title, N on the vin tag and title match. N = 383 Hi.perf. Has 8000 rpm ralley gauges. 4 speed pistol grip? I think this car is gonna rock. Not to mention how clean it is and only 38000 miles.

      Karl

      Like 1
      • Avatar Ron

        Best of luck with this project. Would love to see updates on it.

        Like 1
  13. Avatar irocrobb

    I find it interesting to see a small white lettered Goodyear tire like was available when this car was new. Seems expensive for what it is.

    Like 2
  14. Avatar Doc

    There’s an extra zero on the end of the asking price for this heap.

    Like 2
    • Avatar Steve R

      It’s been 20+ years since that statement matched up with reality. It’s overpriced, but the suggestion this is a sub $4,000 car is ridiculous.

      Steve R

      Like 9
  15. Avatar Tom Parker

    Completely overpriced. 28.5K was a stretch, 39K is delusional. Low mileage is also laughable.

    Like 4
  16. Avatar Phil D

    There’s no telling what this car was originally. A check of the VIN and fender tag is definitely in order.

    At the very least the air cleaner cover applique has been swapped (assuming the engine is original to the car) because a Barracuda shouldn’t have left the assembly plant wearing anything saying “383 Magnum” — that’s Dodge’s name for the engine. A Plymouth hi-po 383 was a “383 Super Commando”.

    The only other observation is that unless the camera used for the pics is shifting the color to the red side, that car is Tor-Red, not Vitamin C.

    Like 1
  17. Avatar Mark

    I have the identical car but with white interior. Way tougher than this but bone stock, 41k miles and bought from the original owner. So cool to see another one. Would love to post a picture but “Barn Finds” won’t let me.

    Like 4
  18. Avatar karl Spencer Member

    Found the build sheet under the seat, everything is correct.

    Like 1

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