The first of the popular "
pony cars" of the mid-
1960's,
Plymouth's
Barracuda is a frequently overlooked part of
American automotive history. A good car it was, but poor
marketing and unfortunate
sales due to indomitable
competition buried the 'cuda.
Following the success of the Chevrolet Bel Air due to clever marketing to the nation's youth -- something that had not been done previously, and worked wonders -- prompted Ford to begin development of a new car. This auto would be small, light, relatively fast, inexpensive, and marketed to teenagers and young adults. Rumors begin to circulate about Ford's "new T-bird". Chrysler-owned Plymouth decided they, too, could create this sort of automobile, mostly to increase their image among the young consumer (Plymouth was typically seen as an older gentleman's car). Development began in 1959 on a new fastback model of the compact Plymouth Valiant.
1964.
On April 1,
1964, the first of Plymouth's
pony cars, the
Plymouth Valiant Barracuda, hit the
market -- 16 days before its major
competitor, the
Ford Mustang. The Valiant Barracuda ran on a 170
cubic inch displacement (
cid),
inline-six cylinder
engine, producing a far-from-
phenomenal 101
horsepower. Optional engines for the
performance-minded gent included a 145 hp, 225 cid engine and a 273 cid engine producing 180 hp. The Barracuda was mechanically weak, but
attractive -- the sharp
fastback invoked images of potential
driving delights. The
Mustang also ran on a 170 cid engine producing 101 hp, but had a 289 cid
V8 (271 hp)
option -- much more
bang for your buck than the Barracuda offered. Unfortunately, though preceding
Ford, the
Valiant Barracuda suffered horribly in sales -- almost as many Mustangs were sold on the
first day as Barracudas were sold in a whole
model year. By the end of `64, 23443 Barracudas were sold to around 124000 Mustangs.
1965.
To distance the Valiant Barracuda from the original
Valiant -- which was, by no means, a performance
vehicle -- the Valiant was dropped from the name for good. Not to be outdone by the Mustang, the Barracuda now sported a
high-performance "
Formula S" option. This bad boy carried a race-designed and tested
suspension, and the
Commando 273 V8 engine, outputting 235
horse (and a very sweet zero-to-sixty
time of roughly eight seconds, thanks to a heightened
compression ratio). Unfortunately, when compared to other vehicles in
magazine reviews and the like, the 273-S was extolled more for
practicality than
performance -- obviously, what
Chrysler did not want; they were trying to market the
'cuda to
youth, after all. The Barracuda was continuing to
get its ass kicked in
sales by the Mustang (a
trend that would continue as long as the two
cars were in
existance together) -- 64576 Barracudas (the most ever) were sold in `65, to a whopping 559451 Mustangs.
1966.
Not many changes to the Barracuda in `66. A new "
fish"
emblem was given to the car, trying to distance it even more from its Valiant
predecessor. Front
disc brakes were now a
dealer-installed option (the Barracuda otherwise used
drum brakes on all four wheels). The Formula
S option was still available. 38029 'cudas sold to 607568 Mustangs. These poor sales obviously put
Chrysler off the mark, and a new,
redesigned
Barracuda was planned for the next model
year...
1967.
The second
generation Barracuda became more a
muscle car than ever. Straight-line
performance was emphasized, as well as
good looks -- for
the first time ever, the Barracuda was offered in a
convertible model. Unfortunately, the 'cuda was facing stiffer
competition --
Chevrolet's new
Camaro and
Pontiac's
Firebird entered the pony car
fray. The
bare-bones Barracuda offered a wimpy 225 cid, 145 hp
straight-six (a 273 cid, 180 hp
V8 and a
Commando 273 at 235 hp was optional). Formula S became even better than before -- now utilizing the
Commando 383 engine, which output a
solid 280 hp @ 4200 rpm (the low
horsepower was due to a cramped
block space, which restricted the
exhaust system). Not enough to run with the fastest of Mustangs, but an impressive
offering. It did, however, pack a ton of
torque -- a tire-destroying 400 ft. lbs @ 2400 rpm. The 'cuda had its second highest sales ever in `67, with 62534 -- not nearly matching 472000 Mustangs.
1968.
`68 brought along a
major shot in the arm for high-performance
Barracudas. The 273 cid engine was retired in
favor of the 318
V8, and a 340 cid (275 hp @ 5000 rpm and 340 ft lbs @ 3200 rpm) became the
standard in Formula S -- though the
Commando 383 was still optional, and
performed better than the
previous `67 383, now outputting a
respectable 300 hp. Of course, none of these came close to the
ultimate Barracuda, the
Hemi Barracuda Super Stock. These monsters were fitted with the
426 Hemi, which gave the Barracuda an amazing
500 horsepower; more than enough to eat any
Mustang,
Camaro or
Firebird alive. It did the
quarter mile in 11 seconds, at over 130 mph -- say goodbye to
stop-light confrontations. The whole vehicle was lightweighted (even the
glass was replaced with a lighter substitute, called
Kemcore) due to the heavy
nature of the
hemispheric engine. The Hemi Super Stock was, naturally, sold
as-is, without
warranty. At least 50 of these were built. Total sales for `68 'cudas reached 45412.
1969.
Hurst shifters and a
heavy-duty suspension became standard on all models of 'cuda. A
new model of Barracuda, actually called the 'Cuda (the first time it was recognized by its
street nickname by
Plymouth), was introduced for `69. Engine offerings for the Formula S included the Commando 340 engine (
unchanged), and the Commando 383 -- which now turned 330
horses. Of course, higher performance was now the
norm -- the
Super Commando 440 Magnum offered in the 'Cuda model provided for 375 hp and a ground-pounding 480 ft.lbs of
torque, making the strongest non-
Hemi 'cuda yet. Under
nominal conditions, your average Barracuda couldn't hope to beat a
Chevrolet Camaro Z28 or a
Ford Mustang Boss 302 in the turns; to help accomplish this, the new Formula S, the best yet (and the last), was given
power steering, power front
disc brakes (standard for the first time), 1"
heavy duty shock absorbers, and heavy duty
springs, making the 383-S a
GT marvel. About this time in
history, insurance companies were making a
snit, forcing
Uncle Sam to turn a
hard eye to "unsafe"
muscle cars. The
future looked grim. Fortunately enough,
automakers still had about a
year or two to churn out some amazing machines -- `69 and `70 are generally recognized as the
apex of
performance by most muscle cars, and the Barracuda was no exception. Sales and production of 'cuda were a miserable 31987 in 1969.
1970.
The third generation of Barracuda. A new body/
chassis platform, called the
E-body, was created for the Barracuda -- and a new, "sister" car, the
Dodge Challenger. The new 'cudas were made especially with the
goal of optimal straight-line
performance in mind, and so
Chrysler decreed that any
Mopar engine, up to and including the
426 Hemi, must be able to fit inside the 'cuda. A total of nine
engines were made for the two E-bodies as a result, from the
meager 225 cid straight-six (base engine of the 'cuda's new
Gran Coupe model) to the 426 Hemi -- a
318, a
340, three
383s and a pair of
440s (a four-barrel at 375 hp, and a "
3-2"
Six-Pack setup producing 390) rounded out the
list. A special model of Barracuda, called the
AAR (for All-American Racers) Barracuda, also went into
production -- only because the
Stock Car Club of America, SCCA, required that a
car must have 2500 production vehicles to be able to enter the
Trans Am series (AAR 'cudas totalled 2724). The AARs running in
SCCA utilized a 340 cid, single four-barrel
carbuerator engine (
de-stoked to 303.8 cid, as per
regulations) -- the street AAR used the full 340 with a
Six-Pack (three two-barrel
carbs). Sales totalled 55499.
1971.
Not many mechanical
changes for 1971, though a cosmetic change in the form of four
headlights appeared. The AAR model disappeared as quickly as it came, due to the pulling of all
Mopars from the
Trans-Am series. The
government had finally listened to the insurance companies, and had imposed
emission controls (including a new
horsepower rating system), low-lead
gasoline was forced upon the
American public, and an impending
oil crisis was doing the
muscle cars no good at all. More
economical (mostly
Japanese) cars were becoming more
popular than gas-guzzling
V8s. The
death of the Barracuda is imminent -- an awful 18690 'cudas were produced.
1972.
The Barracuda went back to having two headlights, but a new distinctive
appearance feature came in the form of four round
taillights, visibly similar to a
Chevrolet Corvette of the time, or a
Nissan Skyline of
today. Only two models of the Barracuda exist now; the base model, and the "high-performance" 'Cuda. The
base model used the 225 cid straight-six @ 110
bhp, and the 'Cuda used a 318 cid
V8 at only 150 bhp -- very depressing. An optional engine existed as the 340 cid V8, rated at 240
horsepower. Challenger and Barracuda are becoming forgotten by their parent
companies, as more economical cars become the focus of
automakers. Final year's sales
total 18450.
1973.
Strangely, in the race for
economy in
automobiles, the
straight-six 225 was dropped for `73. Almost no mechanical or cosmetic changes. The death of the Barracuda is close at hand, though sales were at a slight rise in `73 at 22213.
1974.
Last year for the Barracuda and the Challenger both. In an even stranger move, the 'Cuda is upped from a standard 340 to a
360, now outputting 245 hp. Despite the
performance increase, the last Plymouth Barracuda rolled off the
lines on April 1, 1974 -- 10 years to the day the Valiant Barracuda was introduced in `64. Only 4989 'cudas were produced before its
demise. In total, around 386500 Barracudas were made by the end of its
production -- the Mustang produced well over that number before its second
model year was ended, a
testament to just how badly the 'cuda fared.
Sources: David Newhardt. Dodge Challenger & Plymouth Barracuda.
Also, please see History of the Ford Mustang. 1964-1973 for more pony car info.