Ford's Mustang was one of the worst-kept secrets in Detroit as its April of 1964 launch date neared. The Falcon-based sporty coupe available in a wide range of performance and price levels threatened to upend the equilibrium of a car market where most Detroit companies only made two sizes of car.
In a crash program, Plymouth fitted a wraparound glass fastback and a 2+2 seating arrangement to their Valiant compact coupe and got the new Plymouth Barracuda into showrooms two weeks before the original pony car.
Both in terms of sales and performance, though, the Mustang trounced the original Barracuda, which had somewhat awkward styling and mechanically literally was a Valiant fastback coupe.
For 1967, a second generation Barracuda debuted, and while it still shared some mechanicals with the Dart/Valiant compacts, the sheet metal was all new and it was gorgeous. The coke bottle flanks and bobbed Kamm-esque tail were a one thousand percent improvement over the boxy, tail-heavy looks of the first ones.
The lack of side marker lights on the Bright Red ragtop in the photo mark it as a '67 model.
The base motor was that Mopar stalwart, the 225 cubic inch Slant Six. Optionally, buyers could spring for 2- or 4-barrel versions of Chrysler's 273 cid LA small block V-8, making either 180 or 235 SAE gross horsepower. Finally, if the shopper sprang for the Formula S package, they'd get cool badges, a suite of performance parts, and unlocked availability of the 383 cubic inch B-series Commando V-8. The engine bay had been widened enough to accommodate the big block, but there wasn't any room for a power steering pump, so not only did you get the quickest Barracuda, but also a tremendous upper body workout machine. The exhaust was more restrictive in the small car, too, so the 4-barrel Commando only made 280 horses, instead of the 325 it did in a Sport Fury.
When Car Life put a '67 hardtop coupe with the 145 horsepower Slant Six and three-speed TorqueFlite through its paces, they recorded a zero to sixty time of 13.6 seconds and a 19.4 second quarter mile at 70 miles per hour, and a 97mph top speed.
This one was photographed with a Nikon Coolpix S6500 in August of 2014.
Everybody remembers the Barracuda's ginormous rear window, but I think the '67-69 hardtop with the formal/conventional roof looks better. Not that it's relevant, since you posted a convertible. ;^)
ReplyDeleteBack in the '60s and '70s, in my hometown there was a guy who always seemed to have 2 or 3 early Barracudas hanging around.
Over at Facebook, I commented to Larry Weeks: “ I mean, the 3rd Gen 'Cudas are undeniably sexy, but I think a '67-'69 Formula S notchback coupe with the hot small block is the Thinking Person's Barracuda. Especially a '69 with the 340 and 4-speed...”
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