1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

August 31, 2022 Update – While the high bid of $10,100 fell short of the seller’s reduced reserve price of $19,900, the seller and buyer were able to negotiate a fair price of $16,000 less than one day after this auction ended. Congrats to both the seller and the buyer!

Guys With Rides is pleased to offer Lot 143, a  restored 1966 Plymouth Barracuda Fastback, in an online, reserve-style auction format on behalf of the private seller.

Bidding opened Wednesday, August 17, 2022, and will continue for fourteen (14) consecutive days ending at 5:00 PM Eastern on Wednesday, August 31, 2022.

This 1966 Plymouth Barracuda Fastback is part of a collection located in Northern Minnesota.

(NOTE: Click on the picture to stop the slide show and expand the pictures. Scroll down to see all photographs)

1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

SOLD FOR $16,000 after auction ended

1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

Knowing Ford was busy developing a sporty Falcon-based compact car, Chrysler stylist Irv Ritchie sketched a fastback version of Valiant.  At the time, Chrylser dumped most of its R&D budget into the Turbine Car project, leaving little capital to develop new models.  However, Chrysler’s marketing and sale executives needed a car to compete in this soon-to-grow segment.

Based on Chrysler’s A-body, Plymouth launched the Barracuda fastback on April 1, 1964. The new model used the Valiant’s 106-inch wheelbase and the Valiant hood, headlamp bezels, windshield, vent windows, quarter panels, doors, A-pillar, and bumpers; the trunk and some of the glass were new. Utilizing the same hybrid design approach as Ford did, turning its Falcon into the Mustang significantly reduced Plymouth’s development and tooling cost and time for the new model. The greatest effort was to create its distinguishing 14.4 square foot rear window, a collaboration between Pittsburgh Plate Glass (PPG) and Chrysler designers.

Powertrains were identical to the Valiant’s, including two versions of Chrysler’s slant-6 six-cylinder engine. was the 101 horsepower 170 cubic inch slant six, while the 145 horsepower, 225 cubic inch version served as the mid-level power choice.  The highest-power option was Chrysler’s all-new 180 horsepower 273 cubic inch V8 in either two-barrel or four-barrel “Commando” form.

The 1964 model year was the first for the Barracuda and also the last year for push-button control of the optional Torqueflite automatic transmission. This year also marked the first use of the smaller “TorqueFlite 6” (A904) transmission behind a V8.

In 1965, the 225 slant-6 became the base engine for the U.S. market.  New options were introduced for the Barracuda as the competition among pony cars intensified. The 273 engine was made available as an upgraded Commando version with a four-barrel carburetor, 10.5:1 compression, and a more aggressive camshaft with solid tappets. These and other upgrades increased the engine’s output to 235 horsepower.

For 1966, the Barracuda received new taillamps, new front sheet metal, and a new instrument panel. The latter had room for oil pressure and tachometer gauges on models so equipped. The 1966 front sheet metal, which, except for the grille, was shared with the Valiant, gave a more rectilinear contour to the fenders. Deluxe models featured fender-top turn signal indicators with a stylized fin motif. The bumpers were larger, and the grille featured a strong grid theme. A center console was optional for the first time.

Although the first Barracudas were heavily based on the contemporary Valiants, Plymouth wanted them perceived as distinct models. Consequently, the “Valiant” chrome script that appeared on the 1964+12 model’s trunk lid was phased out at the end of the 1965 model year in the U.S. market, and the large stylized “V” trim above the deck lid was changed to a unique Barracuda fish logo for 1966.

The current caretaker reports their 1966 Plymouth Barracuda was originally a rust-free Idaho car restored in 2002. The car features its original 273 cubic inch motor, with a hotter cam, hi-rise manifold, four-barrel Demon Carb, 4 Speed, 391 sure grip rear differential, and power steering. This Barracuda features a repaint in Moss Green complemented by a new white interior, new carpet, and headliner. This Barracuda also features a new stainless dual exhaust, new raised white letter tires, and old school chrome reverse w/ baby moons by Wheel Vintiques.

A Complimentary Lemon Squad Pre-Purchase Inspection (“PPI”) was just completed on August 23, 2022, confirming the quality of this restored 1966 Plymouth Barracuda Fastback.  To view the results of the PPI, click on the picture below.  When finished, click your browser’s back button to return to this page:

1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

To help you make informed bids, we’re providing you with access to Classic.com, the analytics and search engine for the Classic Car market, that provides an interactive graph of recent comparable sales year-to-date. By clicking on the green dots, you can navigate to each comparable car sold as a way to help you make an educated bid on the car we are featuring for auction here:

If you have any questions about this restored 1966 Plymouth Barracuda, please leave a comment below or feel free to call Rudy directly at 877-468-6497.  Thank you for looking, and happy bidding!

Exterior Gallery

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Interior Gallery

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Underhood And Undercarriage Gallery

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Tires And Wheels Gallery

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Roof And Windows Gallery

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Documentation Gallery

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6 Comments
  1. 1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

    He should have had someone else take the photos.

    Reply
    • 1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

      The pre-purchase inspection scheduled for later today will provide more pictures. We are hopeful the inspector will provide the additional pictures by Saturday at the latest.

      Reply
    • 1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

      I agree. There’s nothing more maddening than photos where the car is incorrectly cropped. There’s no excuse for not having pics that show the complete car.

      Reply
      • 1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

        Steve, we try our best to get quality pictures from a combination of the sellers, the pre-purchase inspector, and, if needed, a professional photographer. We even provide them with a checklist and a video of how to take great pictures. Unfortunately, we are at the mercy of those factors. That, combined with the fact we could not source a professional photographer where this car is located, made it a challenge. If there is a specific picture you are interested in, we can try to work with the seller to obtain them.

        Reply
  2. 1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

    So what is the reserve for this car? Your ad says reserves are disclosed but I don’t see it.

    Reply
    • 1966 Plymouth Barracuda – SOLD FOR $16,000!

      If you click on one of the blue “bid now” buttons on the listing, it will take you to the actual bid page. Just below where you enter bids, you’ll see a horizontal thermometer that changes from blue to green as the bids increase.

      Reply

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