340 V8 Powered: 1965 Plymouth Barracuda
Up for sale is a 1965 Plymouth Barracuda that looks good and is located in balmy, Redondo Beach, California. This Plymouth project car is ready to go to a new home for a respectable $6,500. There is no VIN listed and no miles documented either. Thankfully, the title is listed as clean. Thank you, local_sheriff, for the tip. You can find it here on craigslist.
The numbers listed for what resides under the hood are these; a 340 cubic-inch V8 connected to a 727 TorqueFlite automatic transmission. The reason it only resides and not lives is that sadly, the listing states that the transmission is in need of work. It more than likely does run and as you can see in the photo, it appears to be in good condition. Looks can be deceiving though, especially when it comes to engines and transmissions.
You can see in the photos of the interior that everything appears to be in place. It looks like it has some aftermarket gauges in the bottom left of the dashboard. There are not up-close photos of anything and no descriptions. Above your head, the headliner is all sticking as it should. It does look like the seats have been redone at some point. Those of you who are MOPAR experts can tell us if the colors are correct or what may be inaccurate about this listing and photos.
A listing like this is second nature as we all know. The vague, non-descriptive information and somewhat helpful photos, always make things difficult, but thankfully the price is not high enough to make you stay completely away. It might be worth going to see it in person and speak to the seller to get a better idea about it and gauge what to do with it. It is located in one of the largest car enthusiasts populated areas in the world, so one way or another this car will move. While it might not go to one of those enthusiasts, it may go to someone less knowledgeable, but someone will eventually take this car home.
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Comments
Best looking Barracuda body style ever made.This is a very nice example.
not saying that i dont like the car, but i think that the 72′ barracuda was a more muscle car like style. this car reminds me a little bit of a ford pinto with the way the back is shaped. but still a pretty good find.
It’s worth a look if someone lives local to the car. Depending on the cars quality it might be a good project close to the asking price. The 340 is what makes the deal viable.
Steve R
Don’t ever break the back window!
There are MORE of those back windows around than will ever be needed. Since 1975 I’ve only had one buyer for the ones I have in stock and that was because the body man got the window while sanding it down with a DA sander.
Well, not everything, seems like the L armrest is MIA.
Have to say the car looks good. Can’t see any rust but potential buyers would want to inspect the bodywork under that nice paint to see if it’s loaded up with Bondo. Definitely would want to contact the seller for more details about the engine and trans. Does the 340 run? Exactly what ails the trans? I like the car, it looks pretty good with a nice interior and a clean engine. If the trans needs a re-build but the engine is good, the price seems reasonable. Anybody know what it would cost to re-build a 727 TorqueFlite automatic transmission ?
Just fyi, the 340 wasn’t available on the Barracuda until 1968. Only 225 slant six plus 273 V8 in two flavors.
I believe you are correct, I had a 64 valiant with the 273cid first year for that option. I believe the 273, 318, and 340 share many of the same parts as my head gasket kit was compatible with all three.
yep, and the ’68 340 Formula Barracuda was THE pony car to have!
l hate to say it but IMHO it looks like lipstick on a pig. Black under the hood. painted front bumper. This needs a full comprehensive inspection. Make sure its a real 340. Price is enticing and it looks great in the pics but with no description or good pics of the underbelly I’d be leery.Like Fordguy1972 said. Rebuildng that 727 should be reasonable like $1200 but I’m out of the loop, Caveat emptor for sure. Good luck.
Cheers
GPC
My 1964 1/2 – 273 Valiant convert came with a black painted engine compartment when I acquired it in the mid-70’s – about the only thing re-painted…..have got around to fixing it but she’s no trailer queen anyway……….think most cars got the black paint think as it was kinda a hot rod….or leaking oil thing………
Another non runner.
Vague descriptions.
Like the color.
Dumping the Pig ?
Pretty sure you could get the 340 and 383 in 1968.
And it had to be a Formula S model.
The 383 was available in 67 with the 340 and 383 in 68.
Yup. but note this is a 65
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, some people really like these early fish. Too much glass back there for me, I’ve seen more than a few fixed up, hot rodded, and while they looked good I could never get around all that glass. The 340 alone makes it more than a capable Mustang killer, once the transmission was sorted out of course.
Purely a personal preference on the styling.
Could it kill a new Mustang?
Short answer…NO.
Long answer….no way in h___….
Resale Red
My pet peeve on Mopars – When someone “restores ” the car and paints the engine bay black !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have had a few of these. (’64 & ’65) The interior color is not correct (at least I have never seen one in this color before). The largest engine from the factory at this period in time for the Barracuda was the 273 V8.
Even though I love these cars. Besides the transmission repair, I would end up spending another $3-4,000 dollars just to bring it up to quality braking, handling and fuel economy specifications. Loving every minute of the time to do so. My last one was sold in 1979 to buy a new Dodge van to haul my rally car around to events. It had 32,000 miles on it at the time and it was the same color.
If not for current projects and space, I would be taking a drive down to look at it.
The price seems very fair to me provided no rust issues.
Hum, I guess when the 273 was taken out, they painted the engine bay black, before they put the 340 in. Can’t be a Mopar person.
Nice example. I remember walking to grade school when I was six and seeing one of these all the time and that distinctive rear glass on the car, what an impression that left me with.
A friend of mine had a Barracuda like this ,yellow w/ a black strip over the top and down the hood , black interior 4 speed 273 formula S with a cool sounding exhaust , some nice looking wheels , loved that car . He called it the rotten banana lol. Saw him years later ask if he ever missed that car , his reply every day!
My least favorite body style of them but I actually wouldn’t mind this one. Wrong color or not, I’d give it fresh paint in this color.
Rather have the 340 in place of the 273. Better yet, put in a 360! Nothing beats more cubic inches!
Worth checking out – maybe the seller is not car savy………..and is just flipping it. Agree the color choice on the interior is not for everyone – but neither is my sister !
I have had my ’65 since 1978, when I bought it with a 273 running on five cylinders for $375 and dropped in a built 340 with 727 Torqueflite and 8.75″ rear end. I ran it with the 340 until a few years ago, when it began its transformation to its “third life”, with an aluminum 433 c.i. 3rd gen hemi with Hilborn stack injection and dry sump oil system, Tremec 6-speed with PPG sequential shift conversion, full frame with roll cage, independent rear suspension with Hammerhead center section and differential cooler, Detroit Speed front suspension, Alcon brakes, Viking active shock control, and a few other goodies. It’s set up for road racing, but is street legal, with stereo and Vintage Air A/C. Most people either love the first-generation Barracudas or hate them. I had a secretary who told me it was the ugliest car she had ever seen. Here’s a link to a photo taken at SEMA a few months ago:
https://forgeline.com/customer-gallery/will-irby
I don’t like the “badass” treatment stateans give to these cars, like if everything that came with a RWD-layout and a V8 engine was a muscle car. Ok, the barracuda had some good V8’s but I cannot look to another clone-from-another-clone anymore. These people might be mind-blind for these things around. Anyway… take out the V8 and drop a clean 225 slant six. The torqueflite appears to be the original 3-speed, so, just keep it. The steering wheel actually had a wooden finishing (not the plushy in the photo), but the chrome spokes are correct. And find a good set of bias-ply 6.50 tires and those sporty magnesium hubcaps for the original 13 inch wheels.