For sale is my 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda, an original “V” code 440-6 Limelight Shaker car that I have owned since 1992. I performed the restoration myself, finishing the project in 1996. The car comes with the original build sheet, which verifies the options on the car. A short list follows:
VIN BS23V0B192887 1970 6-Barrel 440 ‘Cuda, 1 of 853 V-Code automatics made in 1970
Code FJ5 “Limelight” paint color
Code A32 “Super Performance Axle Package” 727 3-speed automatic transmission, 4.10 geared Dana 60 rear end (NOTE: rear gears are now 3.54, I swapped them to make highway cruising a little more reasonable RPM-wise)
Code N96 Fresh Air Intake “Shaker” Hood
The 440-6 engine was rebuilt prior to my purchase, it is a stock-type rebuild. The engine is the original “numbers matching” engine for the car, the heads are original, the intake is the original cast iron 6-barrel unit. The carbs are Holley re-issues (I unfortunately sold the originals years ago before Holley offered their rebuild service). The shaker bubble is the original. The transmission is not the original transmission – it is a Bob Mazzolini Racing rebuilt 727 with upgraded internals, a shift kit, and a 5.0 kickdown lever. The internal governor is set to upshift under full throttle at 5500 RPM in drive. The car is an original power front disc/rear drum car. The front brakes have been upgraded to Wilwood Dynalight discs/calipers, with the original power booster and rear 10.5 drums. The exhaust system is TTI nickel-plated headers connected to a full 3” TTI H-pipe exhaust system continuing to TTI stainless steel tips. Mufflers are Flowmaster 40 series. The electrical system has been upgraded with a modern Powermaster 1-wire Mopar alternator, MSD control box (hidden under the battery tray), and headlight and road lamp relays installed. The suspension includes PST Polygraphite suspension bushings in place of all original rubber bushings. The torsion bars are upgraded .96” Mopar Performance units. The steering has been upgraded from the original manual box to a Borgeson power steering quick-ratio steering box. The rear springs are Mopar Performance XHD springs. Front control arms are Magnum Force tubular. As with all 6-Barrel cars, factory air conditioning was not an option, but I have installed aftermarket Vintage Air air conditioning on the car with the underdash vent system and Vintage Air’s electronic control panel. It’s a slick setup that blows cold air and doesn’t detract too much from the original look of the interior or engine. The cooling system has been upgraded with a Griffin aluminum radiator with dual electric fans. Also added is a “stealth” radio that looks like the original AM radio but is actually a modern stereo system with Bluetooth capability, including modern speakers in the original locations plus a trunk-mounted subwoofer.
Restoration Notes: The car was stripped to bare metal, filler work performed exclusively with Evercoat All-Metal filler, then PPG DP-40 epoxy primer applied. On top of the epoxy I applied multiple coats of K36 sanding primer, then the car was sealed with thinned DP-40, 3 coats of Deltron basecoat applied, followed by 5 coats of Concept 2020 high-solids clearcoat. The clearcoat was wet-sanded and buffed. The car was never on a rotisserie, I cleaned the bottom and re-sprayed a fresh coat of undercoat over the original undercoat which was still in good shape. The paint has held up very well, with only one 1” split above the driver door in the rain gutter where the seam sealer has split. The interior was restored with Auto Custom Carpets and Legendary Interiors parts. The floor pans have Dynamat installed underneath the carpet to keep things cooler and “quiet.”
This is not a minty-fresh restoration, which is good and bad.
The good: there will be no surprises with this car, it is well sorted, and any issues with the bodywork would have surfaced years ago. The paint has held up extremely well, it has been garage-kept in climate-controlled garages ever since I completed the restoration. All the lights work, inside and out. It’s been driven about 500-1000 miles per year since 1996. It has completed 2 Hot Rod Power Tours without mechanical issue.
The bad: This is not a complete OEM numbers-centric restoration, it will not win at the Mopar Nats and would not receive an OE Certification without a lot of work. The transmission is not numbers-matching. It is a column shift automatic, it doesn’t have overdrive, and spins at about 3000 rpm at 70, which pretty much negates the “sound-deadening” I installed. The Flowmaster 40s sound awesome, but drone at highway speeds. The underside is not pristine, it shows that this car has been driven, with some leaks and dirt evident. It’s not a full restomod, nor is it OE – it’s somewhere in between.
Bottom Line: if you are looking for an “investment grade” Mopar Nats OE-certified 100-point restoration to park in your collection this car is not it. If you are looking for a Restomod with all the modern conveniences, this car is not that either. If you want a car that looks stock, is a real V-code Limelight Shaker ‘Cuda, but has hidden upgrades like A/C, stereo, and suspension/steering/electrical system improvements to make actually driving it more enjoyable, this is your car.
More pictures and video avail on request.
Price is firm.
