Vehicle Description
The later 'Cudas, especially the HEMIs, seem to get all the
attention these days, but incredibly cool cars like this sweet 1967
Plymouth Barracuda is lighter, more agile, and quite likely way
faster than most of its younger siblings. And when decked out in
legendary Sox and Martin drag car livery, punctuated with a 360 V8
Mopar crate motor and 4-speed manual gearbox, this Battlin'
Barracuda drag car tribute is simply one of the most exciting
Mopars we've ever featured. Built to look drag-race ready yet
equipped to handle the rigors of the modern road, this '67 features
creature comforts like power steering power front disc brakes, and
even cold A/C, so don't cast it off as some dusty old pink slip
collector that only lives at the track. Nope, this Barracuda is a
well-rounded muscle car that's ready to dominate on all fronts.
The classic Sox and Martin red-white-and-blue paint scheme will be
familiar to most vintage drag racing fans, but not many know the
history of these legendary Mopars. In the '60s and '70s, driver
Ronnie Sox, crew chief Jake King, and manager Buddy Martin ran the
Sox and Martin race team of Plymouth Super Stockers and Pro
Stockers straight into the history books. Chrysler teamed up with
this group of winners for various promotions, including the
production of around 65 factory-produced Barracuda HEMI drag cars
that pretty much looked just like this beauty. Granted, those cars
were built with fiberglass fenders and hoods, no backseats, and
even half-thickness doors and glass, but this particular '67 still
embodies the pure American spirit of those cars, wearing its
national colors with great pride outside, while hiding a powerful
racing heart underneath. The Hemi Orange and Sox Blue paint job
slashed across the White canvas grabs your attention instantly, and
then you start to notice that there's more to this Barracuda than
first meets the eye. First there's a flat hood with a massive hood
scoop that looks like it was borrowed from an early Max Wedge or
something, giving it a race-ready look that's uniquely Mopar. The
trim Barracuda coupe bodywork is minimalism at its best, offering
light weight and maximum rigidity for the rigors of track use,
although this one has been built more for the road than the track
(more on that in a moment). Paint and bodywork are worthy of
coverage in Mopar magazine, with excellent fit and finish
throughout that shows extremely well, with only minor imperfections
to speak of. The builders wisely decided to forgo the classic blue
headlights and blue glass that Sox and Martin utilized in their
lightweight cars, installing upgraded headlights and glass instead
to ready this car for the road today. The chrome and trim were
likewise restored, which is nice to see since cars that are built
for combat seldom get fresh jewelry like this one has.
The all-black interior neatly straddles the street/strip fence,
offering full upholstery, door panels, and even a back seat to make
it habitable for road trips and other car-related activities. The
low-back front buckets are in fact correct for a Sox and Martin
car, but the high-end black vinyl upholstery and custom center
console between them suggests this car was also built to cruise and
show. A refinished dash features slick carbon-fiber accent trim
that's mirrored in the matching door panels and console, and the
factory dials have been augmented with a slew of white-faced Mopar
auxiliary gauges that include a large tachometer strapped to the
steering column. A leather-rimmed and chrome Mopar steering wheel
feels amazing in between the white-knuckles of the driver, and the
chrome hurst shifter topped with a white cue ball knob falls easily
to hand just a short reach away. The entire cabin was insulated
with sound-deadening material before thick black carpets were laid
down, the headliner was stretched taut over the roof, and the black
pad that protects the dash is completely unblemished. Options
include seatbelts fore and aft, a reproduction Mopar Solid State AM
stereo, and an upgraded R134a A/C system that was neatly integrated
under the dash and is blowing ice cold. The fold-down rear seat is
way more than you'd get in a Super Stock car in '67, but we love
the extra storage space it provides, not to mention the ability to
bring along two friends for a ride. Out back, the surprisingly
spacious trunk was trimmed to match the cabin and houses a
relocated Optima gel cell battery.
The engine is a snarling, Mopar 360 V8 small block crate that's
been built to take no prisoners, rated at a reported 375 horsepower
out of the box. With Mopar aluminum heads, a dual-line 4-barrel
carburetor and Mopar air-gap aluminum intake, plus Doug's long-tube
headers and an H-pipe dual exhaust, it has a nasty bark and there's
no question that it needs that big hood scoop to keep it fed. Very
neatly detailed under the hood, it's clear that showing as well as
racing are in this car's future, so the block wears Hemi Orange
paint and bright chrome Mopar Magnum valve covers, and the engine
bay was assembled and painted with as much care as the rest of the
car. The stout small block is backed by a quick-shifting 4-speed
manual gearbox with a Hurst shifter on top feeding a Dana 60 rear
with 3.55s inside that's ready to beat almost anything off the
line, but can still cruise at higher speeds with relative ease.
Power steering and power front disc brakes ensure a great ride
every time out, and upgraded shocks at the corners help set this
'Cuda's wicked stance. Keystone rims are correct Sox and Martin
spec, and they wear staggered 26x7.5-15 front and 28x10.5-15 rear
Mickey Thompson meats that finish the look perfectly.
Fast, beautiful, and functional, it's the ultimate early Barracuda.
Call today!
