RideLust

Remember back in 2005 when the redesigned Dodge Charger came out? Mopar purists went completely bat-shit because Chrysler decided to give it four doors instead of two, which for some, was shear blasphemy. But what if back in the day the original Charger came with 4-doors? I mean that would have relegated it to family truckster status right from the get go and thus there wouldn’t have been any controversy. The same can be said for the Plymouth Barracuda, a car that is arguably one of the most iconic muscle cars ever built. They’re styling is timeless, their reputations at the drag strips are legendary, and way back when you could order one up with everything from a slant-6 to a fire breathing 426 HEMI. I found this rendering online of a four-door version and figured I’d post it up to get some opinions. So, whatcha’ think – good, bad or indifferent?

American muscle cars are brutish machines that have a personality all their own. Their loud, dirty and don’t do anything particularly well, except that is, make you smile like a four year old. Maybe it’s the rumbling their V8 engines or the fact that they have the ability to incinerate their tires at a moments notice. Or maybe, just maybe, they transport us back to a time when muscle cars simply meant one thing… freedom. Alexandra Lier is a German muscle car enthusiast who not only loves the American car culture, but has in her possession one very cool 1967 Plymouth Barracuda notch-back. The Barracuda’s built from 1967-1969 are, in my opinion, some of the coolest cars out there. These short wheelbase cars not only handle great with some mild tweaking, but throw in a tuned small-block, and well… you’d have yourself one wicked little rocket on your hands. Alexandra’s been to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, written a book about American cars entitled “SPEEDSEEKERS” and has her thumb on exactly what’s going on here in the U.S. even though she’s 3,000 miles away.

Source: chromjuwelen.com

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If you’re into muscle cars then you know that the winged cars from Dodge and Plymouth that were built between 1969 and 1970 are worth big bucks. Yes their styling was controversial, and yes they languished on dealer lots for years, but that doesn’t change the fact that these are still some of the most sought after cars in existence. For some, the idea of having a winged-warrior in their garage will always be a pipe dream, for others though, well… they just throw caution to the wind and build their own. Doing this however can be a sketchy endeavor as finding original parts is not only next to impossible, but extremely costly. Rest assured though because I have come across a Plymouth wing car that you can probably get for not much more then a good dinner out and a few tanks of premium fuel.

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By now it should be no secret that I love big cars. Maybe it’s because I grew up in the 1970′s, or maybe it’s the fact that at 6’4″, I’m a rather large Dude. Whatever the case though, these massive land yachts have a place in my heart that can’t be touched. Even though big ole’ American cars are inefficient as hell, they represent a time when people actually traveled on the open road, instead of flying over it. They were made for comfort, speed and at the end of the day, had styling that made a statement where ever you went. What you are seeing here is a 1971 Plymouth Sport Fury, a car that at 19-feet long and 4,000 lbs. defined the term “land yacht”.
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Cars are generally shipped in one of two ways; either via an enclosed trailer, or on the flat bed of an open transport. Nine times out of ten nothing goes wrong, as most shippers are qualified to handle just about any situation. However when things do go wrong, they usually go wrong big. I’ve shipped cars all over the country and in doing so have had my share of ups and downs. I’ve seen clutches blown, exhausts smashed up, as well as some nice dings in my bodywork. In the end though most companies have insurance to cover any damages, but for those that don’t… oh deary me. Take this transporter for instance; on the bed he’s got what looks like a 1968 Plymouth Fury, a car that weighs almost 5,000 lbs. and by the looks of it, it’s held on the ramp via its parking brake only. Therefore it should have come as no surprise to the driver when the big ole’ sled rolled off the ramp and into the Ford pickup that was parked in front of it. Maybe next time he’ll remember to put those wheel chocks under those front tires and avoid another headache.
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This is Murray Markwell, he’s a gear-head from the land down under and the owner of a small restoration shop called Southern Customs. He also has an affinity for the Dodge and Plymouth winged cars of 1969 and 1970, which means right off the bat, I like this guy. Murray’s love for American cars started at a very young age as his father was employed by General Motors. He’d make frequent trips to the United States and upon his return to Australia, would present his young son with all sorts of literature on American cars. What you are seeing here is a 1970 Plymouth Superbird, a car that, like the 1969 Dodge Daytona, was built to go fast and dominate on America’s super speedways. This one is a clone that was built from a 1970 Plymouth GTX, but all that means is that it can be driven hard and put away wet without having to worry about a drop in value. It’s equipped with a 7.2-liter 440 cu in mill, 727 three-speed transmission and sounds glorious. Click through for the video to enjoy some good old fashion Mopar muscle.
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I was cruising around San Francisco today and just couldn’t help but notice all the old vintage iron that was parked on the streets. New York City is currently experiencing snow, freezing temperatures and salted roads, all things that are not conducive to the longevity of an old car. Around here though it’s friggin’ paradise. After cruising the streets for a few hours I just knew that I had to start snapping some photos. Old Corvairs, El Camino’s, Ford’s, Dodge’s and even a bunch of old VW’s littered the streets. The best part though… they’re all driven! Back in NYC seeing anything that was built prior to 1975 is a rarity, but here in San Francisco it seems to be the norm. I’ll be heading home in a few days and truth be told I’m not overly happy about it. In fact I’m so bummed that I actually met with a realtor today just to see what kind of pads I could get for my hard earned dollar. Who knows, maybe it’s time for ole’ Mr. Angry to head west to the land of 75 degrees and sunshine and give these folks a little bit of my New York charm. Click through to check out all the street side beauties. Read More…

I’ve been slowly pondering taking on another project car and even though I know it’s probably a bad idea I just can’t help myself. You see I’ve been itching to build a 1968 Plymouth Barracuda notchback forever. Not only do I think that it would make a wicked fun daily driver, but it’s such an oddball car that I can’t help but love it. I’m thinking about going with a gloss silver body and red interior, 18-inch one off wheels and perhaps either 5.7-liter or 6.1-liter new style HEMI with fuel injection. I’ve seen a few conversions and aside from the electronics it really shouldn’t be too bad. I’m still not fully set on a transmission though. My Daytona runs a Kielser TKO-600 5-speed manual and truth be told, it’s not my favorite. My Charger on the other hand runs a torque-flite 727, backed up with a reverse manual valve body and gear vendor overdrive unit, a combination that I like very much. Read More…

I remember back in high school that if you had a car and wanted to make it look faster you’d simply slap on some white lettered tires and wallah – instant horsepower! White lettered tires back then were the equivalent of what big wings on imports are today. Sure they look good (well sometimes), but at the end of the day they end up doing less then nothing in terms of performance. I have to admit though that they do look good on certain vehicles. Muscle cars for example, with stock rally or steel wheels look great with the white lettered writing facing outward. Take this beauty of a Plymouth Road Runner for example… we’ve got stock 15-inch rally wheels and a great looking set of BF Goodrich Radial T/A’s. The entire combination just screams VINTAGE while enhancing the entire look of the car.
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It’s my humble opinion that every red blooded American male should at one point in their lives get behind the wheel of a big-block muscle car. They’re inefficient, politically incorrect and have styling the likes of which will never be duplicated. They were also created in a time when auto manufacturers still had the freedom to let their engineers run wild and make cars that were crafted from childhood fantasies. Nowadays government regulations, environmentalists and manufacturers are regulating the amount of fun we can have, and by doing so are killing the spirit of what the muscle car was all about.
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