'68 Barracuda Formula S Fastback Restoration Background

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No my car was built in Michigan by a guy who found a real solid car to start with. Completely stripped the body and rebuilt it from the ground up. It has a 451 stroker big block. I bought it off a guy in North Carolina a little over a year ago. It is one of the cleanest , nicest 68's I've ever seen (and it's in my garage!!!) Although not my first 68 my red 68 340-S was a really nice car as well. I bought a nice car and rebuilt it over the winter putting my "touch" on it

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RLF Cuda said:
A guy named Barbee bought the '67 383 Formula S FB I restored many years ago in 1998 or so. This is the car in my photo on the left. Are you the same guy?
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Yes!!!!! Small world!!! Here's my story on that car......It was mid to later 90's I lived in Mo. and I wanted a 383 Cuda. I had already grown tired of building E bodies, and went to 68-70 B bodies, but then I got the hots for the 6-9 BB A body. I searched MCG and each one listed had sold. So I kept going back to older issues. I finally found your 67 for sale near San Francisco and flew out there. You had a 67 RoadRace Cuda and a hemi B body I recall. I have owned many Mopars over the decades and only bought a couple done, but your Cuda was by far the best Mopar done and one of my very best Mopars ever, I ever had! My trip driving back to Mo. was one of the all time joys of my entire life!

I had NO desire to sell this car, but I got home and a guy half hour away came to look at a 69 Roadrunner project I had for sale, he and his wife and 2 girls about 10-12, he saw the Cuda under my barn, and I made the mistake of saying what he was. Well he had been lusting for such for years and he actually began to cry when I tld him NOT FOR SALE! , a grown man weeping!!!! So, after more tearing... I told him I would keep that spare A833 and the set of headers you threw in , he could pay me $500 cash and I would call that the best vacation I ever had. OK so it was my first vacation I ever had.

The next summer, I was at Mopar Nats and I see this guy, his wife, and girls come running toward me and I get the best hugs!!!! They were still so excited. Made my day. There are more things in life better than a $.
 
barbee6043 said:
Yes!!!!! Small world!!! Here's my story on that car......It was mid to later 90's I lived in Mo. and I wanted a 383 Cuda. I had already grown tired of building E bodies, and went to 68-70 B bodies, but then I got the hots for the 6-9 BB A body. I searched MCG and each one listed had sold. So I kept going back to older issues. I finally found your 67 for sale near San Francisco and flew out there. You had a 67 RoadRace Cuda and a hemi B body I recall. I have owned many Mopars over the decades and only bought a couple done, but your Cuda was by far the best Mopar done and one of my very best Mopars ever, I ever had! My trip driving back to Mo. was one of the all time joys of my entire life!

I had NO desire to sell this car, but I got home and a guy half hour away came to look at a 69 Roadrunner project I had for sale, he and his wife and 2 girls about 10-12, he saw the Cuda under my barn, and I made the mistake of saying what he was. Well he had been lusting for such for years and he actually began to cry when I tld him NOT FOR SALE! , a grown man weeping!!!! So, after more tearing... I told him I would keep that spare A833 and the set of headers you threw in , he could pay me $500 cash and I would call that the best vacation I ever had. OK so it was my first vacation I ever had.

The next summer, I was at Mopar Nats and I see this guy, his wife, and girls come running toward me and I get the best hugs!!!! They were still so excited. Made my day. There are more things in life better than a $.
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I really liked that '67 383. I put a lot of effort into the engine and it ran perfectly. I got it to idle down to 400 RPM when pulling up the driveway. It even passed 1980 smog standards when I registered it. I am glad it went to a home where it was appreciated. I kick myself for having to sell it but CCR's at my new home and a bitchy neighbor forced me to get rid of it. Boo!
The car is lucky to be alive. I was at Sonoma Raceway drag racing it for the first time. I made a few runs and it got dark. I wanted one more run as I was having a hard time launching it with BFG's. No traction with that 383 4sp and 3.55 gears. About half track I shifted to 3rd and immediately lost all traction spinning the car around twice. But I kept it in the lane and completed the run (just to get off the track!). Must have hit water or oil on the track, but no damage done! LUCKY!
 
Great article series, Bob! A side bar for your story: In 1986 or so, I was headed to LA from Berkeley on I-5, driving either my 1970 Dart Swinger or a friend's '71 Fiat 124 Spider. Time for gas, so pulled off, and - WOW in the pump next, a really nice looking black '68 340S fastback. I'm not usually easy with strangers, but I had to find out whether the owner knew what he was driving! Maybe I could buy it, cheap? Hah! I quickly learned that wasn't going to happen! That coincidental stop led to a great friendship and, shortly, to my purchase, with Bob's help, of my '67 convertible. He's the reason I bought it, and, with his tutelage and lots of shared work, turned it into a Formula S underneath back then, and have kept it mostly untouched since. (By the way, I'm the Vashon Island, WA '67 273 convertible owner Bob mentioned, who sat on his 340 engine for 30+ years). Even with the 20 years of missed connection he mentioned, the friendship wasn't lost. Watching the resurrection of his car has been a great joy. Not putting the 340 into my car was fortuitous. Seeing it ready to go back into its original home has been icing on the cake. I like seeing special cars done right Bob's the master of that. Almost impossible to believe it's been almost 40 years.
 
Here is a picture of Steve Brown's '67 Vert as it sits in Vashon Island when I picked up my 340 from him. We worked on the gas tank and pickup when I was there and also did some brake work but it needed KH calipers which were on order. Did a compression test on the engine and it was OK for 50 years old. But it needs a 340! We did get an 8 3/4 and as swaybar on it which helped a bunch. And the aforementioned K-H brakes were an improvement over the 9" drums!

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The previous owner Michael Jordan on the right was all smiles seeing what I did to "his" Barracuda. I'm on the left , his wife Joy, and my stepson Connor (all 6'9" of him) I offered it back to him for what I had in it. He declined and another member here bought it "rudedawg" Has been putting his "touches" on it including making it a 4 speed (jealous)

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So many awesome Barracuda pictures in this thread. Not sure what is whose and who had what and who sold which one to who? But a lot of super cool cars.
 
Update! The 'Cuda is out for alignment and should be ready to drive tomorrow. So far, all looks good for it to be finished early next week. Will update after I see the car tomorrow. Maybe a video.
 
Well, The weather killed all my fun! Started sleeting/snowing Thursday when they were going to test drive the Cuda. Not with that paintjob! Friday was worse, and more snow Saturday. Hoping for Monday as the weatherman CLAIMS it will be 73. In the Denver area, you simply cannot trust the weather.
Last May, it hailed in Aurora about golf ball sized nuggets. Did $18K damage to my '21 Ram 1500. The windshield had 30+ spider cracks in it and the hood and roof were trashed beyond belief. The roof and hood both had to be replaced. The photo shows what the inside of a new Ram looks like with all the interior removed. Amazing amount of work needed to reskin the roof of a new truck.

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Spring is coming and its looking like you will be cruising around in that beauty pretty soon.
 
I'll come out of my decade long hiatus to chime in on Bob's build thread, here. The last time I was in here, I had built an FJ6 '73 Plymouth Scamp for my girlfriend at the time, and I haven't built another A body until this car.

I helped with most of the assembly work on this car, as it was shuffled into the garage bay one box and truck bed load at a time.

There are some key points that I will photograph at the shop on the car that are good to know in terms of the frame connectors and a few other pieces that Bob and I put our heads together on in order to get to work well.

We did manage to get it on the road and it really is a joy to ride in. Everything has gone as we had hoped and strived for.

It almost (ALMOST!) makes me want a black car. I could stare at it for days, and I'll be a little bummed when it leaves the shop after I'm done with the handful of articles on the short shakedown list that are left.

I have a short video of the car and I will take another one of the features and get them onto YouTube for everyone to check out this weekend.

So far, my favorite modification on this car are the seat extensions and tilt positions. It changes the entire feel and ride quality, which is something a few of us tall folks should experience!

This is a great car and I look forward to seeing it at some of our local cruises and shows, like the Golden Super Cruise. Hopefully we get our drag strip back!

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During the short drive on city streets, I felt the car lacked power, but you can never have enough power, so I have to be satisfied with what I have. But then i remembered that I am running 2.94's in the rear so that I can drive the car at current freeway speeds (without an overdrive). Those gears are no fun for acceleration, so I look forward to getting the 'Cuda out on the highway.

The seats are '73 Dart Sport highback buckets and had collapsed foam for may years. When I had them rebuilt, this raised the seat height at least 2" and my head touched the roof. Dave Bond is 3" taller than me, so we worked together on lowering and moving the seat back further for both head and leg room. Mission accomplished. The original seats had 2" risers that moved the seats back 2" as well. Worked then. But now with the seats rebuilt, the 2" riser had to go. Dave designed a wonderful track relocation bracker that kept the original mounting pointes (no new holes in the floor) but moved the seat back as needed. then risers in the front tilted the seat enough to be comfortable. Thanks Dave!
Bob
 
Finally got the 'Cuda home Friday night. Drove great. Shifted perfectly (thanks Andrew's Racing Transmissions). Big thanks to Dave Bonds and Scott Morton at Cars Remember When Restoration Center in Littleton, CO.

Can't be more pleased with the way it turned out. I got a chance to open it up and check shift points. 1-2 right at 5500 which is what the trans was like originally. Really crisp and smooth shifting. Chickened out on the 2-3 shift as I hit 95 on E-470 and that was just a wee bit too fast for that road. Goe a few things to fix but can't be more pleased with how it ran. Will send some photo's from car shows when I get it out and about.

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Bob, your car turned out wonderful, my friend!

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to build your transmission!
 
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