Whatever the ’67 BARRACUDA: PLYMOUTH’S POTENT PONYCAR lacked in power, it more than made up with slick styling and ride & handling!
Suddenly the Ponycar market was chock full of new style and power choices. Not long after the ’67 Camaro’s public introduction a potent 302-inch small-block in Z28 trim and big-block 396 engines with up to 375 horsepower appeared. Plymouth upped the ante with a redesigned and very slick Barracuda in fastback and notchback coupe and convertible body styles. Formula S model, above, was tested at Chrysler Proving Ground.
Its wheelbase and overall length – 108 and 188 inches, respectively – were exactly the same as the new Camaro and Firebird. It was a little short of power though. Engine choices included a 273/235 small-block and, for the first time, a 383/280 big-block. The Formula S option offered image plus overall performance upgrades.
Since the new Barracuda’s engine compartment was configured for a small-block 273, the 383 had to be “shoehorned” in, and not without shortcomings. There was no room for free-flowing exhaust manifolds, power steering pump or AC compressor. The “choked” 383 ended up being rated at 280 horsepower. We tested a one-off, pre-production 383 Barracuda with 3.55 gearing for the December 1966 issue of Hi-Performance CARS. We were not happy with the heavy manual steering. Our best time was 95 mph in 15.2 seconds. Some tuners swapped 440 engines into ’67 Barracudas, to match the big-block Camaros’ performance.
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Plymouth introduced its Valiant-based, fastback ’64 PLYMOUTH BARRACUDA: FIRST PONYCAR on April 1st, 1964, edging out Ford’s Mustang reveal on April 17th. A few months later in August, Ford showed its competitive 2 2 fastback. Plymouth may have beaten Ford to the marketplace, but it barely dented Ford’s ownership of the Ponycar market segment. The first model year is often referenced as 1964 ½, and the Barracuda barely dented Mustang’s appeal and sales success: 23,443 compared with 126, 538!
In June 1965 I spent a couple of hours with Golden Commandos’ John Dallafiore and the Goldfish at the Chelsea Proving Ground drag strip. He was evaluating engine modifications and I was working on a story for the November issue of Hi-Performance CARS. He graciously loaned me his helmet so I could make a few passes in the four-speed Goldfish. With its small-displacement, single-four-barrel engine and 4.89 gears, I shifted at a tick under 6,000 rpm. It felt like a strong mid-14-second car. Three months later, driver and transmission engineer, John Dallafior, won F/Stock at the 1965 NHRA Indy Nationals. He was a considerably quicker and faster than me – 103.68 mph in 13.47 seconds!
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