In 1964, the American automotive industry changed forever with the introduction of a new category of small and sporty two-door vehicles, known today as pony cars. These cars carried the DNA of their bigger and more powerful siblings — the muscle cars — but with a more compact size, economical price, and emphasis on handling over horsepower. Today, many enthusiasts think of the 1964 1/2 Ford Mustang and its subsequent competitors, the '67 Camaro and Firebird, as the first pony cars. But the third member of the Big Three was actually the first one to enter this segment with the '64 Plymouth Barracuda. In this article, we'll take a look back at the first-gen 1964-66 Plymouth Barracuda, which some have called the most underrated pony car of the 1960s.
Photos courtesy of Mecum Auctions
How Plymouth Beat Ford to the Punch
Above: 1964 Barracuda studio photo courtesy of Hot Rod Magazine
In the early 1960s, rumors began to circulate in Detroit that Ford was working on something new. The Blue Oval engineers were reworking components from the Falcon compact car into a sporty two-door with an aerodynamic fastback design. When Chrysler learned about this, executives decided to follow suit rather than lose out on the market share.
The decision was made to quickly create a new version of the Plymouth Valiant with a sleek fastback and panoramic rear window. Executives initially suggested the name Plymouth Panda — luckily, that idea was shot down by the designers. Chrysler designer John Samsen, who had previously co-created the 1955 Thunderbird while working at Ford, suggested the name Barracuda instead.
The Plymouth Barracuda debuted on April 1st, 1964, and it was no April Fool's Day joke. Chrysler had beat Ford's release of the Mustang, which happened on April 17th at the New York World's Fair, by just over two weeks.
Unfortunately, that small head start was not enough to make the Barracuda outsell the Mustang. In the second half of the 1964 model year, Plymouth sold only 23,000 Barracudas compared to Ford's 126,000 Mustangs.
A Slow Start for the First-Gen Barracuda
While the Mustang was an immediate smash hit, the Barracuda encountered some growing pains during its first few years of production. One problem was the clear visual similarity to its lower-priced sibling, the Plymouth Valiant. While the Mustang was based on the Falcon, it looked like a whole new car. In contrast, the Barracuda had Valiant emblems from day one.
Ford focused Mustang ads on excitement and visual appeal. Plymouth, on the other hand, made the decision to market the Barracuda as an affordable and family-friendly car, with ads emphasizing its sub-$2,500 price, five seats, and large cargo space.
The similarity to the Valiant also carried over to its engine bay. It offered the same three engine options as the Valiant, starting with a 170ci slant-six that produced only 100 horsepower. The top-of-the-line 273ci V8 (as seen in the photo above) produced a much more sporty 180hp, but it was still available in the standard Valiant for less money.
In 1965, Plymouth dropped the 170ci slant-six and upgraded all base Barracudas to the 225ci slant-six. They also added a "Commando" version of the 273ci V8 with a four-barrel carb, higher compression, and a more aggressive cam. This produced 235hp, making it competitive with Ford's "A-code" 225-horsepower 289ci V8 in the Mustang, but it wasn't on par with the Mustang's most potent "K-code" 271-horsepower motor.
By 1966, the last year of the first generation, it received new taillamps and a grille that stood apart from the Valiant. It also lost the Valiant script badges and instead received a Barracuda fish emblem.
Above: This '66 Barracuda was swapped to a 318ci V8 for more horsepower, but retains its original three-speed Torqueflite automatic transmission, factory A/C, power steering, and power brakes.
The Barracuda's Lasting Legacy
Even though the first-gen Barracuda wasn't the sales hit Chrysler had hoped for, it earned a following and showed lots of potential. Chrysler learned from its missteps and revised its approach to the Barracuda going into the second and third generations.
In 1967, the second generation Barracuda debuted with more new sheet metal and the option of a notchback coupe body style. It was still based on the compact A-body platform. The '67 Barracuda also shifted more towards the muscle car category with the addition of an optional 383ci 280-horsepower V8 under the Formula S package.
Three years later, the 1970 Plymouth Barracuda transformed from a pony car into a full-blown muscle car by dropping all similarities to the Valiant and switching over to the larger E-body platform. It offered two slant-six choices as well as six different V8 options. The top-of-the-line 'Cuda came standard with a 383ci V8 and could be upgraded to a 440 Six Pak or earth-shattering 426 Hemi.
Hot Rod Magazine summed up the Plymouth Barracuda's legacy nicely: "The Barracuda ultimately didn’t take the world by storm in the way that the Mustang did, but Plymouth’s pony car did manage to leave an indelible mark on automotive history during its 10-year production run."
For more details on the development and history of the first-gen Barracuda, check out the video above from Rare Cars, or read our article on the full history of the 1964-1974 Plymouth Barracuda.
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