This is a 1971 Plymouth Cuda 440 Six-Barrel, it’s one of the true high-watermarks of the golden age of the American muscle car, along with its more famous sibling, the 426 Hemi.
Importantly, this car is one of the 4-speed manual versions, and it has the Dana 60 rear axle fitted with Super Track Pak 4.10:1 gearing. This 440 Six-Barrel is now due to roll across the auction block with Mecum later this month.
Fast Facts: The 1971 Plymouth Cuda 440 4-Speed
- This 1971 Plymouth ’Cuda 440 Six-Barrel is one of the peaks of Mopar muscle era, pairing a 385 bhp, 490 lb ft 440 V8 with triple Holley two-barrel carburetors. The car featured here is especially desirable because it has the A833 4-speed manual, Hurst Pistol Grip shifter, and heavy-duty Dana 60 rear axle.
- Plymouth moved the Barracuda to Chrysler’s wider E-body platform for 1970, giving it room for engines including the 440 Six Barrel and 426 Hemi. For 1971 the ’Cuda gained its distinctive grille, four headlights, fender gills, and optional billboard graphics, creating one of the model’s most recognizable looks.
- Super Track Pak gave the car 4.10:1 gearing, a Sure-Grip limited-slip differential, power front disc brakes, and upgraded cooling. Production was very limited – Plymouth built 237 440 Six-Barrel ’Cuda hardtops for 1971, only 108 with the 4-speed manual. Just 17 convertibles received the engine, five with manuals.
- The car shown is finished in triple black with 440 billboard graphics, Shaker hood, hood pins, spoiler, fog lights, and fender gills. Inside are black vinyl buckets, console, woodgrain trim, Rallye gauges, and AM radio. It retains its Space Saver spare, inflator canister, broadcast sheet, and car cover.
History Speedrun: The Plymouth Cuda
The Barracuda went on sale on April Fool’s Day, 1964, just two weeks ahead of the Ford Mustang, as a fastback version of the compact Valiant. The 1967 redesign added a notchback and a convertible but kept the car on the Valiant’s A-body platform.
For 1970, Plymouth moved the Barracuda onto Chrysler’s new E-body platform, which it shared with the Dodge Challenger. The Barracuda kept a 108 inch wheelbase, two inches shorter than the Challenger’s. Image courtesy of Plymouth.
The ‘Cuda name landed on the car in 1969 as a performance package offered with a 340, 383, or 440 V8. The 440 cars came with the TorqueFlite automatic only, and neither power steering nor front disc brakes could be ordered. A June 1969 road test called the resulting car “a disturbing automobile” due to its prodigious horsepower and torque.
The Cuda Switches To The E-Body
For 1970, Plymouth moved the Barracuda onto Chrysler’s new E-body platform, which it shared with the Dodge Challenger. The Barracuda kept a 108 inch wheelbase, two inches shorter than the Challenger’s. Compared to the 1969 car it was roughly six inches shorter overall and more than five inches wider, and perhaps most importantly, its larger engine bay could take the Hemi 426.
John Herlitz styled the car, he later told writer Jerry Heasley that the aim was to pull the rear quarters up and “spank the roof down as low as possible.” He certainly succeeded on that front.
The range now had three models – Barracuda, Gran Coupe, and ‘Cuda. For 1971 the ‘Cuda got a new grille and optional “billboard” side decals that spelled out the engine size, four headlights and fender gills appeared that year (and no other).
The 1971 Engine Options
The 383 cubic inch (6.3 liter) four-barrel was standard in the ‘Cuda, rated at 300 bhp. The 340 cubic inch (5.6 liter) four-barrel was a ‘Cuda-only option with 275 bhp. The 440 cubic inch (7.2 liter) Six Barrel was good for 385 bhp at 4,700 rpm, with 490 lb ft at 3,200 rpm, and it breathed through triple Holley two-barrels.
The 440 cubic inch (7.2 liter) Six Barrel was good for 385 bhp at 4,700 rpm, with 490 lb ft at 3,200 rpm, and it breathed through triple Holley two-barrels.
The 426 cubic inch (7.0 liter) Hemi, named for its hemispherical combustion chambers, ran two Carter AFB four-barrels and made 425 bhp at 5,000 rpm and 490 lb ft at 4,000 rpm. The Six Barrel therefore reached the Hemi’s peak torque figure 800 rpm lower – net ratings for 1971 put the Six Barrel at 330 bhp and the Hemi at 350 bhp.
Air conditioning was unavailable with either engine, and the Shaker hood scoop was standard on Hemi cars and optional on other ‘Cudas, the 440 among them.
Transmissions – Axles – Chassis
Two transmissions were offered behind the 440 and the Hemi 426. One was the 3-speed 727 TorqueFlite automatic. The other was the New Process A833 4-speed with a Hurst pistol-grip shift handle, geared 2.44, 1.77, 1.34, and 1.00:1 in the big block cars.
4-speed 440 and Hemi cars used the heavy-duty Dana 60 rear axle, which has a 9.75-inch ring gear, and automatic cars could have it as an option. The A33 Track Pak paired the Dana with 3.54:1 gears and a Sure-Grip limited-slip differential. The A34 Super Track Pak came with the 4.10:1, it also included power front disc brakes, and a seven-blade fan for improved cooling.
Standard ‘Cuda brakes were heavy-duty drums, with front discs optional alongside power assist, suspension was by torsion bars at the front and leaf springs at the rear. For 1970, 440 and Hemi cars got 0.92 inch front torsion bars and a 0.94 inch front anti-roll bar and 148 lb/in rear springs. There was no rear anti-roll bar fitted.
Plymouth built 237 ‘Cuda hardtops with the 440 Six Barrel in 1971, 108 of them 4-speed cars, the manual Cudas are the ones the driver enthusiasts are really chasing today. 17 convertibles got the same engine, five with the 4-speed manual box. Hemi production was smaller still, just over 100 hardtops, plus seven convertibles.
For 1972, the big-block engines, the Dana 60 and the convertible were gone. Barracuda production ended, perhaps fittingly, on April Fool’s Day, 1974, exactly 10 years to the day after it began.
The 1971 Plymouth Cuda 440 Six-Barrel Shown Here
This is an original 1971 Plymouth ’Cuda, powered by the 440 cubic-inch Six Barrel V8 paired with an A833 4-speed manual transmission and the Pistol Grip shifter. Power is sent back through a Dana 60 rear axle fitted with Super Track Pak 4.10:1 gearing, and a pair of dual exhausts complete the drivetrain.
This is an original 1971 Plymouth ’Cuda, powered by the 440 cubic-inch Six Barrel V8 paired with an A833 4-speed manual transmission and the Pistol Grip shifter. Power is sent back through a Dana 60 rear axle fitted with Super Track Pak 4.10:1 gearing, and a pair of dual exhausts complete the drivetrain.
Finished in triple black, the car has prominent 440 billboard graphics along with a Shaker hood, hood pins, rear spoiler, fog lights, fender gills, and the distinctive shark-fin grille used on 1971 models. Inside, you’ll find black vinyl bucket seats, a center console, simulated woodgrain trim, Rallye instrumentation, and an AM push-button radio.
The car keeps its Space Saver spare and inflator canister and is accompanied by a broadcast sheet and car cover. It’s now due to roll across the auction block with Mecum in late-October, if you’d like to read more about it or register to bid you can visit the listing here.
Images provided by Mecum
Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
