Did the Plymouth division of the Chrysler Corporation produce the Barracuda in 1985? Yes, it’s true! Well, sort of.

Ever since the Barracuda was discontinued in 1974, hardcore Plymouth enthusiasts have longed for a revival. It’s never happened, of course. Except, perhaps, for this.

In January of 1985, a fresh class of eight production engineers at the Chrysler Belvidere, Illinois assembly plant, around 70 miles northwest of downtown Chicago, were handed a plum assignment. Their mission: to design a Plymouth performance car to be the equal of Chrysler’s Dodge Charger and Shelby models then on the market. There was one catch, however. They could use only components from existing Chrysler Corporation products or from the Mopar accessories catalog.

Two prototypes, concepts if you will, were built: A white Turismo with a red interior, and a red Turismo with a gray interior. Both were equipped with 2.2-liter turbocharged fours and five-speed manual transmissions. Reportedly, both cars came down the Belvidere assembly line as L-Body Dodge Chargers but with Plymouth Turismo VIN tags and interiors, and without identifying trim or badging. Instead, 3M vinyl graphics emulating the 1970 Plymouth AAR ‘Cuda were installed in post-production, in red for the white car and black for the red car. The graphics were the only unique pieces on the 1985 ‘Cudas, evidently.

The rear spoiler was borrowed from the Dodge Daytona while the aluminum backlite louvers were Mopar accessories. The color-coordinated wheels also came from the Daytona, while the foglamps were Shelby GLH items. The two ‘Cudas were sent to Chrysler headquarters in Highland Park, Michigan. where senior executives displayed no interest at all in pursuing the project any further. The story pretty much ends there with the two lone prototypes.

However, the white ‘Cuda still exists in fine original condition. Ryan Brutt, host of the Auto Archeology YouTube channel, spent 20 years tracking down the story of the ’85 ‘Cudas and located the white car in the Chicago area. He produced a detailed video on the car you can watch here. The red ‘Cuda went to a trade school in Ohio and then disappeared. Mike Wolterman, one of the original project engineers, recorded the ’85 Cuda saga, including dozens of photos, for the 1970 Hamtramck Registry, and you can read it here. –Photos courtesy of the 1970 Hamtramck Registry.