How I Obtained My Barracuda.

I was sixteen years old early 2004. My Dad just bought a project car for him and I to tinker around on. A 1972 Dodge Challenger, 318 car. Which now you may know, has been 'Overhauled' on the TV show. At the time I drove a 1987 Mustang 5.0, 5 speed. September 2004, I sold my Mustang due to the fact we would be moving cross-country and I didn't want to pay to ship the car. So I figured I'd get something when I go to where we were going (Las Vegas). Sold the Mustang, had some cash saved up.

About four days before the transport truck came to pickup my Dad's Challenger, a Lemon Twist 72 Barracuda showed up on eBay in November (17 at the time). I'd been a little more drawn twords the 'Cuda more than the Challenger from the tv show Nash Bridges. I loved that car. Well the Barracuda was in Virginia Beach, Va, about an hour from where we lived. Next morning we went and looked it over, it sat in the street with a huge 'For Sale' sign on it. Amazingly the guy never got rid of it and tossed it on ebay. His plans for the car were to turn it into a drag car! Seemed way too nice to chop up, he had the passenger seat/carpet out, and never actually got much further than that. That goodness he lost momentum in cutting the car up. It was bone stock, 318 2bbl, down to the original block heater. This vehicle was a Canada Export car and spent most its life in Ontario. Well for a $8,000 'buy it now'. I bought it. Drove back over to it, and drove it home the hour ride. I was very new at tinkering and working on cars, it needed some work. Ended up going with it, needed some electrical work, tune up and such. Two days after I bought it, my new baby got on the transport truck and left from Virginia to Las Vegas.

Here is what I came home with:

Well with the car to its new home. It was my new daily driver, and only means of transportation. Drove the car to school and work for about 6 months, until the factory timing chain broke at 120,xxx miles! Happened right after I drove around for a good 30 minutes, parked in the driveway, went through the house to open the garage, got about halfway in and the engine died! Like i said, bone stock, the factory nylon tooth timing chain finally gave up. It took out a couple valves in the process. Thankfully, a local mopar guy gave me another 318 a couple months before with some 'go fast' parts on it. Another local mopar guy met through Moparts was VERY KIND enough to lend his help and advice in me getting my 318 built back up and on the road. It fired back to life a couple weeks later with, most of its still current modifications.

Shortly after that it went to its first track outing. Thats where that bug started! With the 2.76s' in the rear it went 15.0 @ 97mph....in second gear. Still had a blast going down the track, and going faster was always the new priority. Modifications fell into place, tires, converter, gears, fuel system, etc. Same basic engine has since gone 13.688 and I plan to take it out again soon with some more tuning in it. Not the fastest thing, but no slouch for a 318!

Car is now just ran as a toy every now and then, still modifying the car here and there as funds allow. It's my now turn-key, x-daily driver, 13 second 318 Barracuda. Being I'm 20 now, I'm happy with it! The car was featured in Mopar Muscle magazine under the 'Young Guns Club', and also got it's picture in Car Craft's Burnout section.

Future plans for the car include big brakes, I have a shortblock Mopar Pefrormance Magnum 360 with plans of being stroked...and turbocharged. (Yes, not very commonly done on muscle cars, should be done more!). Gettin' there!