How did you become a Mopar A-body Enthusiast?

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My father owned a small town Chrysler/Plymouth dealership in Upstate NY with my uncle when I was a kid (I was born in '58). So I missed out on driving all the new muscle cars '67-'73. But they where always around the dealership. I got to help prep a few for sale. My cousin Jim is about 6 years older than me. He had a '70 Duster 340 (Black with white 340 stripe) that he put in low gears (2.76 or 3.23, I don't remember) and a huge carb that would do 135 -140 no problem! He always raced up the local 2 lane expressway and was never beat top end. He raced a few Corvettes, Mustangs & Camaros and nobody every beat him. He never raced anybody 1/4 mile. One ride in that thing at about 15 and I was hooked! But dad never let me drive anything above a 318, expect maybe around the parking lot.(He was a smart man!) We never drove any new cars! Those were for the customers. Our "family car" was a '72 440 Chrysler Town & Country wagon that weighted about 5,500 pounds. I tried burning the tires but ended up braking the motor mounts and a soft/freeze plug! I ended up buying my sister's '70 318 Barracuda Grand Coupe in '76 for $150 bucks and started working on it. It was a rust bucket, (remember Upstate NY) with a great interior. Dad sold it to somebody after I painted it in my 1st in college. He bought & sold me cars for a profit about 3 times when I was in school before he retired and sold off the dealership. He'd call me and tell me that I now could put my dealer plates on a slant 6 '73 Duster with a caved in 1/4 panel that had 150,000 mile on it! (Actually, that was a great car, lots of good times in that car.) After he sold, then I lost interest. Now 40 years later I'm back at it, trying to fix up a '75 318 2-door Valiant Brougham with a little 318 engine and wire rim wheel covers! And I'm lovin' every minute of it! Golf is easy, I found my hobby for retirement.
 
I had a 1970 Camaro that I bought for $300 when I was 16. It was a in-line 6 cyl, with a 3 spd trans.
I taught myself how to drive that thing and also how to fix it. My dad wasn't around so I figured I better figure out fix a car.
I joined the Army after high school, and brought my car with me.
I got married and well, you know how the story is going to go. She couldn't drive the 3 spd. so the car was traded off for a 81 Buick Regal. Turns out that was a pretty good car too but not my Camaro.
Over the years I kept looking to replace that car.
After the Army I landed in a Dodge dealership working in the parts room. There I was exposed to Mopars and my love just grew.
I got divorced, got older, remarried and still had a hole to fill.
One day a customer comes into the dealership, he wants to buy a new Dodge Caliber. Says he has an old dodge at home he wants to trade. The sales manager comes back and gets me and has me ride out to the mans house to look at the trade. I'm expecting an Omni or Aries when we get there.
Open the garage door and there sits a 1975 Dart SE 4 dr. The car was parked in the early 90's and had been in the garage since. The customer says he bought it new, and just quit driving it when he bought a Oldsmobile. That Oldsmobile looked rougher than a night in jail. The old guy must have parked by feel. Anyway, we push the car out, the salesman works up a deal and the car get towed to the shop. Once the dust was cleaned off, the carb freshened up and a few minor things, the car looked like it just came from the showroom.
I immediately called dibbs on the Dart and told the GM I wanted to buy the car. Went home told the wife what I was doing and went to the bank.
The next day I get in and find out the salesman on the deal bought the car out from under me.
Well I just figured it wasn't supposed to be and kept looking.
I left the dealership and went to work at the Post Office.
I was back at the dealership one day getting an oil change on the wife's car when the salesman that bought the car came to me and asked if I wanted to buy that Dart.
I went back to the bank and got a cashiers check and brought the Dart home. That was over 8 years ago and I've enjoyed the car since.
My wife liked it so much we bought a second A body with our 74 Duster.
That's how I got into A bodies!
 
My first car was a 64 Savoy, Ex Highway Patrol car with a big motor and A/C. After 2 years, I looked around to trade up to a new car. Didn't like Camaros all that much; everybody had one. Wasn't a Ford Fan at the time. So I went to Jim Clark Chrysler Plymouth and they had a beautiful 69 Barracuda Fastback Formula S car. It had a 340 and a 4 speed. It was love at first sight. I only had that car for a few years, but I regretted selling it. About 25 years ago, I found the car I have now while I was stationed in Arkansas. It was Seafoam Green with a black interior and a 340 with an automatic. I changed it to look like the new one I bought back in 69. It is not for sale.
Cuda 49.JPG
 
When I was about 10 (1972ish) a white 70 Charger SE would cut thru our neighborhood after getting gas at local station. I said Im going to own that car some day.

Look behind the Barracuda in my avatar.....
Nuf said....
 
I was 12 years old in '71 living just north of Seattle. Sitting in the passenger seat of my mom's Mustang at the intersection of 205th and Aurora when a brand new 340 Duster pulled right up along side us. It was either B5 Blue or In-Violet but what really blew my mind was the blacked out hood treatment and the GIGANTIC 340 WEDGE call-out placed diagonally on the hood! There was NOTHING else like that anywhere in 1971. It rumbled away from us and it was burned into my brain forever.
 
Ottmundr said:
My dad was never a chevy or ford guy, so he brought me up right in regards to cars. Back in 1981 or so, my dad came home with a RAT of a 66 Coronet 440 convertible with a 383 and 727. He fixed it up, shaved all the chrome off it, painted it red with a white top, man that car was fun and FAST. We were out for a cruise one morning, and we got T-boned by some drunk jackass in a 60's camaro. He took off towards the direction we came from. Some dude yelled out the camaro's license number. My dad did a U turn, and we chased that drunk driver jackass down. Since the passenger side was already smashed in, my dad just pulled over in front of said jackass, and he was stuck because a good Samaritan followed us and boxed him in. He ended up fixing it again after that. You couldn't tell it was hit. He ended up selling that beautiful car in about 83 or 84. :(

In 86, he bought a 67 barracuda vert with a 273. Fixed it and I got to drive it a little before he sold that one. Next was the 68 barracuda vert with a 318 .040 over. All these cars were red.

I am extremely fair skinned, and I always wanted a 68 fastback or notch. When I had the money, I could never find them, and when I didn't have the money, they were EVERYWHERE. (I didn't think to look for a 70-72 duster/demon, or 67-72 dart) I ended up getting a 67 barracuda vert with a /6, and I loved that car with the top down at night, never in the day. I ended up fixing that thing up and selling it to start a business. I think I got around $4500 in 92 or so.

My best friend in high school had a 66 charger with a 383, and his sister had a 67 charger with a 361. His dad had TWELVE 1956 DeSotos.

Fast forward 23 years, and I finally got my 68 fastback. Since I don't have access to a garage, it's rather difficult to work on the car, since I am not even allowed to change the OIL in my driveway. :icon_fU: California and :icon_fU: the HOA. I have to work on my car in the parking lot at work after my shift ends, so it's kinda slow going.

Edit:
I've been thinking about this thread all evening, and I've realized that I now want to get me a 66 or 67 two door coronet hardtop, or a 68 or 69 coronet 4 door hardtop or wagon for a sleeper.
Click to expand...
Sounds like its time to move to a neighborhood where you got a garage and no home owners association
 
I think it was in my blood at a very young age. I was born in 68, however I vividly remember my grandpas 69 plymouth satellite. It was white with a black top and black interior. It had a funky liquid filled bubble compass on the dash that i thought was cool. As i grew up he told me it was a slant six car. My uncle had a 69 383 4 speed road runner. It was dark green metallic. I just thought B bodys were badass.

My dad had a 73 dodge polara 4 door as i got a bit older. Great car, it had a 318 in it. Fast forward to 1981, my brother buys a 73 charger with power windows, rallye dash and slap stick auto on the floor, and factory magnum 500 wheels. I think this is really cool. My cousin buys a fairly beat 68 charger 383 to get back and forth to work. I tell her, i want that car, dont sell it to anyone but me. At age 15 she sells it to me for $400. I'm hooked. Well i was hooked long before that. I was building nothing but mopar model cars before that. My interests were all B body at this time.

I went thru a succession of dodge chargers, a 1970 slant 6 barracuda, and a 318 68 barracuda fastback i drove for a little bit. I sell my last charger a 69 R/T 440 4 speed clone before moving to Texas in the mid 90s.

I get here and get the mopar itch once again and find a B5 blue 69 dart western sport special. I do some body, interior, and engine work on it. Car has a slanty, and drive it for a bit. Then sell it.

I get the itch to redo something else. I find a 1960 el camino that needs everything. I learn how to weld and metal fab with this one its pretty rusty. I put a mild 350, and a muncie 4 speed. Completely rewire it with a painless harness, and add power disc brakes. When Its about 75% finished i lose interest, and sell it.

I buy a house, get married, get involved in turbo fwd mopars for awhile, get divorced, get the itch for a mopar again. Find out in 2009 that chargers are now made of unobtanium. So I go to my local boneyard. The guy who owns the place is a mopar nut, and helped me with parts for my 69 dart i fixed and sold years prior. I ask him whatcha got in the way of project cars. He shows me a 72 dart 2 door with mega roof rot in the corners from a vinyl top gone wrong, needing full quarters, and roof skin patches. But its a V8 car, and a 67 barracuda with a slanty , 3 on the tree, and a big hole cut in the floor.

I tell him i'll take the cuda, its got the looks a little like my uncles old road runner, and its got 3 pedals, im a stick shift junkie. He also tells me about FABO for parts and advice, so here i am on the best mopar site since 2010 lol. I find a 74 dart moredoor at the police auction with a V8, disc brakes, and a solid floor. Perfect donor. It will be a 360 4 speed sleeper.

Now i got 2 barracudas as i found a 69 notch ex race car, i am now collecting up parts for it, and saving it for my son. Its nuts, once you get the bug, its with you for life. Just like harley davidson folks say about their harley addiction " if i have to explain, you would not understand"
 
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Well, nobody in the family wanted my Grand Aunts (Nelly) 69 Valiant when she went to a retirement home in the early 90's. It was just sitting at our place for a few years when I became the second owner of it. 20 years latter, here we are!

IMG_20151017_1314436_rewind.jpg


View attachment 1715047639
 
Was your grand aunts name Nelly? Did you name the car after her? If so thats cool. My grandmas name was Nellie. Her and my grandpa had a 29 model A tudor sedan when they got married. My dad bought a 29 tudor a couple years back that was the same colors that theirs was. He named it Nellie.

Do you still have her old Val? If so how bout showing an updated pic of the ole girl. I bet your auntie is glad that somebody in the family has it and loves it. She probably really liked the car if she kept it that many years.

My grandmother had a 64 dart GT slant 6 car. They junked it because of rust issues, she always talked good things about it until she passed away. She said she always loved her little dodge dart.
 
moparmat2000 said:
Do you still have her old Val? If so how bout showing an updated pic of the ole girl. I bet your auntie is glad that somebody in the family has it and loves it. She probably really liked the car if she kept it that many years.
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Yeah, I still have it, my Aunt's name was Nelly sometimes the car is referred to as such. I have a build thread going on it:
The valiant
 
Without a doubt this is what got me hooked. I would still have it today if it would not have gotten totaled in 1987. In fact, the car was repairable by what people fix today but that was then and this is now.....

JW

duster with trophys.jpg
 
well.... i became an "A-body fan" 47 years ago. it's a little bit of an "X-rated" story so i won't go into a lot of detail.

it was 1970 and i was a 16 year old "testosterone" driven and a little crazy sophomore male in high school in Glen Dale, West Virginia. i loved cars and "anything" FAST! i had already owned a few motorcycles and was in love with all the muscle cars detroit was building. i also was running around with some "motor head" guys who were a couple of years older than i who had friends that had graduated from high school and had good jobs at the local steel mill and coal mines. on the weekends we hung out at the "back row" of the covered canopy of the local Big Boy drive-in burger joint. the "canopy" was where all the muscle cars were. because gas was cheap and a job at the steel mill or coal mine could pay for about any muscle car in about 6 months, there were LOTS of fast cars around. back then, the "Chevy", "Ford", "Mopar" rivalry was in full tilt so "someone" had one or more of all the muscle car models these companies were building. there were small and big block Corvettes; most all of the Mustangs and other "Cobra" FoMoCo models; GTO's, Chevelles, Camaro's, Nova's, Roadrunners, GTX's and first and second gen Barracudas. one guy had built a 66 Barracuda fastback street/strip car with a 440 and a "straight axle" under the front. THAT car was ALWAYS a hit with the canopy "back row" guys.

along with eating "Big Boy double-decker" hambergers, frys and milkshakes, the Big Boy was the place where everyone met to arrange street races. it was common for scores of cars to leave the lot late on a friday or saturday night for one of the several long stretches of state highway around the area. watching these races i knew i had to get a "fast car" and start trying to score "bragging rights" either from the longest two black lines left on a highway somewhere or from "blowing the doors off" of one of the many cars listed above in one of the many nightly street races.

i "found a car" at the local Plymouth dealer belonging to one of the young mechanics. this guy had ordered a new 68 340 4 speed fastback formula S Barracuda and then added Hooker fender-well headers; a 3:91 gear; edlebroc "high rise" manifold; a Holley 750 dp carb; a Hurst comp-plus shifter; pinion snubber; shafer "racing" clutch and pressure plate; and a clutch fan. this car with open headers and 8" slicks was turning low to mid 12's consistently at a local drag strip. the car had a little over 20k miles on it when i bought it and i paid $2200.00 - which was a LOT of money back then.

so this "A-body Mopar" IMMEDIATELY inflated my teenage ego through wild tire-frying burnouts while leaving "the Big Boy" restrauant and better yet - i NEVER got beat in a street race with this car! pretty much EVERY "factory" stock muscle car that pulled beside my Barracuda late at night on one of the straight state roads ended up seeing my tail lights from between 1 to 3 car lengths. having "the fastest" street car in town was like "a drug" to my teenage, gear head brain.

but there was another aspect of my initial and IMMEDIATE "love affair" with my "first" A-body Mopar. this car came with the fold-down back seat and when it was folded down, the "cargo" area was like 7 feet by almost 4 feet. given that my entire life at that point revolved around "fast cars" and "fast girls", i felt the "back seat area" needed a little "alteration" just like the rest of the car. so one weekend, me and a buddy removed all the factory trim in the back, installed a 1" thick foam rubber mattress cover on the back of the seat, rear floor under the window and the "fold down" cargo door to the trunk. on top of this foam rubber i installed "synthetic white rabbit fur." when all the trim was put back in place, the back of my Barracuda looked like a "Vegas show-girl stage prop." remember, this was 1970-1971 - ALL "youth" "loved" muscle cars - especially most of the girls. they "got excited" from "going fast." needless-to-say, my "love affair" with my 68 Barracuda included two extremely important factors to a 16 year old guy: the car was "scary fast" and the back seat folded down into a "plush 7 feet of foam padded rabbit fur."

as i noted, there was quite a bit of "X-rated" "attraction" to my "first" Barracuda. but hey - the "sexual revolution" of "the swinging 60's" was in full bloom and i was a guy in high school - and i was VERY popular in high school...

here's a not too good pic of this "famed" car...

my original barracuda.jpg
 
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jimharvard said:
well.... i became an "A-body fan" 47 years ago. it's a little bit of an "X-rated" story so i won't go into a lot of detail.

it was 1970 and i was a 16 year old "testosterone" driven and a little crazy sophomore male in high school in Glen Dale, West Virginia. i loved cars and "anything" FAST! i had already owned a few motorcycles and was in love with all the muscle cars detroit was building. i also was running around with some "motor head" guys who were a couple of years older than i who had friends that had graduated from high school and had good jobs at the local steel mill and coal mines. on the weekends we hung out at the "back row" of the covered canopy of the local Big Boy drive-in burger joint. the "canopy" was where all the muscle cars were. because gas was cheap and a job at the steel mill or coal mine could pay for about any muscle car in about 6 months, there were LOTS of fast cars around. back then, the "Chevy", "Ford", "Mopar" rivalry was in full tilt so "someone" had one or more of all the muscle car models these companies were building. there were small and big block Corvettes; most all of the Mustangs and other "Cobra" FoMoCo models; GTO's, Chevelles, Camaro's, Nova's, Roadrunners, GTX's and first and second gen Barracudas. one guy had built a 66 Barracuda fastback street/strip car with a 440 and a "straight axle" under the front. THAT car was ALWAYS a hit with the canopy "back row" guys.

along with eating "Big Boy double-decker" hambergers, frys and milkshakes, the Big Boy was the place where everyone met to arrange street races. it was common for scores of cars to leave the lot late on a friday or saturday night for one of the several long stretches of state highway around the area. watching these races i knew i had to get a "fast car" and start trying to score "bragging rights" either from the longest two black lines left on a highway somewhere or from "blowing the doors off" of one of the many cars listed above in one of the many nightly street races.

i "found a car" at the local Plymouth dealer belonging to one of the young mechanics. this guy had ordered a new 68 340 4 speed fastback formula S Barracuda and then added Hooker fender-well headers; a 3:91 gear; edlebroc "high rise" manifold; a Holley 750 dp carb; a Hurst comp-plus shifter; pinion snubber; shafer "racing" clutch and pressure plate; and a clutch fan. this car with open headers and 8" slicks was turning low to mid 12's consistently at a local drag strip. the car had a little over 20k miles on it when i bought it and i paid $2200.00 - which was a LOT of money back then.

so this "A-body Mopar" IMMEDIATELY inflated my teenage ego through wild tire-frying burnouts while leaving "the Big Boy" restrauant and better yet - i NEVER got beat in a street race with this car! pretty much EVERY "factory" stock muscle car that pulled beside my Barracuda late at night on one of the straight state roads ended up seeing my tail lights from between 1 to 3 car lengths. having "the fastest" street car in town was like "a drug" to my teenage, gear head brain.

but there was another aspect of my initial and IMMEDIATE "love affair" with my "first" A-body Mopar. this car came with the fold-down back seat and when it was folded down, the "cargo" area was like 7 feet by almost 4 feet. given that my entire life at that point revolved around "fast cars" and "fast girls", i felt the "back seat area" needed a little "alteration" just like the rest of the car. so one weekend, me and a buddy removed all the factory trim in the back, installed a 1" thick foam rubber mattress cover on the back of the seat, rear floor under the window and the "fold down" cargo door to the trunk. on top of this foam rubber i installed "synthetic white rabbit fur." when all the trim was put back in place, the back of my Barracuda looked like a "Vegas show-girl stage prop." remember, this was 1970-1971 - ALL "youth" "loved" muscle cars - especially most of the girls. they "got excited" from "going fast." needless-to-say, my "love affair" with my 68 Barracuda included two extremely important factors to a 16 year old guy: the car was "scary fast" and the back seat folded down into a "plush 7 feet of foam padded rabbit fur."

as i noted, there was quite a bit of "X-rated" "attraction" to my "first" Barracuda. but hey - the "sexual revolution" of "the swinging 60's" was in full bloom and i was a guy in high school - and i was VERY popular in high school...

here's a not too good pic of this "famed" car...

View attachment 1715049943
Click to expand...
You know what else works? modifying the pillion pad on that sporty you had too. A buddy of mine removed a bit of foam on the P pad on his big twin ,and inserted a golf ball. Then he reinstalled the vinyl. He would take the ladies on rides on the bike, and keep the RPMs just right for maximum vibration. They dont call em the original milwaukee vibrator for nothing lol
 
I "wasn't" really an A-Body fan.....
I always wanted a Barracuda. ....since I was 12 looking at Car Craft magazines.
Over the years I ended up with some really nice Stingrays but never got my Mopar.
The ONLY Barracudas I liked besides E-Bodies were notchbacks. ...didn't even know they were "A-Bodies"......
I wouldn't even consider a fastback. ....
I found my 1968 Notch-Back 2 years ago this month and I couldn't be happier! !!!!
I freakin love my Cuda! NOW I'm an A-Body fan!

20170319_122911.jpg

Jeff
 
I don't consider myself a Mopar fan. I saw this little red car in a customers farmyard and did not recognize what it was. It kind of looked like a mini-challenger. I asked Jim what the car was and he told me it was a Barracuda. I had never seen a Barracuda coupe that year before and decided I had to own that car. It took me six months to convince Jim to sell me the car and now that I own it I am a 67 Barracuda coupe fan, incidental that it happens to be an A-body. I admit to lusting in my heart for a 69 Dart 4 speed car though.

MyCar.JPG
 
While I have worked at a major Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram for the past 19 years, I have owned several classic, muscle and hot rod vehicles. I was constantly getting bashed at work for not ever having a MOPAR. I started out with a 67 Mustang Fastback which I actullly owned twice. (I can't believe I let this one go twice) From there it was a 32 roadster, a 32 five window, a 46 Ford and a 54 Pontiac Street Rod. This past year I bought a Dart with a 318/904. I can honestly say I will never buy another classic MOPAR. Parts are far more difficult. more expensive, engine work is more expensive and finding a good MOPAR mechanic is near impossible. Now I know why everyone prefers a small block chevy. Simple, inexpensive, and almost anyone can fix them. Maybe if I was racing; it would be different, but I just simply want to cruise with confidence and trouble-free driving. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my current car, but it will be my first and last classic MOPAR. For daily drivers, I have run with Chrysler products for the last 30+ years and every vehicle has performed perfectly so my daily drivers will continue to be Chrysler products.
 
Well for me I was primarily a GM fan having owed around 15 GM a bodies. I also built a 72 RS Camaro. But I was sitting in my 66 Buick Skylark conv. Eating my lunch one day when a notchback barracuda with big tires went by and I could not stop thinking about that car. Years later I Had just finished the Camaro but my girlfriend at the time (Broadzilla) had 2 kids that always complained about the lack of room in the back seat so I traded the Camaro for a 69 GTO conv. Clone. It was a POS. I was on my home from work when I saw a 68 Notch for sale. Long story short I traded the GTO for the little Notch and now own a 67 Notch as well as a 68 Fastback.
 
simply - my first non hand me down car was a 74 Dart Swinger... that hooked me and then I got a 72 Scamp - line and sinker. :thumbsup:
 
My dad aways bought old ex highway patrol cars with 440's. So, my first car was a 74 dart sport 318-3speed man. Wasn't fast enough, so i bout a rusted out 73 340 dart sport, overhauled it, hopped it up etc; stuck it in the 74. Had a 2.72 ish open rear. Remember 75 mph in 1st., speedo (100) wrapped in 2nd. and was like driving boat on the river in 3rd. drifting lane to lane. Then a 4spd., then a 74 Challenger, a 74 Power Wagon 4spd. Etc; Now a 89 Ramcharger, 86 short box 440 mud truck and a 72 Swinger 6. Still got that same 340, is going into swinger.
 
The first true Mopar in the family was the '59 Fury my mom bought brand new to replace the '54 Hudson that was the family car when my dad unexpectedly passed at a very young age in 1956. I was always impressed by the styling of that '59 Fury.
Later, my mom remarried and the family became an Oldsmobile family. My first car was a '64 Olds F-85 that I went to college with and was still driving when I got married. This was our only car for a few months until we decided we needed a 2nd car. My mom worked at the school district credit union and knew of one of their members whose son had joined the Navy and was selling a car he'd recently purchased brand new. We went to look at it and I fell in love as soon as I saw it - a 2-month old '69 Swinger 340, R4 Red with a white butt stripe and Cragars.
Been hooked on A-bodies ever since.
Sure wish I still that Dart, but my "new" '69 Dart should be out of "paint prison" in a couple of months!
 
Nice camaro you had. Mopars are cooler though IMHO, A 67 barracuda looks nothing like a camaro. Just like your valiant looks nothing like a nova.
 
The first car I remember as a kid was a Tan late 70s New Port 4 door. My Dad always to this day has Mopars (Mostly trucks though). My first vehicle was a 75 Dodge truck with a 318 and an automatic. I had Cragar SS wheels with big N-50s out back. Later I swapped a 68 383 in the truck and my brother promptly rolled it. I still have it. I had a 74 Barracuda for a short time but never did anything with it before I sold it.

A few Dodge short box trucks later, I started looking for a 74 Charger SE. That is the car I thought I wanted. Well I never found the right Charger but I did find the right 74 Duster. With the help of FABO, I have become a full out A Body nut with a 80% complete drivable 74 Duster. I still want that Charger, and some more short box trucks, but I think I'm gonna buy another Duster to use up some of the spare parts I have laying around.

Thanks for all the help FABO community!

Cley
 
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