Desirable Plymouths

The Barracuda beat the Mustang to market by a couple of weeks in 1964 — and history barely noticed. Decades later, a single example sold for a record-breaking $3.5 million.

The Pioneer Nobody Remembers as the Pioneer

Being first doesn't always mean being remembered first. The Barracuda arrived in April 1964, technically inventing the pony car segment before the Mustang did, but Ford's marketing muscle and sales volume buried that timing almost immediately, and the Barracuda spent years living in the Mustang's shadow regardless. That changed dramatically once collectors caught up with what Chrysler had actually built on the later E-body platform: a 1971 Hemi 'Cuda convertible, one of just eleven built with the 426 Hemi and a four-speed manual, sold at auction in 2014 for $3.5 million, the highest price ever paid for a Detroit muscle car of its era.

That kind of value is a genuinely dramatic reversal for a car that once lived in a rival's shadow, and it's the E-body Barracuda's combination of rarity, the right engine, and a body style that's aged into something genuinely striking that's driven prices this high. Below is the model we've covered so far.

• Plymouth Barracuda Overview — Classic Icon